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While plenty of artists have taken inspiration from high fantasy, rarely any have truly lived the mythical existence. Certainly, they could embellish their album sleeves with ghouls, beasts, chained damsels and strong fighters, but has any musician ever been forced to find a lost mythical horn from a wintry landscape in the heart of winter? Has a guitarist devoted hours peering in the rear of a road transport, mending their own metal mesh?

Embracing the Mythos

Created in 2019, Brooklyn’s Castle Rat have dealt with both these scenarios and additional ones as they embody their heroic dreams. Starting with knightly, earworm-heavy tunes to breathtaking concerts, outfit creation, videos and album art, they’re more than a rock act as a total artistic immersion.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a costumed concept band,” says singer, guitarist, sword-carrier and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the musicians’ transport speeds from a packed show in Cologne to one more in Aschaffenburg – they have five gigs in the UK now. “Initially, we performed twice and got booked on a Halloween gig, where I chose at the final moment to dress up. Everything was completely self-made, but we had an amazing time and the feeling in the room was electric. I realized, ‘Imagine if we could have so much excitement every time?’”

Development of Castle Rat

After that, the band – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Rat Queen” joined by a plague doctor (bassist), haughty vampire (lead guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (percussionist) – never turned back. Their latest album, the follow-up record, brings to mind of legendary heavy bands collaborating to struggle onward through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a grand composition that sets them on the brink of far grander things.

The Bestiary was a first for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her collaborators. “It made it a more powerful album,” she says of the group work. “I struggled at first – I often experienced a particular degree of satisfaction as a female in music working independently. I’ve had numerous occasions where I finished performing and a person will say, ‘Those guys compose cool melodies!’ and I think, ‘Hey – I composed all that.’”

Artistry and Imagination

As their fame has increased, so has the scope of their stage presentation. “My philosophy is always that if something is valuable, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. At first, she had been on track for a fine art degree before balking at the prospect of so much debt. “The fun thing about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to express creativity,” she says. “From creating face coverings, attire creation, mastering post-production song visuals … these are all things I have no experience with, but it’s enjoyable to figure it out as we go.”

Even though developing the ensemble’s complex backstory (“People are encouraging me to write it down because everything is stored,” Riley says, indicating her head) and stitching garments didn’t suffice, the vocalist learned on her own how to make chainmail – no mean feat, though she confessedly delegated her completely original scale armor design to a New York-based specialist. “It’s as if actual armour,” she beams.

Crowd Engagement and Difficulties

As for audiences? They embraced the fake blood, foam swords and handmade props with as much gusto as the musicians. “We played a show in Detroit and it looked like a medieval event,” recalls Riley with affection. “Everyone was in cloaks, wool garments, chainmail.”

This isn’t to say, however, that life on the road as fantasy adventurers has been easy. “All our gear is constantly breaking and ends up fixed temporarily,” Riley says. “Additionally I’ll have endless ideas as to how I desire the presentation, but we are on the move in a bus with restricted capacity. It’s an interesting challenge to give the sense like a larger-than-life story, then pack it down into nothing.”

We’ve encountered additional practical issues that wouldn’t have troubled legendary fantasy heroes. “We experienced an ‘disastrous’ moment when we played SonicBlast festival in the European country and my baggage – which had my blade in it – went missing,” says Riley. “That was a worst-case scenario, because we don’t have an different option of the concert where I am without a blade.”

Goals Ahead

As a genuine leader, Riley is enthusiastic about the days to come. “I aim to reach as far as possible – I dream of stadiums,” she says. “The main aspect that’s truly essential to me is keeping the handmade style, guaranteeing all elements is custom-made. That’s an element I want to stay authentic to, whatever we achieve. Oh, and I want to ride out on a magical horse at all performances. Think about how some artists do the motorcycle thing? The same idea, but using a unicorn.”