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Although many rockers have drawn from fantasy lore, rarely any have genuinely embodied the mythical way of life. Certainly, they might decorate their record jackets with creatures, goblins, manacled maidens and brawny barbarians, but has an artist ever been forced to recover a misplaced unicorn horn from a wintry landscape in the heart of winter? Has a performer taken the time peering in the rear of a road transport, mending their own armor?

Living the Fantasy

Created in 2019, the Brooklyn-based Castle Rat have encountered both these scenarios and others as they live out their grand tales. Starting with knightly, earworm-heavy anthems to eye-popping live shows, attire styling, videos and cover artwork, they’re not just a metal band as a complete sensory journey.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a themed musical group,” explains vocalist, guitar player, sword-wielder and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van drives from a packed show in Cologne to a second one in Aschaffenburg – they are playing multiple performances in the UK currently. “After a couple of performances and got booked on a spooky event, where I decided spontaneously to put on an outfit. Everything was completely self-made, but we had a blast and the energy was electric. I thought, ‘How about if we could have this much fun every time?’”

Development of Castle Rat

After that, the group – which features Pinkerton as the “Rodent Monarch” together with a pestilence physician (low-end instrumentalist), haughty vampire (guitarist) and secretive shaman (rhythm keeper) – continued forward. The new record, the group’s sophomore release, conjures visions of legendary heavy bands joining forces to battle their way through a mythical painted realm – a heroic opus that places them on the edge of bigger achievements.

The release was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she opened the floor to her fellow members. “It made it a more powerful album,” she says of the collaborative process. “It was challenging at first – I’d always felt a certain amount of pride as a woman in music doing everything solo. I’ve had multiple instances where after a show and some guy will say, ‘The other members write great riffs!’ and I respond, ‘Listen – I wrote all that.’”

Creative Output and Ideas

As their fame has grown, so has the scale of their production design. “My philosophy is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton laughs. At first, she had been on track for a art school education before balking at the idea of so much debt. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s numerous methods to express artistry,” she says. “From crafting disguises, outfit planning, mastering post-production music videos … it’s all stuff I don’t know how to do, but it’s fun to learn as we go.”

Even though creating the band’s intricate lore (“The team is pushing me to write it down because it’s all in here,” Riley says, pointing to her head) and making clothing wasn’t enough, the vocalist taught herself how to make chainmail – a difficult task, though she confessedly delegated her brand-new scale armor design to a expert from NYC. “It’s as if actual armour,” she beams.

Audience Reaction and Challenges

As for audiences? They loved the theatrical gore, toy blades and handmade props with equal enthusiasm as the band. “We played a concert in the Motor City and it looked like a Renaissance fair,” remembers Riley with affection. “All attendees was in robes, sheepskin, metal wear.”

This isn’t to say, though, that life on the road as mythical wanderers has been smooth. “Everything is always failing and gets duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Moreover I’ll have countless concepts as to how I envision the aesthetics, but we’re traveling in a vehicle with limited room. It’s a unique problem to make it feel like a grand epic, then compress it into nothing.”

We faced additional practical issues that didn’t affect fictional warriors. “We did have an ‘oh shit’ moment when we played SonicBlast festival in Portugal and my luggage – which had my blade in it – got lost,” says Riley. “That was a nightmare, because there’s not an different option of the show where I am without a sword.”

Goals Ahead

As a genuine leader, Riley is gung-ho about the what’s next. “I want to go to the top – I dream of stadiums,” she says. “The key element that’s truly essential to me is maintaining the self-crafted look, ensuring all elements is crafted by us. That’s an element I want to keep true to, no matter what we grow into. Plus, I desire to make an entrance on a mythical beast each show. Think about how famous musicians use vehicles in concerts? The same idea, but on a mythical creature.”