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While numerous artists have taken inspiration from fantasy lore, rarely any have fully embraced the enchanted existence. Certainly, they may decorate their record jackets with creatures, beasts, chained damsels and strong fighters, but did a member ever needed to recover a missing mythical horn from a wintry landscape in the midst of winter? Did a guitarist spent time straining their eyes in the interior of a tour bus, repairing their own armor?

Immersed in the Legend

Created in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have had to face these exact challenges and more as they embody their epic fantasies. From heraldic, earworm-heavy tunes to eye-popping concerts, outfit creation, visuals and cover artwork, they’re more than a heavy metal group as a total artistic immersion.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a costumed concept band,” says singer, guitarist, sword-carrier and visionary Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van drives from a full-capacity concert in Cologne to one more in Aschaffenburg – they’re also doing several shows in the UK this week. “We played two shows and received an offer on a Halloween gig, where I made a last-minute decision to wear a costume. It was all super-DIY, but we had an amazing time and the feeling in the room was incredible. I realized, ‘What if we could have such enjoyment always?’”

Growth of the Group

After that, the band – which features Pinkerton as the “Rat Queen” alongside a pestilence physician (bassist), haughty vampire (guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (rhythm keeper) – haven’t looked back. The Bestiary, the follow-up record, conjures visions of classic metal icons joining forces to battle their way through a heroic art landscape – a heroic opus that places them on the verge of far grander things.

The Bestiary was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her bandmates. “This helped a more powerful record,” she says of the collaborative process. “I had difficulty at first – I’d always felt a particular degree of satisfaction being a woman in music working independently. I’ve had so many times where I finished performing and some guy will say, ‘The other members create awesome guitar parts!’ and I’m like, ‘Hey – I composed all that.’”

Artistry and Imagination

With their growing popularity has increased, so has the scope of their production design. “The saying I live by is always that if an effort matters, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. At first, she had been on path for a fine art degree before balking at the prospect of heavy loans. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s various avenues to express creativity,” she says. “From crafting disguises, outfit planning, learning how to edit clips … everything is I am unfamiliar with, but it’s fun to learn on the fly.”

As if creating the group’s detailed mythology (“People are encouraging me to document it because all the ideas are,” Riley says, pointing to her head) and making clothing didn’t suffice, the singer taught herself how to craft metal mesh – a challenging endeavor, though she confessedly left her completely original scale armor design to a professional in the city. “It seems like actual armour,” she grins.

Fan Response and Obstacles

As for audiences? They loved the stage blood, toy blades and papier-mache rat skulls with similar excitement as the band. “We played a show in Detroit and it looked like a Renaissance fair,” reminisces Riley with affection. “All attendees was in robes, sheepskin, metal wear.”

That’s not to imply, though, that life on the road as sword’n’sorcery vagabonds has been smooth. “Everything is constantly breaking and ends up fixed temporarily,” Riley says. “Additionally I get endless ideas as to how I desire the presentation, but we tour in a vehicle with limited room. It’s a fascinating test to make it feel like a mythic tale, then compress it into minimal luggage.”

We faced additional practical issues that didn’t affect legendary fantasy heroes. “There was an ‘uh-oh’ moment when we performed at a music event in Portugal and my baggage – which had my sword in it – got lost,” says Riley. “That was a worst-case scenario, because there’s not an backup plan of the performance where I lack a sword.”

Upcoming Plans

In the spirit of a hero, Riley is enthusiastic about the future. “I aim to reach as far as possible – I dream of huge arenas,” she says. “The key element that’s really important to me is preserving the DIY aesthetic, ensuring everything is crafted by us. This is a feature I want to stay authentic to, regardless of we scale to. Plus, I wish to make an entrance on a magical horse at all performances. Remember how famous musicians ride bikes on stage? Exactly that, but with a unicorn.”