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Although numerous rockers have drawn from high fantasy, rarely any have genuinely embodied the enchanted way of life. Certainly, they may decorate their album covers with creatures, imps, chained damsels and strong fighters, but did a member ever have to retrieve a misplaced mythical horn from a wintry landscape in the heart of winter? Has anyone spent time squinting in the interior of a traveling vehicle, mending their own armor?

Embracing the Mythos

Established in 2019, Brooklyn’s Castle Rat have encountered such situations and others as they live out their heroic dreams. Starting with heraldic, earworm-heavy anthems to eye-popping live shows, costume design, visuals and cover artwork, they’re not so much a metal band as a complete sensory journey.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a costumed concept band,” says vocalist, guitar player, blade-handler and artistic leader Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van drives from a sold-out gig in Cologne to one more in another town – they are playing several shows in the UK currently. “After a couple of performances and were scheduled on a Halloween gig, where I made a last-minute decision to put on an outfit. The entire setup was completely self-made, but we had a blast and the energy was unforgettable. I realized, ‘What if we could have so much excitement every time?’”

The Band’s Evolution

From that point on, the band – which features Pinkerton as the “Rodent Monarch” joined by a pestilence physician (bass player), haughty vampire (lead guitarist) and mysterious druid (rhythm keeper) – never turned back. The new record, the band’s second album, conjures visions of legendary heavy bands uniting to struggle onward through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a epic masterpiece that sets them on the verge of bigger achievements.

The release was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her fellow members. “This helped a lot stronger album,” she says of the team effort. “I struggled at first – There was a sense of a certain amount of satisfaction as a female in music going it alone. There’ve been so many times where after a show and an audience member will say, ‘The other members compose cool melodies!’ and I think, ‘Wait – I wrote all that.’”

Artistry and Imagination

With their growing popularity has expanded, so has the scope of their stage presentation. “The saying I live by is always that if something is valuable, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton smiles. She was originally on track for a art school education before pulling back at the idea of so much debt. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s various avenues to apply artistic expression,” she says. “Be it crafting disguises, attire creation, figuring out video editing song visuals … everything is I have no experience with, but it’s fun to learn in the moment.”

As if creating the band’s intricate lore (“People are encouraging me to document it because it’s all in here,” Riley says, tapping her head) and sewing costumes were insufficient, the singer learned on her own how to create armor – no mean feat, though she confessedly left her brand-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a professional in the city. “It feels like actual armour,” she grins.

Crowd Engagement and Difficulties

What about the crowd? They embraced the stage blood, toy blades and crafted rodent bones with similar excitement as the musicians. “We played a concert in Detroit and it seemed like a Renaissance fair,” remembers Riley fondly. “Everyone was in capes, wool garments, armor.”

That’s not to imply, however, that touring existence as sword’n’sorcery vagabonds has been easy. “Each item is always failing and gets duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Additionally I come up with countless concepts as to how I want things to look, but we tour in a vehicle with restricted capacity. It’s a unique problem to make it feel like a mythic tale, then compress it into nothing.”

We’ve encountered further organizational challenges that didn’t affect fictional warriors. “There was an ‘disastrous’ moment when we appeared at a music event in Portugal and my luggage – which had my weapon in it – was misplaced,” says Riley. “This became a terrible situation, because there is no an different option of the show where I am without a sword.”

Upcoming Plans

As a genuine leader, Riley is gung-ho about the days to come. “I want to go to the top – I dream of large venues,” she says. “The key element that’s deeply meaningful to me is maintaining the handmade style, ensuring everything is custom-made. That’s an element I want to keep true to, regardless of we grow into. Oh, and I want to ride out on a mythical beast at all performances. You know how famous musicians use vehicles in concerts? Exactly that, but using a unicorn.”