🔗 Share this article

While plenty of artists have taken inspiration from fantasy lore, only a handful have truly lived the fantasy existence. Admittedly, they might decorate their album sleeves with monsters, imps, chained damsels and muscular warriors, but did a member ever needed to recover a misplaced horn from a unicorn from a wintry landscape in the heart of winter? Has a performer taken the time squinting in the back of a tour bus, mending their own chainmail?

Living the Fantasy

Created in 2019, the Brooklyn-based Castle Rat have dealt with these exact challenges and additional ones as they act out their heroic dreams. From heraldic, memorable anthems to breathtaking performances, costume design, visuals and album art, they’re not so much a heavy metal group as a complete sensory journey.

“It wasn’t planned to be a outfit with characters,” states vocalist, guitarist, blade-handler and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the musicians’ transport drives from a sold-out gig in Cologne to a second one in another town – they’re also doing five gigs in the UK now. “We played two shows and got booked on a Halloween gig, where I chose at the final moment to wear a costume. Everything was super-DIY, but we had a blast and the energy was incredible. I realized, ‘How about if we could have so much excitement every time?’”

Growth of the Group

Since then, the band – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” alongside a plague doctor (bass player), aristocratic undead (six-string player) and mysterious druid (rhythm keeper) – never turned back. The new record, the group’s sophomore release, brings to mind of famous rock groups joining forces to fight their path through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a epic masterpiece that sets them on the verge of far grander things.

The release was a first for Pinkerton in that she opened the floor to her fellow members. “It made it a much better album,” she says of the team effort. “It was challenging at first – I often experienced a specific level of satisfaction as a female in music going it alone. There’ve been so many times where after a show and some guy will say, ‘The other members create awesome guitar parts!’ and I’m like, ‘Wait – I wrote all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As the band’s stature has expanded, so has the scale of their stage presentation. “My philosophy is always that if an effort matters, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton smiles. Initially, she was on path for a university studies in art before pulling back at the prospect of heavy loans. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s numerous methods to express creativity,” she says. “Whether it’s making masks, costume design, learning how to edit song visuals … everything is I have no experience with, but it’s fun to learn as we go.”

Even though building the group’s detailed mythology (“Everyone’s urging me to write it down because everything is stored,” Riley says, indicating her head) and sewing costumes wasn’t enough, the vocalist learned on her own how to create armor – no mean feat, though she admittedly left her completely original scalemail look to a professional in the city. “It seems like actual armour,” she beams.

Fan Response and Obstacles

Regarding the fans? They took to the stage blood, foam swords and papier-mache rat skulls with as much gusto as the group. “We played a show in Detroit and it seemed like a medieval event,” remembers Riley happily. “The whole crowd was in capes, animal hides, armor.”

That’s not to imply, however, that traveling lifestyle as fantasy adventurers has been easy. “All our gear is constantly breaking and becomes duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Plus I come up with 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 give the sense like a grand epic, then compress it into minimal luggage.”

There have been further organizational challenges that didn’t affect legendary fantasy heroes. “We experienced an ‘disastrous’ moment when we played a music event in the European country and my luggage – which had my blade in it – got lost,” says Riley. “This became a nightmare, because there is no an alternative version of the concert where I lack a weapon.”

Upcoming Plans

In the spirit of a hero, Riley is eager about the future. “I aim to reach all the way – we should play large venues,” she says. “The main aspect that’s really important to me is keeping the handmade style, ensuring everything is crafted by us. It’s a component I want to stay authentic to, whatever we scale to. Oh, and I desire to appear on a magical horse each show. You know how legends do the motorcycle thing? That, but on a mythical creature.”