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Although numerous rockers have borrowed from epic fantasy, only a handful have genuinely embodied the mythical way of life. Admittedly, they might adorn their album covers with monsters, beasts, manacled maidens and brawny barbarians, but has any musician ever been forced to find a misplaced unicorn horn from a frost-covered ground in the midst of winter? Did anyone taken the time squinting in the back of a traveling vehicle, repairing their own metal mesh?

Embracing the Mythos

Created in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have had to face these exact challenges and more as they act out their grand tales. From knightly, memorable songs to eye-popping performances, costume design, music videos and cover artwork, they’re more than a heavy metal group as a full immersive experience.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a costumed concept band,” says singer, guitarist, blade-handler and visionary Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van drives from a sold-out gig in a German city to another in Aschaffenburg – they have several shows in the UK currently. “After a couple of performances and got booked on a Halloween gig, where I made a last-minute decision to wear a costume. The entire setup was completely self-made, but we had a blast and the energy was electric. It occurred to me, ‘Imagine if we could have this much fun at every show?’”

The Band’s Evolution

Since then, the ensemble – which features Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” together with a medic from history (low-end instrumentalist), proud bloodsucker (six-string player) and enigmatic nature priest (drummer) – never turned back. The new record, the follow-up record, evokes images of classic metal icons collaborating to fight their path through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a grand composition that sets them on the verge of far grander things.

The release was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her bandmates. “That contributed to a much better album,” she says of the group work. “I struggled at first – I often experienced a particular degree of accomplishment as a female in music doing everything solo. There have been multiple instances where I finished performing and a person will say, ‘The other members compose cool melodies!’ and I think, ‘Hey – I wrote all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As their fame has grown, so has the breadth of their stage presentation. “My philosophy is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. Initially, she was on track for a fine art degree before hesitating at the prospect of heavy loans. “The exciting part about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to demonstrate artistic expression,” she says. “Be it crafting disguises, attire creation, mastering post-production music videos … it’s all stuff I don’t know how to do, but it’s exciting to learn as we go.”

Even though creating the ensemble’s complex backstory (“Everyone’s urging me to write it down because it’s all in here,” Riley says, pointing to her head) and stitching garments didn’t suffice, the singer self-educated how to make chainmail – a challenging endeavor, though she confessedly entrusted her all-new scalemail look to a New York-based specialist. “It seems like actual armour,” she grins.

Fan Response and Obstacles

What about the crowd? They loved the theatrical gore, toy blades and crafted rodent bones with similar excitement as the band. “We had a concert in Detroit and it looked like a medieval event,” remembers Riley happily. “The whole crowd was in capes, sheepskin, armor.”

However, this doesn’t mean, however, that life on the road as fantasy adventurers has been smooth. “Everything is always failing and becomes fixed temporarily,” Riley says. “Additionally I get endless ideas as to how I want things to look, but we are on the move in a vehicle with restricted capacity. It’s a unique problem to give the sense like a mythic tale, then pack it down into nothing.”

We’ve encountered additional practical issues that wouldn’t have troubled fictional warriors. “We did have an ‘uh-oh’ moment when we played a music event in the European country and my suitcase – which had my blade in it – was misplaced,” says Riley. “This became a worst-case scenario, because there’s not an alternative version of the performance where I lack a weapon.”

Upcoming Plans

As a genuine leader, Riley is eager about the future. “My goal is as far as possible – let’s do huge arenas,” she says. “The only thing that’s truly essential to me is preserving the DIY aesthetic, guaranteeing all elements is crafted by us. It’s a component I want to remain faithful to, regardless of we grow into. Oh, and I want to appear on a unicorn every night. Think about how some artists use vehicles in concerts? That, but on a mythical creature.”