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Although many musicians have taken inspiration from high fantasy, rarely any have fully embraced the enchanted existence. Sure, they may embellish their record jackets with monsters, beasts, chained damsels and muscular warriors, but has an artist ever have to recover a missing unicorn horn from a snowy field in the depths of winter? Did a guitarist devoted hours squinting in the back of a road transport, fixing their own metal mesh?

Living the Fantasy

Established in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have dealt with such situations and more as they act out their epic fantasies. Starting with heraldic, catchy anthems to breathtaking concerts, attire styling, visuals and cover artwork, they’re more than a heavy metal group as a complete sensory journey.

“The band wasn’t intended to be a costumed concept band,” states singer, guitarist, sword-carrier and visionary Riley Pinkerton as the musicians’ transport speeds from a full-capacity concert in a German city to one more in Aschaffenburg – they are playing multiple performances in the UK now. “We played two shows and received an offer on a October show, where I chose at the final moment to put on an outfit. It was all super-DIY, but we had so much fun and the feeling in the room was electric. I realized, ‘What if we could have so much excitement every time?’”

Development of Castle Rat

Since then, the band – which features Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” together with a plague doctor (bass player), proud bloodsucker (guitarist) and secretive shaman (percussionist) – continued forward. The new record, the follow-up record, brings to mind of legendary heavy bands collaborating to battle their way through a heroic art landscape – a epic masterpiece that places them on the verge of greater success.

The release was a first for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her bandmates. “This helped a much better project,” she says of the collaborative process. “I struggled at first – There was a sense of a specific level of accomplishment as a female in music doing everything solo. There’ve been numerous occasions where I’ve got off stage and an audience member will say, ‘Those guys write great riffs!’ and I respond, ‘Listen – I composed all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As the band’s stature has expanded, so has the breadth of their production design. “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 hesitating at the idea of heavy loans. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s numerous methods to apply creativity,” she says. “From making masks, costume design, mastering post-production music videos … everything is I don’t know how to do, but it’s exciting to discover in the moment.”

As if building the band’s intricate lore (“The team is pushing me to document it because it’s all in here,” Riley says, indicating her head) and sewing costumes were insufficient, the singer self-educated how to make chainmail – no mean feat, though she confessedly delegated her all-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a New York-based specialist. “It seems like actual armour,” she grins.

Crowd Engagement and Difficulties

As for audiences? They loved the theatrical gore, soft weapons and crafted rodent bones with similar excitement as the band. “We performed a show in the Motor City and it resembled a historical festival,” recalls Riley with affection. “Everyone was in robes, wool garments, chainmail.”

However, this doesn’t mean, nevertheless, that traveling lifestyle as fantasy adventurers has been smooth. “Everything is always failing and gets fixed temporarily,” Riley says. “Additionally I come up with endless ideas as to how I desire the presentation, but we are on the move in a vehicle with restricted capacity. It’s a unique problem to create the impression like a mythic tale, then pack it down into a small space.”

We’ve encountered additional practical issues that would never have plagued legendary fantasy heroes. “We did have an ‘oh shit’ moment when we performed at a music event in Portugal and my suitcase – which had my blade in it – went missing,” says Riley. “This became a worst-case scenario, because there is no an alternative version of the concert where I am without a sword.”

Upcoming Plans

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is enthusiastic about the future. “My goal is all the way – we should play large venues,” she says. “The main aspect that’s really important to me is keeping the DIY aesthetic, guaranteeing all elements is crafted by us. It’s a component I want to keep true to, no matter what we achieve. Additionally, I desire to make an entrance on a mythical beast at all performances. Think about how famous musicians do the motorcycle thing? That, but using a unicorn.”