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While numerous musicians have drawn from high fantasy, rarely any have genuinely embodied the enchanted lifestyle. Admittedly, they could embellish their album covers with creatures, goblins, manacled maidens and strong fighters, but did a member ever been forced to retrieve a missing horn from a unicorn from a frost-covered ground in the midst of winter? Has a guitarist devoted hours peering in the back of a road transport, repairing their own metal mesh?

Immersed in the Legend

Created in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have had to face such situations and more as they embody their epic fantasies. From medieval-inspired, catchy tunes to breathtaking live shows, outfit creation, videos and album art, they’re not just a rock act as a total artistic immersion.

“The band wasn’t intended to be a themed musical group,” explains singer, guitarist, sword-carrier and artistic leader Riley Pinkerton as the group’s vehicle drives from a packed show in a German city to one more in Aschaffenburg – they have five gigs in the UK now. “After a couple of performances and got booked on a spooky event, where I made a last-minute decision to dress up. It was all super-DIY, but we had so much fun and the feeling in the room was electric. I thought, ‘Imagine if we could have such enjoyment every time?’”

Development of Castle Rat

Since then, the band – which features Pinkerton as the “Rat Queen” together with a medic from history (bassist), haughty vampire (six-string player) and secretive shaman (percussionist) – never turned back. Their latest album, the group’s sophomore release, conjures visions of classic metal icons joining forces to fight their path through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a heroic opus that sets them on the verge of far grander things.

This album was a new experience for Pinkerton in that she opened the floor to her bandmates. “That contributed to a more powerful album,” she says of the team effort. “I had difficulty at first – There was a sense of a certain amount of accomplishment as a female in music working independently. There have been so many times where I finished performing and a person will say, ‘The other members write great riffs!’ and I think, ‘Hey – I created all that.’”

Creative Output and Ideas

As the band’s stature has expanded, so has the scale of their stage presentation. “The saying I live by is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton smiles. She was originally on track for a art school education before hesitating at the prospect of so much debt. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s numerous methods to express artistic expression,” she says. “Whether it’s crafting disguises, costume design, figuring out video editing music videos … it’s all stuff I have no experience with, but it’s enjoyable to discover as we go.”

As if developing the group’s detailed mythology (“People are encouraging me to write it down because it’s all in here,” Riley says, pointing to her head) and stitching garments wasn’t enough, the singer taught herself how to make chainmail – a difficult task, though she confessedly entrusted her completely original scale armor design to a expert from NYC. “It seems like actual armour,” she beams.

Fan Response and Obstacles

Regarding the fans? They loved the theatrical gore, toy blades and papier-mache rat skulls with as much gusto as the musicians. “We performed a gig in the Motor City and it looked like a historical festival,” reminisces Riley happily. “Everyone was in robes, wool garments, metal wear.”

However, this doesn’t mean, though, that touring existence as fantasy adventurers has been plain sailing. “Everything is constantly breaking and ends up duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Moreover I come up with endless ideas 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 larger-than-life story, then store it into nothing.”

We faced other logistical problems that wouldn’t have troubled legendary fantasy heroes. “We experienced an ‘oh shit’ moment when we performed at a music event in the European country and my baggage – which had my weapon in it – was misplaced,” says Riley. “That was a worst-case scenario, because there is no an alternative version of the concert where I lack a blade.”

Goals Ahead

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is enthusiastic about the what’s next. “I aim to reach all the way – we should play huge arenas,” she says. “The key element that’s deeply meaningful to me is keeping the DIY aesthetic, ensuring all elements is handmade. It’s a component I want to stay authentic to, no matter what we achieve. Plus, I wish to ride out on a mythical beast every night. Remember how famous musicians use vehicles in concerts? Exactly that, but with a unicorn.”