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Although many artists have borrowed from fantasy lore, only a handful have truly lived the enchanted way of life. Sure, they could embellish their record jackets with ghouls, imps, captive women and muscular warriors, but has any musician ever have to recover a missing horn from a unicorn from a frost-covered ground in the heart of winter? Did a performer devoted hours straining their eyes in the rear of a traveling vehicle, mending their own chainmail?

Immersed in the Legend

Created in 2019, Brooklyn’s Castle Rat have dealt with both these scenarios and more as they act out their heroic dreams. From heraldic, memorable tunes to stunning performances, attire styling, videos and album art, they’re not just a metal band as a complete sensory journey.

“The band wasn’t intended to be a themed musical group,” explains vocalist, guitarist, blade-handler and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van speeds from a full-capacity concert in Cologne to a second one in Aschaffenburg – they’re also doing five gigs in the UK this week. “After a couple of performances and got booked on a spooky event, where I made a last-minute decision to put on an outfit. It was all highly handmade, but we had an amazing time and the feeling in the room was incredible. It occurred to me, ‘How about if we could have so much excitement always?’”

The Band’s Evolution

Since then, the group – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Rodent Monarch” joined by a plague doctor (bassist), haughty vampire (lead guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (drummer) – haven’t looked back. Their latest album, the follow-up record, conjures visions of famous rock groups joining forces to fight their path through a mythical painted realm – a grand composition that positions them on the brink of greater success.

The Bestiary was a first for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her collaborators. “It made it a lot stronger project,” she says of the team effort. “It was challenging at first – There was a sense of a certain amount of accomplishment being a woman in music doing everything solo. There’ve been so many times where after a show and some guy will say, ‘The other members compose cool melodies!’ and I respond, ‘Hey – I created all that.’”

Creative Output and Ideas

With their growing popularity has grown, so has the scope of their visual elements. “My philosophy is always that if something is valuable, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. At first, she had been on course for a art school education before hesitating at the idea of financial burden. “The exciting part about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to express artistic expression,” she says. “Whether it’s crafting disguises, costume design, figuring out video editing music videos … everything is I am unfamiliar with, but it’s exciting to figure it out on the fly.”

As if developing the ensemble’s complex backstory (“The team is pushing me to write it down because all the ideas are,” Riley says, indicating her head) and making clothing were insufficient, the singer learned on her own how to create armor – a challenging endeavor, though she admittedly left her all-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a expert from NYC. “It’s as if actual armour,” she grins.

Fan Response and Obstacles

As for audiences? They loved the fake blood, toy blades and handmade props with as much gusto as the musicians. “We performed a gig in the Motor City and it seemed like a Renaissance fair,” recalls Riley with affection. “Everyone was in cloaks, sheepskin, armor.”

However, this doesn’t mean, nevertheless, that traveling lifestyle as mythical wanderers has been smooth. “Everything is always failing and gets duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Moreover I come up with countless concepts as to how I desire the presentation, but we’re traveling in a van with restricted capacity. It’s a unique problem to give the sense like a mythic tale, then compress it into nothing.”

There have been additional practical issues that didn’t affect mythic characters. “There was an ‘oh shit’ moment when we performed at a Portuguese festival in the European country and my baggage – which had my blade in it – got lost,” says Riley. “That was a terrible situation, because we don’t have an different option of the show where I lack a weapon.”

Goals Ahead

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is enthusiastic about the future. “I aim to reach as far as possible – I dream of huge arenas,” she says. “The only thing that’s truly essential to me is preserving the handmade style, guaranteeing each detail is crafted by us. It’s a component I want to remain faithful to, regardless of we achieve. Plus, I want to make an entrance on a mythical beast each show. Remember how famous musicians ride bikes on stage? The same idea, but on a mythical creature.”