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Although many artists have taken inspiration from high fantasy, only a handful have truly lived the mythical lifestyle. Certainly, they could adorn their record jackets with monsters, imps, manacled maidens and muscular warriors, but has any musician ever been forced to retrieve a lost horn from a unicorn from a snowy field in the heart of winter? Did a guitarist devoted hours straining their eyes in the interior of a tour bus, mending their own armor?

Immersed in the Legend

Formed in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have had to face such situations and more as they embody their grand tales. Starting with medieval-inspired, earworm-heavy tunes to stunning live shows, attire styling, visuals and album art, they’re not just a heavy metal group as a full immersive experience.

“It wasn’t planned to be a costumed concept band,” explains singer, guitar player, blade-handler and artistic leader Riley Pinkerton as the musicians’ transport travels from a sold-out gig in a German city to one more in another town – they’re also doing several shows in the UK now. “We played two shows and were scheduled on a spooky event, where I made a last-minute decision to wear a costume. It was all super-DIY, but we had so much fun and the feeling in the room was electric. It occurred to me, ‘What if we could have such enjoyment always?’”

The Band’s Evolution

After that, the ensemble – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” together with a plague doctor (bassist), aristocratic undead (lead guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (drummer) – continued forward. Their latest album, the follow-up record, conjures visions of famous rock groups collaborating to battle their way through a heroic art landscape – a grand composition that places them on the brink of greater success.

The release was a new experience for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her bandmates. “This helped a lot stronger record,” she says of the group work. “It was challenging at first – There was a sense of a certain amount of accomplishment being a woman in music working independently. There have been so many times where I finished performing and an audience member will say, ‘Those guys write great riffs!’ and I’m like, ‘Listen – I composed all that.’”

Creative Output and Ideas

With their growing popularity has increased, so has the breadth of their stage presentation. “My motto is always that if something is valuable, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. She was originally on course for a art school education before pulling back at the possibility of heavy loans. “The exciting part about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to apply creativity,” she says. “From making masks, attire creation, learning how to edit clips … everything is I don’t know how to do, but it’s exciting to discover on the fly.”

As if building the group’s detailed mythology (“The team is pushing me to record it because everything is stored,” Riley says, indicating her head) and stitching garments were insufficient, the vocalist learned on her own how to create armor – no mean feat, though she confessedly entrusted her brand-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a expert from NYC. “It’s as if actual armour,” she smiles proudly.

Fan Response and Obstacles

What about the crowd? They took to the stage blood, toy blades and handmade props with equal enthusiasm as the band. “We performed a gig in Detroit and it looked like a Renaissance fair,” remembers Riley fondly. “All attendees was in capes, wool garments, armor.”

That’s not to imply, though, that life on the road as mythical wanderers has been plain sailing. “Each item is always failing and ends up repaired with tape,” Riley says. “Moreover I’ll have countless concepts as to how I want things to look, but we tour in a vehicle with only so much space. It’s an interesting challenge to create the impression like a larger-than-life story, then store it into a small space.”

There have been additional practical issues that didn’t affect fictional warriors. “We experienced an ‘oh shit’ moment when we appeared at SonicBlast festival in Portugal and my baggage – which had my weapon in it – went missing,” says Riley. “That was a terrible situation, because there’s not an different option of the concert where I lack a weapon.”

Goals Ahead

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is enthusiastic about the future. “I want to go to the top – I dream of huge arenas,” she says. “The only thing that’s deeply meaningful to me is keeping the self-crafted look, ensuring all elements is handmade. That’s an element I want to stay authentic to, whatever we grow into. Oh, and I want to ride out on a unicorn every night. Think about how famous musicians do the motorcycle thing? The same idea, but on a mythical creature.”