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While many musicians have taken inspiration from epic fantasy, only a handful have genuinely embodied the enchanted lifestyle. Admittedly, they could adorn their record jackets with ghouls, beasts, chained damsels and strong fighters, but did a member ever have to retrieve a misplaced horn from a unicorn from a frost-covered ground in the heart of winter? Has a performer taken the time straining their eyes in the rear of a traveling vehicle, repairing their own armor?

Living the Fantasy

Created in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have had to face both these scenarios and additional ones as they embody their epic fantasies. Starting with heraldic, catchy songs to breathtaking live shows, outfit creation, visuals and album art, they’re not so much a heavy metal group as a full immersive experience.

“It wasn’t planned to be a themed musical group,” states vocalist, guitarist, blade-handler and visionary Riley Pinkerton as the group’s vehicle travels from a full-capacity concert in a German city to one more in another town – they are playing several shows in the UK this week. “Initially, we performed twice and received an offer on a Halloween gig, where I made a last-minute decision to wear a costume. It was all highly handmade, but we had so much fun and the atmosphere was electric. It occurred to me, ‘Imagine if we could have this much fun every time?’”

Development of Castle Rat

From that point on, the ensemble – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” joined by a medic from history (bassist), proud bloodsucker (six-string player) and secretive shaman (rhythm keeper) – continued forward. The new record, the band’s second album, evokes images of famous rock groups joining forces to battle their way through a heroic art landscape – a grand composition that places them on the verge of bigger achievements.

The release was a new experience for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her bandmates. “That contributed to a lot stronger record,” she says of the group work. “I struggled at first – I often experienced a certain amount of accomplishment being a woman in music working independently. There’ve been multiple instances where after a show and an audience member will say, ‘Those guys create awesome guitar parts!’ and I respond, ‘Hey – I wrote all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As their fame has expanded, so has the scale of their stage presentation. “My motto is always that if something is valuable, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton smiles. She was originally on path for a fine art degree before balking at the possibility of heavy loans. “The fun thing about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to demonstrate artistic expression,” she says. “Whether it’s crafting disguises, outfit planning, mastering post-production song visuals … it’s all stuff I don’t know how to do, but it’s enjoyable to discover as we go.”

Even though developing the group’s detailed mythology (“Everyone’s urging me to document it because everything is stored,” Riley says, indicating her head) and making clothing were insufficient, the vocalist self-educated how to create armor – a difficult task, though she confessedly left her brand-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a New York-based specialist. “It feels like actual armour,” she grins.

Fan Response and Obstacles

What about the crowd? They embraced the theatrical gore, foam swords and papier-mache rat skulls with equal enthusiasm as the musicians. “We played a gig in the Motor City and it resembled a historical festival,” reminisces Riley happily. “All attendees was in robes, wool garments, metal wear.”

This isn’t to say, however, that touring existence as fantasy adventurers has been easy. “Each item is always failing and becomes duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Moreover I come up with countless concepts as to how I want things to look, but we’re traveling in a vehicle with limited room. It’s an interesting challenge to create the impression like a larger-than-life story, then pack it down into a small space.”

We’ve encountered additional practical issues that wouldn’t have troubled fictional warriors. “There was an ‘oh shit’ moment when we performed at a Portuguese festival in Portugal and my suitcase – which had my blade in it – went missing,” says Riley. “That was a terrible situation, because there’s not an backup plan of the show where I don’t have a blade.”

Upcoming Plans

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is enthusiastic about the days to come. “I aim to reach all the way – I dream of stadiums,” she says. “The key element that’s truly essential to me is preserving the self-crafted look, ensuring each detail is custom-made. It’s a component I want to remain faithful to, no matter what we scale to. Plus, I wish to appear on a magical horse at all performances. Remember how some artists use vehicles in concerts? That, but with a unicorn.”