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Although many musicians have taken inspiration from epic fantasy, rarely any have fully embraced the enchanted lifestyle. Admittedly, they may adorn their album sleeves with ghouls, goblins, captive women and brawny barbarians, but has an artist ever have to recover a lost horn from a unicorn from a snowy field in the heart of winter? Did a guitarist spent time peering in the rear of a tour bus, fixing their own armor?

Living the Fantasy

Created in 2019, Brooklyn’s Castle Rat have dealt with such situations and more as they embody their grand tales. From knightly, memorable tunes to stunning performances, outfit creation, music videos and record designs, they’re not just a rock act as a total artistic immersion.

“It wasn’t planned to be a costumed concept band,” explains vocalist, guitarist, sword-wielder and visionary Riley Pinkerton as the group’s vehicle drives from a full-capacity concert in a German city to another in another town – they have several shows in the UK now. “We played two shows and received an offer on a October show, 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 unforgettable. It occurred to me, ‘What if we could have so much excitement at every show?’”

The Band’s Evolution

Since then, the ensemble – which features Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” alongside a pestilence physician (bassist), proud bloodsucker (six-string player) and enigmatic nature priest (rhythm keeper) – haven’t looked back. The Bestiary, the group’s sophomore release, evokes images of legendary heavy bands joining forces to fight their path through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a heroic opus that sets them on the brink of far grander things.

The Bestiary was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she opened the floor to her fellow members. “That contributed to a much better project,” she says of the collaborative process. “I had difficulty at first – There was a sense of a specific level of pride being a woman in music working independently. There’ve been numerous occasions where I finished performing and a person will say, ‘The band create awesome guitar parts!’ and I think, ‘Wait – I created all that.’”

Artistry and Imagination

With their growing popularity has increased, so has the breadth of their production design. “My motto is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton laughs. She was originally on track for a fine art degree before balking at the idea of financial burden. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s various avenues to demonstrate artistic expression,” she says. “From making masks, attire creation, learning how to edit music videos … these are all things I am unfamiliar with, but it’s exciting to figure it out as we go.”

As if building the group’s detailed mythology (“Everyone’s urging me to record it because everything is stored,” Riley says, tapping her head) and stitching garments didn’t suffice, the vocalist self-educated how to make chainmail – no mean feat, though she confessedly delegated her brand-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a professional in the city. “It feels like actual armour,” she grins.

Crowd Engagement and Difficulties

As for audiences? They took to the stage blood, toy blades and handmade props with similar excitement as the band. “We had a gig in the Motor City and it looked like a Renaissance fair,” reminisces Riley with affection. “Everyone was in robes, animal hides, metal wear.”

However, this doesn’t mean, though, that traveling lifestyle as mythical wanderers has been smooth. “Each item is frequently damaged and ends up repaired with tape,” Riley says. “Plus I come up with numerous thoughts as to how I envision the aesthetics, but we are on the move in a vehicle with restricted capacity. It’s a fascinating test to create the impression like a mythic tale, then store it into nothing.”

We’ve encountered other logistical problems that would never have plagued mythic characters. “There was an ‘disastrous’ moment when we played a Portuguese festival in Portugal and my baggage – which had my weapon in it – went missing,” says Riley. “It was a worst-case scenario, because we don’t have an different option of the show where I lack a weapon.”

Upcoming Plans

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is gung-ho about the what’s next. “I want to go as far as possible – let’s do huge arenas,” she says. “The key element that’s really important to me is preserving the self-crafted look, making sure everything is handmade. This is a feature I want to stay authentic to, no matter what we scale to. Oh, and I want to appear on a magical horse each show. You know how famous musicians ride bikes on stage? That, but with a unicorn.”