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Although numerous artists have drawn from epic fantasy, only a handful have genuinely embodied the enchanted existence. Sure, they might adorn their album sleeves with ghouls, goblins, chained damsels and strong fighters, but did a member ever been forced to find a misplaced horn from a unicorn from a frost-covered ground in the depths of winter? Has a performer spent time squinting in the interior of a road transport, fixing their own chainmail?

Immersed in the Legend

Established in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have encountered these exact challenges and additional ones as they embody their epic fantasies. Starting with medieval-inspired, catchy tunes to breathtaking concerts, costume design, videos and cover artwork, they’re more than a rock act as a full immersive experience.

“The band wasn’t intended to be a costumed concept band,” says singer, guitarist, sword-wielder and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van travels from a full-capacity concert in Cologne to another in Aschaffenburg – they are playing several shows in the UK this week. “After a couple of performances and received an offer on a spooky event, where I decided spontaneously to wear a costume. It was all highly handmade, but we had so much fun and the energy was incredible. I thought, ‘Imagine if we could have so much excitement every time?’”

Growth of the Group

After that, the band – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” alongside a pestilence physician (bass player), proud bloodsucker (lead guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (percussionist) – never turned back. The Bestiary, the follow-up record, brings to mind of famous rock groups joining forces to struggle onward through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a heroic opus that places them on the brink of greater success.

The release was a new experience for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her bandmates. “It made it a much better record,” she says of the group work. “It was challenging at first – I’d always felt a certain amount of pride as a female in music going it alone. There have been multiple instances where I finished performing and an audience member will say, ‘The other members compose cool melodies!’ and I think, ‘Listen – I created all that.’”

Creative Output and Ideas

With their growing popularity has grown, so has the scope of their stage presentation. “The saying I live by is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. She was originally on track for a art school education before hesitating at the possibility of financial burden. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s numerous methods to apply creativity,” she says. “Whether it’s creating face coverings, attire creation, mastering post-production clips … everything is I have no experience with, but it’s exciting to discover on the fly.”

As if developing the band’s intricate lore (“People are encouraging me to record it because everything is stored,” Riley says, indicating her head) and making clothing didn’t suffice, the vocalist taught herself how to craft metal mesh – a challenging endeavor, though she confessedly left her completely original reptilian-inspired outfit to a expert from NYC. “It seems like actual armour,” she beams.

Fan Response and Obstacles

What about the crowd? They took to the fake blood, foam swords and crafted rodent bones with equal enthusiasm as the group. “We performed a concert in the Motor City and it looked like a medieval event,” reminisces Riley fondly. “The whole crowd was in capes, wool garments, chainmail.”

That’s not to imply, nevertheless, that traveling lifestyle as fantasy adventurers has been easy. “All our gear is constantly breaking and becomes 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 bus with restricted capacity. It’s an interesting challenge to give the sense like a larger-than-life story, then store it into minimal luggage.”

We faced additional practical issues that wouldn’t have troubled fictional warriors. “We did have an ‘disastrous’ moment when we played a Portuguese festival in Portugal and my luggage – which had my weapon in it – went missing,” says Riley. “It was a terrible situation, because there is no an different option of the performance where I don’t have a sword.”

Future Ambitions

In the spirit of a hero, Riley is eager 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 maintaining the DIY aesthetic, making sure each detail is custom-made. It’s a component I want to stay authentic to, no matter what we scale to. Oh, and I want to make an entrance on a magical horse every night. You know how legends use vehicles in concerts? That, but using a unicorn.”