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Although numerous rockers have drawn from high fantasy, rarely any have truly lived the enchanted existence. Certainly, they may decorate their album covers with monsters, goblins, captive women and muscular warriors, but did a member ever needed to recover a lost unicorn horn from a wintry landscape in the heart of winter? Did anyone taken the time squinting in the interior of a road transport, repairing their own metal mesh?

Embracing the Mythos

Created in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have dealt with both these scenarios and others as they live out their epic fantasies. Starting with heraldic, memorable tunes to stunning live shows, attire styling, visuals and album art, they’re more than a rock act as a full immersive experience.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a outfit with characters,” says singer, guitar player, sword-carrier and visionary Riley Pinkerton as the musicians’ transport travels from a full-capacity concert in a German city to one more in Aschaffenburg – they have several shows in the UK currently. “Initially, we performed twice and received an offer on a October show, where I decided spontaneously to dress up. The entire setup was completely self-made, but we had an amazing time and the energy was electric. I thought, ‘Imagine if we could have this much fun at every show?’”

Growth of the Group

From that point on, the group – which includes Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” joined by a pestilence physician (bassist), haughty vampire (guitarist) and secretive shaman (percussionist) – haven’t looked back. Their latest album, the follow-up record, evokes images of famous rock groups joining forces to struggle onward through a mythical painted realm – a grand composition that places them on the verge of greater success.

This album was a new experience for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her fellow members. “It made it a lot stronger project,” she says of the group work. “I had difficulty at first – I often experienced a particular degree of satisfaction as a woman in music doing everything solo. There’ve been so many times where I’ve got off stage and a person will say, ‘The other members compose cool melodies!’ and I respond, ‘Listen – I created all that.’”

Creative Output and Ideas

As their fame has grown, so has the scope of their stage presentation. “My motto is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton smiles. She was originally on track for a university studies in art before pulling back at the idea of so much debt. “The fun thing about Castle Rat is there’s numerous methods to apply creativity,” she says. “Whether it’s making masks, costume design, figuring out video editing music videos … these are all things I am unfamiliar with, but it’s fun to learn in the moment.”

Even though developing the ensemble’s complex backstory (“People are encouraging me to write it down because all the ideas are,” Riley says, tapping her head) and stitching garments were insufficient, the singer learned on her own how to make chainmail – no mean feat, though she admittedly left her brand-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a professional in the city. “It’s as if actual armour,” she beams.

Fan Response and Obstacles

Regarding the fans? They took to the fake blood, foam swords and crafted rodent bones with equal enthusiasm as the band. “We had a show in Detroit and it seemed like a medieval event,” recalls Riley fondly. “Everyone was in capes, wool garments, chainmail.”

This isn’t to say, though, that touring existence as fantasy adventurers has been plain sailing. “Everything is constantly breaking and ends up duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Additionally I come up with endless ideas as to how I desire the presentation, but we tour in a van with limited room. It’s an interesting challenge to make it feel like a mythic tale, then store it into nothing.”

There have been further organizational challenges that would never have plagued fictional warriors. “We did have an ‘disastrous’ moment when we appeared at SonicBlast festival in the European country and my baggage – which had my sword in it – got lost,” says Riley. “It was a worst-case scenario, because there is no an backup plan of the concert where I lack a weapon.”

Goals Ahead

In the spirit of a hero, Riley is gung-ho about the future. “I want to go to the top – let’s do large venues,” she says. “The main aspect that’s deeply meaningful to me is preserving the DIY aesthetic, guaranteeing each detail is crafted by us. That’s an element I want to stay authentic to, whatever we achieve. Oh, and I wish to ride out on a unicorn at all performances. Remember how some artists do the motorcycle thing? The same idea, but with a unicorn.”