‘I Want to Ride Out on a Unicorn Every Night’: Swords’n’Sorcery Heavy Metal Group Castle Rat

Although many musicians have drawn from epic fantasy, few have truly lived the mythical existence. Admittedly, they might decorate their album covers with monsters, imps, manacled maidens and brawny barbarians, but has any musician ever been forced to retrieve a misplaced unicorn horn from a snowy field in the heart of winter? Did a performer taken the time squinting in the back of a tour bus, repairing their own armor?

Embracing the Mythos

Created in 2019, Brooklyn’s Castle Rat have encountered both these scenarios and additional ones as they act out their epic fantasies. From knightly, earworm-heavy anthems to stunning performances, costume design, videos and cover artwork, they’re not so much a rock act as a total artistic immersion.

“It wasn’t planned to be a costumed concept band,” says vocalist, guitarist, sword-carrier and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the musicians’ transport travels from a packed show in Cologne to a second one in Aschaffenburg – they have five gigs in the UK now. “Initially, we performed twice and got booked on a October show, where I made a last-minute decision to wear a costume. Everything was super-DIY, but we had an amazing time and the atmosphere was incredible. I realized, ‘How about if we could have so much excitement every time?’”

Development of Castle Rat

Since then, the ensemble – which features Pinkerton as the “Rodent Monarch” together with a pestilence physician (low-end instrumentalist), aristocratic undead (six-string player) and mysterious druid (rhythm keeper) – continued forward. The new record, the band’s second album, brings to mind of legendary heavy bands collaborating to struggle onward through a mythical painted realm – a heroic opus that sets them on the brink of greater success.

The Bestiary was a new experience for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her collaborators. “This helped a more powerful record,” she says of the team effort. “I had difficulty at first – I often experienced a certain amount of pride as a woman 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, ‘Hey – I created all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As the band’s stature 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 art school education before pulling back at the prospect of financial burden. “The exciting part about Castle Rat is there’s numerous methods to demonstrate artistry,” she says. “Be it crafting disguises, costume design, learning how to edit song visuals … it’s all stuff I am unfamiliar with, but it’s fun to learn as we go.”

Even though developing the group’s detailed mythology (“The team is pushing me to record it because it’s all in here,” Riley says, indicating her head) and sewing costumes were insufficient, the vocalist self-educated how to craft metal mesh – no mean feat, though she admittedly entrusted her brand-new scalemail look to a expert from NYC. “It feels like actual armour,” she smiles proudly.

Audience Reaction and Challenges

What about the crowd? They took to the stage blood, toy blades and crafted rodent bones with as much gusto as the group. “We had a concert in Detroit and it seemed like a historical festival,” remembers Riley fondly. “The whole crowd was in robes, wool garments, armor.”

However, this doesn’t mean, however, that touring existence as fantasy adventurers has been smooth. “Everything is constantly breaking and gets duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Plus I’ll have numerous thoughts as to how I desire the presentation, but we tour in a bus with limited room. It’s an interesting challenge to make it feel like a mythic tale, then compress it into nothing.”

We’ve encountered further organizational challenges that would never have plagued fictional warriors. “There was an ‘oh shit’ moment when we appeared at a music event in the European country and my suitcase – which had my weapon in it – was misplaced,” says Riley. “This became a terrible situation, because there is no an alternative version of the show where I lack a weapon.”

Goals Ahead

As a genuine leader, Riley is gung-ho about the what’s next. “I want to go to the top – we should play huge arenas,” she says. “The only thing that’s deeply meaningful to me is maintaining the handmade style, guaranteeing everything is crafted by us. It’s a component I want to stay authentic to, regardless of we achieve. Plus, I wish to make an entrance on a mythical beast each show. Think about how legends ride bikes on stage? The same idea, but using a unicorn.”