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September 26, 2025
Words: Leela Brunsdon
Photography: @tetrachromacyy @peterbeste @light_witch
Emerging to the fore from the shadowy corners of Brooklyn’s heavy music scene, Castle Rat began as a humble doom band with a flair for theatrics, but what started with a papier-mâché skull and a Halloween gig has evolved into a full-blown medieval fantasy metal spectacle.
Fronted by Riley Pinkerton as “The Rat Queen”, Castle Rat blends doom, classic heavy metal, and performance art into something entirely their own: a retro 70s fever dream steeped in Frazetta fantasy, Sabbath riffs, and a rotating cast of sword-wielding, scythe-swinging antagonists. With their ambitious concept album THE BESTIARY now out in the wild, Castle Rat lure those willing deeper into their immersive realm of cautionary tales and bewildering riffs.
At TGF, we outstretched the scroll to our old comrade Pinkerton and her cohort to speak to us more about Castle Rat and their recently released sophomore album, THE BESTIARY.
Castle Rat was intended to be a regular ol’ doom band. We’d only played a couple small bar shows before we got asked to play a Halloween show at Saint Vitus Bar (RIP) in Brooklyn, NY, in 2019. I made a last minute decision to put together costumes for everyone, along with a hand made papier-mâché rat skull mask, a cloak made out of a table cloth, and a scythe made out of a hockey stick, some cardboard, and tin foil — creating the first edition of what would become our “arch nemesis,” Death, Herself, the Rat Reaperess.
The show was the most fun I’d ever had onstage, and the crowd was so enthusiastic, so I thought… “What if we did this EVERY time?!” The band was onboard and thus Castle Rat became a medieval, costumed, fantasy metal band. A few months later, the pandemic hit, some original members moved away. We’ve had some personnel changes across the years, but Castle Rat is:
Riley Pinkerton as “The Rat Queen”
Franco Vittore as “The Count”
Charley Ruddell as “The Plague Doctor”
Joshua Strmic as “The Druid”
And “The Rat Reaperess” is played by a rotating cast of amazing dancers & choreographers:
Maddy Wright
Rebecca Corrigan
Ragin Smith
My nickname growing up was “Rat” on account of my two front teeth and some sneaky late night snacking habits… It’s a moniker I knew I wanted to include in the band name. Putting the Rat in a Castle felt like just the right tone to set for a Sabbath-Worship doom band.
Our aim has always been to put on a larger-than-life stage show, while approaching it from a very DIY position. As it’s turned out, the grandiosity of a “Castle” met with the humility of a “Rat” is very representative of the spirit of Castle Rat.
I’m deeply inspired by ‘70s fantasy art, especially by Frank Frazetta. I have countless vintage posters of his and a print of his favorite painting of mine, “Cat Girl” hanging in my home. My aim is always for every Castle Rat show and video to feel like stepping into one of his paintings.
“The Bestiary” is our first concept album with some more traditional heavy metal leanings as opposed to just doom. The album also features a ballad with a string and horn section, a folk song of sorts, and some beautifully gentle interludes. Each song represents a different mystical creature, being, or place, often paired with a cautionary tale.
Our first album, “Into The Realm” I wrote in solitude in my bedroom before bringing each song to the band to plug in and flesh out.
Our sophomore album, “The Bestiary” was my first time dipping a toe into the waters of collaboration. We had set a ridiculous deadline for ourselves to get this album written, recorded, and released, and I had to learn to trust-fall into my bandmates in order to get everything done. So for the first time ever I was bringing songs that were maybe halfway or three quarters done, where I had hit some sort of a stuck-point. They are incredible musicians and collaborators who are a wellspring of musical ideas.
There was a part of me that really struggled with opening up to them in this way, but two most collaborative songs on the album “WIZARD” and “SERPENT” are two of my favorite songs on the album. I’m looking forward to LP 3 perhaps being an even more collaborative experience.
Everything goes back to Black Sabbath, always. As mentioned before, Frank Frazetta greatly influences the aesthetic of the band. All four of us listen to a wide, wide, variety of music and genres. This keeps our ears, minds, and hearts open to expanding our sound as much as possible. As time goes on I think it may keep us from getting pigeonholed into one metal sub-genre.
We’re on tour through North America through Oct 5th. Then we have 10 days at home before popping over to Europe and the UK for about 3 weeks. We’ll be in London with High on Fire and Necrot on the 6th of November at Electric Ballroom.
Admittedly, I am retired from the city nightlife. I just recently moved about 3 hours out of the city to upstate New York, where I live in a quiet little town on a little graveyard. I am looking forward to lying low and keeping to myself between tours.
Shameless Great Frog Promotion Incoming: When I am in the city, I love swinging by The Great Frog NYC, as I worked/managed there for nearly 4 years. Visiting always feels like home, and it’s such an integral part of the Lower East Side rock ‘n’ roll scene — along with The Cast right next door.
We just played a run of dates with our King Volume label-mates, Faerie Ring. We completely adore them as people and they absolutely rip live. I highly recommend checking out their album “Weary Traveler.”
Between haunting stages across the globe or conjuring magic from their new quiet enclave in upstate New York, Castle Rat continues to carve a path all their own.
As THE BESTIARY ushers in a new chapter of collaborative evolution and mythic ambition, it’s clear the band’s castle walls are only growing higher and stranger. With shows aplenty on the misty horizon and more creatures lurking in the wings, Castle Rat isn’t just a band.. it’s a world.
