Castle Rat

About Castle Rat

Castle Rat is a New York-based fantasy heavy metal band known for their immersive, lore-laden live performances featuring intricate costumes, theatrics, and choreographed battle scenes. Comprising characters like The Rat Queen (Riley Pinkerton on vocals/guitar), The Count (Franco Vittore on lead guitar), The Plague Doctor (Ronnie Lanzilotta III or Charlie Rudell on bass), and The All-Seeing Druid (Josh Strmic on drums), with Madeline Wright as their nemesis "The Rat Reaperess," their sound is deeply rooted in the doom tradition of Black Sabbath, characterized by massive riffs and powerful vocals. Their music blends elements of doom metal, stoner metal, sludge metal, stoner rock, and heavy psych. Their debut album, "Into The Realm," released in April 2024, garnered over one million Spotify streams and was the #1 Best-Selling Hard Rock/All Rock Album on Bandcamp. Castle Rat is set to release their sophomore album, "The Bestiary," on September 19th, collaboratively through King Volume Records and Blues Funeral Recordings. The Kickstarter campaign for "The Bestiary" reached its funding goal in just 37 minutes, marking it as one of the most successful metal campaigns in over a decade. Following the album's release, the band will embark on a two-month-long tour across the US and Europe. They also have an upcoming appearance at Brutal Assault in August 2026. They recently unveiled "WIZARD" as a single from their forthcoming album.