On the unofficial list of things that are very, very metal indeed, the artwork of Barry Windsor-Smith sits proudly at the pointy end. Castle Rat are so joyously authentic and true-to-the-bone that they appear to have stepped directly out of his posters for kitsch sword-and-sorcery classic Red Sonja, with frontwoman The Rat Queen (Riley Pinkerton to her friends) fulfilling the role of that movie’s titular heroine.
Everything about this band rules hard. Last year’s Into The Realm debut was a potent warning shot, as the Brooklyn crew’s fantasy doom stretched out a tentacle or three, capturing and rejuvenating the old-school spirit, and slapping as hard as Conan The Barbarian’s broadsword. Barely a year later, The Bestiary seals the deal and proclaims the irresistible evolution of one of the most exciting new bands on our godforsaken planet.
