Come the day that he decides to give up dressing in scary makeup and calling Jesus a lady’s front bottom or something, Cradle of Filth’s Paul Allender could consider a career in guitar design. His SE model proves that a guitar can sound mean and still look pretty.

Paul had this to say about his SE signature model: “It sounds so aggressive and plays amazingly. I can’t believe it’s an SE. It’s so good that I’m going to play it onstage with Cradle of Filth.”

We’re with Paul on this one - this guitar is the balls! It’s light and well-balanced, plays beautifully (thanks to a slim neck), and looks the business. Allender has managed to breathe some fire into the well-worn PRS formula replacing the classic bird fingerboard inlays with awesome-looking bats.

We love that purple Allender Burst finish too.

Verdict

Plugged in, this guitar is versatile with enough tonal variation to handle any genre from country to rock, though most of these guitars will end up in the hands of metal players. SE Allender models are flying out of music shops like a bat out of hell, in part because of its street price of around £500. Just don’t expect these beauties to hang about.

4 Stars

Pros: Stunning looks, playability.
Cons: You need to share Paul’s taste.

BUY: PRS SE Paul Allender currently available from Andertons Music Co., Thomann and PMT Online

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