“I’ve had a skepticism for some time now with the obsession many guitarists have with seventy-year-old guitar designs – the idea that it was done right during the first attempt and guitars don’t need to move beyond those designs. Aristides feel like the exact opposite: a truly uncompromising and forward-looking guitar company who make guitars that just work. The tuning stability is second to none and the tone is bold, thick, and unmatched in its resonance. Notes feel beautifully consistent across the fretboard and the instrument answers every performative nuance with a unique – and satisfying – immediacy. They’re truly inspiring works of technology and art and I relish playing mine every day.”
Sam Vallen
Caligula’s Horse
Bio
Sam Vallen is an Australian guitarist and producer based on the Gold Coast, Queensland. Vallen formed Caligula’s Horse as a solo project in early 2011 before it evolved around the writing partnership of Vallen and vocalist Jim Grey. From the beginning, Caligula’s Horse focused on emotion and expression above many of the more technically oriented trappings of progressive metal, preferring instead to emphasize the dramatic, dynamic, and human qualities that the broad sonic toolkit of prog avails. With this vision, Caligula’s Horse have released six critically acclaimed records, the latter four through German progressive record label Inside Out Music and toured the world both as a headline act and alongside the likes of Mastodon, Opeth, Devin Townsend, and many others. Outside of the band, Vallen is also a producer, mixer, songwriter, and music educator. He holds a doctorate in music from the Queensland Conservatorium.
