Album art by Adam Burke
Style: Power metal, progressive metal (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Falconer, Blind Guardian, Seven Spires, Fellowship
Country: Canada
Release date: 28 March 2025
Few things are more taxing on a band’s fanbase than having their new album consigned to development hell. Whether from perfectionism, conflicting artistic visions, or life simply getting in the way, new material can be left in limbo for a decade or longer with precious little to satiate listeners in the meantime. Tool used to be the poster child for such procrastination in the prog community, then Wintersun, but in a post-Time II world, artists such as Symphony X and Agent Fresco continue the proud tradition of their latest albums approaching their ten-year anniversary with no concrete news of a follow-up in sight. In a similar vein, Canadian underground prog-power act Viathyn spent the years after their well-regarded 2014 work Cynosure in an uneasy state of semi-hiatus, assuring fans that they weren’t done yet and that a third album would eventually come, but otherwise largely silent. Eventually, however, after putting out a couple albums with the now-disbanded Ravenous, guitarist Jake Wright began to feel that the material he had written for said third album was too personal for the band and, with drummer Dave Crnkovic in tow, released it under the name of a new, ocean-themed project: Panthalassan. Now fully at the helm of this voyage, can Wright successfully sail into the sunset, or is his ship doomed to run ashore in the shallows?
Thankfully, From the Shallows of the Mantle proves itself to be a potent slab of prog-power from front to back, due in large part to Wright’s considerable finesse with the six-string. Even if I didn’t know beforehand that this was a guitarist’s solo venture, the heart-racingly fleet riffs, tuneful leads, and intricate solos that fill every nook and cranny of the album would give me a good hint. And yet, despite the abundant virtuosity on display, it never feels as though Wright is indulging in excessive wankery or playing notes for notes’ sake. True, the songs are uniformly lengthy, averaging around seven minutes apiece, but those minutes are filled with enough musical variety and strikingly memorable melodies to justify their runtime and then some. Song structures in particular often deviate from standard verse-chorus fare in an effort to take the listener on a sweeping journey, with tracks like “Foundation to Firmament” and epic closer “Embers on Our Shore” proving particularly breathtaking in their scope and diversity, easily justifying the “progressive” part of their genre label.
That said, the style of prog-power that Panthalassan provides leans primarily towards the “power” side of things, eschewing the thrashy influences and folkish tinges of Viathyn in favor of soaring, tuneful choruses and more prominent symphonic orchestration, courtesy of Daniel Carpenter (Imperial Age). The end result is a stirring, heroic, yet undeniably melancholic soundtrack to an oceanic voyage where our protagonist must confront the raging squalls both without and within; think Emerald Seas-era Seven Spires minus the harsh vocals, or perhaps a significantly less saccharine version of Fellowship. It is, in a word, kickass, and there were numerous moments where all my fancy words failed me and I was left with nothing to say but “Dude… this fucking rules.” Take, for instance, the coda to “Driftwood Reverie”, where Wright abruptly kicks the tempo up a few notches with a rapid-fire riff backed only by Crnkovic’s minimalistic yet urgent quarter note kick drums that builds into a full minute and a half of deliriously speedy instrumental fireworks. Or the stately guitar leads in the bridge of “Lowstand Leviathans”, or the delightfully unexpected muted trumpet in “Foundation to Firmament”, or the clean guitar and bass interplay in the midsection of “Embers on Our Shore”, or… you get the picture. Wright can craft an instrumental interlude with the absolute best of them, and his compositional chops go well beyond his admittedly incredible ability to Play Guitar Fast™.
Everything I’ve said so far would indicate that From the Shallows of the Mantle would be a clear contender for the best power metal album of 2025, and while it does a lot of things extremely well, there is an elephant in the room that keen-eyed readers might have already noticed me skirting around up to this point: the vocals. Perhaps out of the same sense of personal attachment that led to him separating this material from Viathyn in the first place, Wright handles all vocals himself, and all I can say is… he sure gave it his best shot. Now, to be fair, he’s not terrible; he can carry a tune well enough, and his tone, particularly in his lower register, is decent. But he’s just… not that good, either. You know how even the most masterfully written lines can sound goofy if delivered by a wooden actor? Well, Jake Wright is a wooden singer, and his vocal deficiencies kneecap the emotional resonance of an album that’s clearly meant to be deeply personal. His baritone range is a nice change of pace for the genre, and seems to be aiming for a similar feel to Mathias Blad of the late Falconer, but fails to remotely live up to Blad’s smooth tone and expressive theatricality. Sometimes the hook writing is killer enough that the chorus shines despite some merely functional singing (“By Shank’s Mare”), but other times Wright’s amateurish delivery weakens otherwise excellent melodies (“Worth My Salt”), and it’s frustrating.
I want to say that with the right singer, this album could be a solid 8.5 or even 9/10 with enough spins, but given how deeply the material here is tied to its creator as a human being, it’s hard to say who “the right singer” even would be, beyond “an alternate universe version of Jake Wright except he’s a better vocalist”. These lyrics, for all their nautical imagery, aren’t really about a sea voyage, but are rather a powerfully emotional, semi-metaphorical ode to the inner struggles of one man. Barring the occasional clunky rhyme, the words here are striking, touching on fear of standing up for one’s self (“Worth My Salt”), imposter syndrome (“Clandestine Traveler”), and feelings of aimlessness (“Driftwood Reverie”). There’s even an oceanic love song of sorts in the form of “Abalone”, the closest thing here to a ballad, whose tale of falling under a siren’s spell feels equal parts unsettling and romantic. Would this soul-baring effect be lost by using the voice of another, no matter how technically superior of a singer they may be? I can see arguments either way.
Though this one issue may hold back Panthalassan from true greatness, make no mistake: From the Shallows of the Mantle is a very strong debut, and a downright masterclass in composition and instrumental performance. Wright has expressed interest in incorporating more instruments and a wider variety of genre palettes on future work, and after what he’s accomplished here, I’m excited to see what’s next. For now, though, this album still comes recommended for anyone interested in a gripping, heartfelt power metal journey through seas, storms, and self-doubt, all told in an authentic, if somewhat flawed, voice. Or if you just want to hear a guy play guitar really well for an hour, that works too.
Recommended tracks: Driftwood Reverie, Foundation to Firmament, By Shank’s Mare
You may also like: Viathyn, Sunburst, Haishen
Final verdict: 7/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Panthalassan is:
– Jake Wright (guitars, bass, vocals)
With:
Dave Crnković (drums)
Daniel Carpenter (orchestration, piano)
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