Pantommind
Searching for Eternity

This is my debut on Debasio, so let's try to do it at least decently.

Let's start by saying that it's prog-metal, the genre that has brought to the forefront the much-lauded (much-loved, much-followed, much-sold) Dream Theater. First and foremost, our young men have a peculiarity: they are Bulgarian, a land which for me, musically, equates to exactly a black hole, except for some (imaginary, mostly) gypsy melodies.

Well, our Pantommind are on their third album, the latest of which dates back to five years ago, so let's say they've thought about it quite a bit, and rightfully so.

The inspiration (saying similarity sounds harsh) can be found among the DT (but in my opinion, the still “good” ones, let’s say not beyond “Awake”) but also among the Symphony X of “The Odyssey” or “Paradise Lost”, and I also hear something that reminds me of the Savatage of “Streets” not so much in the orchestrations but in the guitar-voice arpeggiated pieces.

Speaking of voice, the singer has a great vocal range without necessarily trying to reach the, in my opinion, very often annoying tones of LaBrie; I don't feel like judging each individual track (there's also a beautiful instrumental “Hypnophobia”) but the whole is very enjoyable, the tracklist is absolutely balanced, there are no fillers or unnecessarily extended tracks just to show off duration, something that often happens in the prog-metal genre, and unfortunately, lately not only in that one… (who said Maiden?!? Me? No no no!!!)

The album is absolutely enjoyable for those who love the genre, the quality of each musician is absolutely relevant, the album is well-produced and not unnecessarily over-arranged, a noteworthy merit, it comes from a nation completely excluded from any musical scene and also for this reason, in my opinion, it should be appreciated because if, instead of Bulgarians, they had originated from a less obscure country, they would probably now have other fame and other horizons before them.

In conclusion, no masterpiece, but a nice prog-metal album to listen to, as is proper, at least 2/3 times and that does not bore, has excellent ideas, and at times excellent developments, excellently played and well-produced.

Is it little?