Review by Felix on February 4, 2020.

Welcome to our panel discussion. The subject today: "What's the real metal?" One section of the audience screams "Freewheel Burning", some very old guys squawk "Paranoid" and the group with the Moonblood shirts is just looking grim. Finally, four senile geezers in ridiculous costumes who called themselves "Kings of Metal" were refused access. However, there are good arguments to call Portrait's Crossroads real heavy metal. Why? Well, it does not have many features that indicate its belonging to a sub-genre. Instead, it is perfectly placed in the middle between death and hair "metal", thrash and hard rock, grindcore and progressive metal. Still better, it proves evidence that real metal has an inner strength that keeps the flame of this music burning without being dependent on additional elements.

Crossroads deserves attention, because it combines traditional elements with modern song patterns. The guitars create a relatively vehement sound without worshipping fury as a value in itself. The lead vocalist does not scream his heart out. He rather prefers a powerful yet comparatively melodic style. The songs do not lack drive, but most of them are not interested in entering the regions of speed metal. All these details seem to fail in order to give the music a fresh feeling, but the opposite is the case. Inter alia due to the exciting, mostly non-conservative but still comprehensible structures of the tunes, Crossroads emanates lively vibes. The energy of the long player is almost tangible.

This is no album that starts extremely strong and ends very weak. Portrait wait to open the secret compartment of their treasure chest until the sixth song. This does not mean that the somehow fleet-footed songs on the positions one to five lack quality. The circling opening riff of "Black Easter", for instance, shows that the group is able to form catchy sections. Nevertheless, "Ageless Rites" beats the previous material. Its slightly stomping configuration is combined with expressive leads right from the beginning. The strong vocal performance and the pretty dark leads generate an occult atmosphere. This song brings Steve Harris and Denner/Sherman together, but the vocals are less extreme than that of the Danish King. An almost playfully light instrumental section forms a counterweight to the generally dark mood and the more or less spooky chorus completes the picture. Anyway, the best is yet to come. "Our Roads Must Never Cross" is one of the songs on Crossroads that border on speed metal. (The other one is the swift "In Time" which is based on a very energetic approach.) Its comparatively straight pattern ensures that the track comes directly to the point and the impulsive bridge unleashes jolts of energy. I really recommend these two fantastic songs that represent the style of the album.

The production has a very natural touch. On the one hand, it does not lack heaviness, on the other hand it leaves room to breathe. Portrait did not produce an acoustic ton of bricks that buries the listener under itself. The generic sound matches the more or less archetypal musical approach. I wanted to give you more information, but excuse me, I have to get back to the panel discussion. What's going on here? The different groups celebrate a party together while the sound of Crossroads fills the room. This album, there can be no doubt, has brought them together, although the full-length does not deliver a grain of black metal. However, the dark aura of the songs has even convinced the Moonblood fans. Of course, they still look grim, but they seem to be lucky.

Rating: 7.7 out of 10

Review by Felix on January 1, 2022.

From today’s point of view, the debut of Portrait sounds a bit strange to me, because Per Lengstedt was not yet a member of the group. Instead, Phillip Svennefelt lent the dudes his voice and he is mainly responsible for the obvious Mercyful Fate influence that characterizes the self-titled effort. But Portrait is not the result of copycats at work, and, just to avoid misunderstanding, Svennefelt does not sound like the reincarnation of King Diamond. He just adapts his style to a certain degree without creating a slavish imitation. The bottom line is that his adventurous singing fits the music and its aura very well. Vocals and instruments create the occult touch right from the beginning and it is evident that Portrait knew the direction of their musical mission from the outset.

This mission contains a tendency to pretty complex tracks. The technical dates (eight songs, 46 minutes) indicate the quite excessive structures. Sometimes newcomers choke on their own ambitions, but here the songwriting guitarists Lindell and Lagergren have penned pieces that find a good balance between a smooth flow and the right number of twists and turns. The songs are neither repetitive nor over-complicated. Their best feature is their freshness. Portrait does not sound tired at any second. The often fast compositions, headed by the ruthless 'A Thousand Nightmares' with its glorious solo and instrumental part, spread timeless vibes. Of course, the Swedes can be seen as representatives of traditional metal, but already on their debut, they were much more than this. They offered more than typical traditionalists in terms of energy, speed, courage and song patterns. Portrait is light years away from the “riff-screams-chorus” scenario that has its right of existence without being the last word on the subject. Nevertheless, one can identify a few Maiden-like guitar lines, inter alia in 'Bow Unto The Devil', where they lead into a short drum solo (or excessive drum break, however you want to name it).

Many details want to be discovered, for example the tiny “Killers” similarity after the first riff of 'Beware The Demons' many various parts want to be fully consumed. Especially the fast-paced opener and the rather epic closer hold a lot different sound colours. But even while listening to the longest songs, you will not stumble over half-baked parts. Everything is meticulously constructed and even though I am not in a state of euphoria during the entire 46 minutes, I enjoy the album in its entity. All songs reach a good level, a few of them are still candidates for best of compilation. This is a merit of the production, too. Maybe it lacks five or ten percent power, but the album sounds clear and professional. In view of this situation, there are not many reasons to ignore Portrait. It’s simply a debut which already showed the greatness of its spiritual fathers. And despite many line-up changes, this greatness is still alive. Everybody who knows the title track of At One With None will agree.

Rating: 7.7 out of 10