Portrait – Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae

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It is indeed fantastic to hear that Mercyful Fate have been brought out of hiatus to release a new record, a record that stays true to the production values and style of the band’s earlier recordings. Except, as it turns out, this isn’t Mercyful Fate at all but a Swedish band called Portrait. For all the venom the band’s press release has for the paths both power metal and modern thrash have taken heavy metal, it is somewhat a spit in the face that the band seem to have no better ideas themselves than to simply turn back the clock 25 years and imitate old early-80s heavy metal. There’s no new ideas here – this is pure retro throwback. To be fair to Portrait, they’ve got this down perfectly – the production, the guitar playing, the song writing, even the voice emulates the feel of many records from this era. Singer Per Karlsson even sounds like King Diamond – a voice so incredibly distinctive that one can’t help but think that Portrait are simply mimicking. This doesn’t mean that Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae is not enjoyable – far from it, the album is perfectly entertaining and will appeal well to those that like retro metal. However, it adds absolutely no new flavour of its own and as such seems easy to ignore. Compare and contrast the latest album from NWOBHM act Hell – a wonderful, innovative and well revived selection of songs from the era that sound like they were only written yesterday, becoming one of the most loved albums of the year – with this album, as well as other records by retro-rivalists such as Steelwing and Enforcer. Look to the past for inspiration by all means, but don’t simply mimic what was done before. Such nostalgia serves no purpose other than to stagnate music – and Portrait, who are probably all too young to even remember the era anyway, most certainly sound stagnant.

Written by James Donovan
More: 2011, Albums, Heavy Metal, Quick.Play Reviews,