┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │■ ■│ │ .-/ .-. │ │ _.-~ / ___ | ~-._ │ │ \:/ -~| / __/| .\:/ │ │ / || (:/:| \ │ │ / /\/| |:\___\| |\ \ │ │ / /:::|.::/:::/:.|:\ \ │ │ / /:::/ \\/:::/::/:::\ \ │ │ / .::\ \-~~~~-/\/:.. \ │ │ /..:::::\ /:::::..\ │ │ /::::::::- -::::::::\ │ │ \:::::-~ ~-:::::/ │ │ \:-~ ~-:/ │ │ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ P R E S E N T S │ │ │ │ │ │ + Portrait - Crossroads + │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Information ║ │ │╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Release Date.Jun-08-2014 Encoder......L3.97 -V2 --vbr-new ║ │ │║ Genre........Heavy Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │ │║ Year.........2014 Khz/Bitrate..44,1/ Br ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Ripper.......anthem Songs........08 ║ │ │║ Covers.......Yes Url... n/a ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Notes ║ │ │╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Artist : Portrait Rating : You Decide! ║ │ │║ Album : Crossroads Label : Metal Blade ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Description : ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Swedish heavy metal band Portrait was, along ║ │ │║ with In Solitude, one of the pioneers of the ║ │ │║ Mercyful Fate worship trend that quite a few ║ │ │║ bands from that country (as well as a couple ║ │ │║ from other countries) have been undertaking. ║ │ │║ Despite its popularity, I haven't particularly ║ │ │║ liked a whole lot I've heard from this scene; ║ │ │║ not that most of it is actively bad, just ║ │ │║ mediocre or decent, with too many problems ║ │ │║ holding bands back. Even Portrait themselves, ║ │ │║ whose 2011 effort is highly lauded in many ║ │ │║ circles, didn't used to do much for me. Crimen ║ │ │║ Laesae Majestatis Divinae (CLMD) felt a bit ║ │ │║ confused too my ears, over-the-top in all the ║ │ │║ wrong places and with songwriting that didn't ║ │ │║ always seem fully developed. Again, I didn't ║ │ │║ hate it or anything, just thought it was merely ║ │ │║ decent and didn't really reach the band's ║ │ │║ potential. 2014's Crossroads completely blows ║ │ │║ that album and every other album from the scene ║ │ │║ out of the water, embodying everything I wanted ║ │ │║ CLMD to be and much much more, exceeding my ║ │ │║ highest expectations of the band. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ The atmosphere and overall sound are pretty ║ │ │║ similar to that of the previous effort, but ║ │ │║ everything just fits together so much better. ║ │ │║ Vocalist Per Lengstedt, who even on the last ║ │ │║ release I thought was awesome, is even more ║ │ │║ awesome, with a bit more of a refined sound but ║ │ │║ still wild and aggressive as hell, with chaotic ║ │ │║ shrieks and unholy multi-tracking that just ║ │ │║ melts your face off. ("WE WERE NOT, ║ │ │║ ALOOOOOONEEEE!!!") The riff structures ║ │ │║ complement him much better as well, I feel, with ║ │ │║ a better flow to most songs and mind-blowing ║ │ │║ harmonies that are just perfect. In most of the ║ │ │║ songs, every note seems specially crafted for ║ │ │║ that particular moment, something I've said of ║ │ │║ Arch era Fates Warning and Slauter Xstroyes, ║ │ │║ which is the highest of praise for me. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Crossroads doesn't have that uber-progressive, ║ │ │║ constantly changing riff progression that those ║ │ │║ two bands possess, but that's not to their ║ │ │║ detriment in any way; that's not what they're ║ │ │║ going for here at all. The fact that every riff ║ │ │║ and vocal melody just seems perfectly in place ║ │ │║ is a testament to the band's seamless ║ │ │║ songwriting here. The level of maturity between ║ │ │║ 2011's CLMD and this year's Crossroads is ║ │ │║ insane; in 3 short years, the band has gone from ║ │ │║ decent to top-tier classic. Even the acoustic ║ │ │║ intro feels just right, and I usually skip ║ │ │║ instrumentals. It's hard to pick specific ║ │ │║ highlights here, as the whole album is just of ║ │ │║ the highest quality, but "We Were Not Alone" ║ │ │║ (which I couldn't help but quote earlier) is a ║ │ │║ personal favorite, as the dark, vast atmosphere ║ │ │║ just sucks you in and doesn't let go. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ "Lily" is also worth mentioning as it's a bit ║ │ │║ different from the other songs on the album, a ║ │ │║ multi-part epic with a bone-chilling, murky and ║ │ │║ decrepit acoustic intro that fucking rules, ║ │ │║ followed by a monstrous galloping guitar riff ║ │ │║ and a lead that harmonizes perfectly, as usual ║ │ │║ for this record. Unfortunately, the vocal lines ║ │ │║ seem a little out of sync with the guitars when ║ │ │║ they come in, the only time on the album that ║ │ │║ happens, and something I noticed frequently in ║ │ │║ CLMD, but the riff is sweet enough that it ║ │ │║ doesn't really matter much. Once it switches to ║ │ │║ the next riff/vocal melody, this problem is ║ │ │║ gone, and the song becomes of insane quality ║ │ │║ once again, with multi-tracking out the ass and ║ │ │║ epic riff after epic riff. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ A nearly flawless end to a nearly perfect album, ║ │ │║ really, and I can say with confidence that ║ │ │║ despite us only being five months or so into the ║ │ │║ year, this could easily be the best album of ║ │ │║ 2014, as you don't here an album of this caliber ║ │ │║ very often. With 2013 having the glorious Virgin ║ │ │║ Sails (Satan's Host) and this year producing the ║ │ │║ classic Crossroads, metal is looking to be the ║ │ │║ best it's been since the late 80s, I can't wait ║ │ │║ to see what album will blow me away next. If ║ │ │║ you're a fan of heavy metal, the Swedish MF- ║ │ │║ worship scene, or Portrait, get this album ║ │ │║ immediately, you absolutely will not be ║ │ │║ disappointed. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Tracklist ║ │ │╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │ │ │ │ 01 - Liberation [01:44] │ │ 02 - At The Ghost Gate [06:52] │ │ 03 - We Were Not Alone [05:01] │ │ 04 - In Time [04:59] │ │ 05 - Black Easter [05:38] │ │ 06 - Ageless Rites [04:57] │ │ 07 - Our Roads Must Never Cross [04:36] │ │ 08 - Lily [09:05] │ │ │ │ Total Length : [42:52 minn │ │ │ │ │ │ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ╔═════════════════════╗ │ │ ║ Greetings To: ║ │ │ ╚═════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ Too all people who contributes to make this │ │ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │■ ■│ └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘