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Portrait Interviews and Features
Below are our features and interviews with Portrait.
Guitarist Richard Lagergren of Swedish Heavy Metallers Portrait has a wry sense of humor. Some of his zingers: the document that contained his answers to my (emailed) questions was called “Portrait vs Metal Underground,” some of his answers are subtly cheeky, and his answer to my final question was not so subtle at all, but I could only read it in a deadpanned voice.
But beyond Lagergren’s comedic stylings, he took the time to answer a few questions for us, which we appreciate! Lagergren gives a unique perspective into Portrait’s style of trad metal, details on the recording process for recently released full length “Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae” (reviewed here), why Sweden seems to be in the middle of so many “revivals, and a few other golden tidbits. Enjoy!
Bloodofheroes: Let’s start with the obvious – what the heck does “Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae” mean?
Well it is Latin obviously, and can be roughly translated into “crime against the heavenly majesty”, or if you will, “blasphemy” or “sacrilege”. The term derives from early modern Sweden, where intentional blasphemy was regarded one of the most serious crimes one could commit, leading to death penalty. People like Portrait would be the first to the gallows of course.More...