The Summary Judgment Reviews:
Title: Intimate Portrait
Artist: Em Sinfonia
Label: Martyr Music Group
Release Date: 4/1/01

Rating: 3 Skulls
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    • Reviewed by Requiem (4/19/01):
    In recent times, it seems that you really need to do some serious digging to find melodic metal acts in the States. Europe certainly produces the true gems in the genre while the Stateside folks are dominating the hardcore, grind, stoner rock and everyone's favorite; the hip hop oriented metal. Slowly but surely, some more melodic stuff has been surfacing here. Massachusetts' Shadows Fall are gaining a bit of popularity. Virginia's Rain Fell Within and Maryland's Garden of Shadows are also doing their own brand of melodic noodlings. Over on the West Coast is Em Sinfonia, whose mastermind is Broken Hope's own Brian Griffin. Em Sinfonia have just released their second album entitled Intimate Portrait, which displays the band's skill in creating their own brand of metal which could draw comparisons to early My Dying Bride or Theatre of Tragedy.

    The band's overall execution could be compared to early Theatre of Tragedy with the contrasting female vs. death metal vocals on top of prevalent heavy sound with a dusting of melodic prettiness throughout. The guitar sound is astoundingly similar to that of My Dying Bride and with such a sound apparent, it is that much easier to see the influence of the English masters of doom shine throughout the album's entirety. For a Stateside metal release, Intimate Portrait is a worthy option for those searching for the softer side of death metal's reincarnations. On a worldwide perspective, I find this album alongside many others, struggling to stride ahead into the spotlight.

    I gave it my all to really like this album due to a commendable resource providing positive input on the album, but after many attempts I find the album lacking that special something to really make it shine. On the bright side, there are numerous segments and riffs that are pleasant to the ear, but not enough to hold the album together. One possible weakness of the album is new member Bunny, who has taken over as the lead female vocalist. Besides the ridiculous name that she bears and the satisfactory job she does on the album, Bunny sounds like a vocalist that needs just a little more perfection to truly be able to accomplish what she strides for here. She seems to land on the appropriate keys she aims for but needs a little more refining to bring her a step away from sounding timid and a step towards a more compelling approach. Mr. Griffen tackles the death metal vocals which are almost perfected to my liking, being very deep and guttural and almost bringing tinges of Septic Flesh or Garden of Shadows to mind.

    Musically Em Sinfonia approach their music with a degree of individuality and subtly mix in some of the previous acts I have mentioned. One could say they fall closest to old MDB for instance. But Em Sinfonia have vocalist Bunny to throw that comparison a new curve as well as the ambiance-inducing keyboards. All these elements marching to a slightly quicker drum feel give us the framework for Intimate Portrait. Like I said before, bits and pieces of the album have some shiny moments but overall no single track succeeds in pummeling me against the wall with monumental excellence. I will give credit where credit is due, as they did a fine job with Maiden's classic "Revelations". I tip my hat to all involved for not butchering a Maiden tune which many bands can easily do.

    Wrapping it all up, I conclude in ranking the album as a breath of fresh air for a US contribution to the softer side of death metal but on a worldwide standpoint, there needs to be a little refining to properly capture a major audience. By no means is this garbage, it's just that the competition is plentiful out there. Their label is putting a good push behind this release so perhaps that will take them to higher grounds. Diehard fans of As the Flower Withers or the s/t Theatre of Tragedy may want to give this a listen for themselves. I'll stick with the classics, until I hear the proper sounds summoning me to follow.
    3 out of 5

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