Members:
Jeremy Millington - vocals, pianos, guitars, bass, percussion, programming
Lorraine Millington - vocals, guitars
Meet The Portraits
The Portraits have lived life in reverse. Their retirement from the music business came before they even launched themselves onto the scene: they have worked in arts education, have run a small business in France, and have had children, all of this prior to giving their full focus to a music project that has been bubbling away under the surface for years waiting for the right moment to appear. Now, it seems this is that time: in 2010, they find themselves in the unique position of giving a chunk of their profits away for a good cause, one they have handpicked themselves.
The song writing partnership between Lorraine Reilly and Jeremy Millington grew over a decade ago when the two were young teachers on the Isle of Wight, Lorraine an art tutor and Jeremy a classroom music teacher. Turning their backs on their day-jobs, the two set out to perfect their craft, working with a series of other musicians and eking out a following on the Bristol and London live gig circuits at the turn of the millennium.
Time spent in France in the new decade helped to fine-tune the concept of The Portraits. The release to critical acclaim of the highly personal 2006 album "Kin", containing Anglicised shades of the French chanson style, was followed in 2008 by its South African produced successor "Timescape", which showed strong download sales. Keen to move to fresh sonic territory with each new release, the duo's third album is a raw, acoustic affair, stripping away the electronic facades of its predecessors, and allowing their now trademark "choir-like" vocal arrangements to shine through with a supporting cast of orchestral instruments and world percussion, and the musings of a well-known Bristolian saxophonist. The result is a rich sonic tapestry, with a healthy nod to the warm vocals of yesteryear, allusions to Brian Wilson, Ben Folds, the Beautiful South and even Enya, but a confidence in its own individuality. The duo pull no punches about it. "We're totally confident that it's the best work we've ever done," says pianist Jeremy, "and we have a warm glow from the conviction that others will agree".
The Portraits Websites:
web: http://theportraitsmusic.com
myspace: http://www.myspace.com/xtheportraitsx
myspace: http://www.myspace.com/theportraitseurope