Klimt 1918
Encyclopedia
Biography
Klimt 1918 was started in 1999 by brothers Marco and Paolo Soellner, after the split of their former band, Another Day (a death metalDeath metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
act). Marco's newly discovered love for bands like The Cure
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
, Bauhaus
Bauhaus (band)
Bauhaus was an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978. The group consisted of Peter Murphy , Daniel Ash , Kevin Haskins and David J . The band was originally Bauhaus 1919 before they dropped the numerical portion within a year of formation...
and Joy Division
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...
, led him to incorporate new influences in his songwriting. The next year, after completing the line-up with bass player Davide Pesola and lead guitarist Francesco Tumbarello, the band released its first effort, Secession Makes Post-Modern Music
Secession Makes Post-Modern Music
Secession Makes Post-Modern Music is the first, self-produced demo by Italian band Klimt 1918. It was released in 2000.This first release features a heavy and layered gothic sound, very atmospheric yet melodic, drawing consistent influence from doom metal and reminiscent of Novembre and mid-period...
, which was recorded by Novembre
Novembre
Novembre is a progressive death metal/gothic doom metal band.-Biography:Starting out in 1990 as an Italian death metal band , Novembre grew to develop a unique, atmospheric sound. Although most of their lyrics are in English, vocalist Carmelo Orlando sings in Italian occasionally in many of their...
's drummer, Giuseppe Orlando, a close friend of the band. The demo received good reviews from specialized press and caught the attention of My Kingdom Music, a newborn Italian independent label, with which the band signed a deal for two releases. Their debut full-length, Undressed Momento
Undressed Momento
Undressed Momento is the first full-length album by Italian alternative rock band Klimt 1918. It was released in 2003 on My Kingdom Music....
, came out in 2003; during the recording sessions, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
player Francesco Tumbarello left the band, being replaced by Alessandro Pace
Alex Vega
Alessandro Pace, better known by his stage name Alex Vega, is an Italian musician and part-time DJ. Founder of the Gothic Doom Metal musical project known as The Foreshadowing, he was previously associated with the bands Dope Stars Inc. and Klimt 1918. Pace assumed the name Alex Vega in 2005 when...
, a well-known name in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
's underground metal scene and a long time friend of the band. Undressed Momento marked an evolution in Klimt 1918's sound, which became more melodic and emotional, losing part of its metal heritage; the album received critical praise from reviewers all over Europe, and reached the first place in Orkus' Top Chart. One year later, the band signed a new contract with German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
cult label, Prophecy Productions
Prophecy Productions
Prophecy Productions is a German record label located in Zeltingen-Rachtig, founded by Martin Koller in 1996. It proclaims being a "label for eerie emotional music", which roughly comprises artists with a dark metal, black metal, or neofolk background, but a unique and unconventional approach to...
, and began working on a new full-length. Dopoguerra
Dopoguerra
Dopoguerra is the second full-length album by Italian alternative rock band Klimt 1918. It was released in 2005 on the German label, Prophecy Productions, which gave the band exposure outside their home country....
was released in 2005 and featured a more mature and personal sound; the album was once again praised by both critics and press, and was supported by a European tour, the first for the band. The band said the album "was recorded during the hot summer 2004, with sound man/producer Giuseppe Orlando. The one-month session was long and difficult, but worked out better than anyone could have hoped."
Between September and October 2006, guitarist Alessandro Pace
Alex Vega
Alessandro Pace, better known by his stage name Alex Vega, is an Italian musician and part-time DJ. Founder of the Gothic Doom Metal musical project known as The Foreshadowing, he was previously associated with the bands Dope Stars Inc. and Klimt 1918. Pace assumed the name Alex Vega in 2005 when...
left the band and was replaced by Francesco Conte, who made his live debut with the band on October 21, at Prophecy Productions
Prophecy Productions
Prophecy Productions is a German record label located in Zeltingen-Rachtig, founded by Martin Koller in 1996. It proclaims being a "label for eerie emotional music", which roughly comprises artists with a dark metal, black metal, or neofolk background, but a unique and unconventional approach to...
' 10 years festival.
The long-delayed follow-up to Dopoguerra
Dopoguerra
Dopoguerra is the second full-length album by Italian alternative rock band Klimt 1918. It was released in 2005 on the German label, Prophecy Productions, which gave the band exposure outside their home country....
, called Just In Case We'll Never Meet Again (Soundtrack For The Cassette Generation)
Just in case we'll never meet again (soundtrack for the cassette generation)
Just in case we'll never meet again is an album by Italian rock band Klimt 1918, released in June 2008...
, was first released in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on June 20, 2008, being subsequently released worldwide on June 23 and in the U.S.A. on June 24.
In April 2009 the band released its first videoclip Ghost Of A Tape Listener, followed by a vinyl release of Just In Case We'll Never Meet Again (Soundtrack For The Cassette Generation)
Just in case we'll never meet again (soundtrack for the cassette generation)
Just in case we'll never meet again is an album by Italian rock band Klimt 1918, released in June 2008...
and a Ghost Of A Tape Listener EP featuring a previously unreleased track, "Blackeberg 1981".
Style
Klimt 1918's sound can be described as alternative rockAlternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
with roots in avant-garde metal, featuring consistent darkwave
Darkwave
Dark Wave or darkwave is a music genre that began in the late 1970s, coinciding with the popularity of New Wave and post-punk. Building on those basic principles, dark wave added dark, introspective lyrics and an undertone of sorrow for some bands...
and post-rock
Post-rock
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock...
influences. The resulting blend is a melodic and melancholic guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
-based rock, combining thick shoegaze-like rhythm-guitar riffs with post-rock
Post-rock
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock...
-esque atmospheres. Their recent output has consistently shifted towards indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, featuring more emphasis on shoegaze and post-rock traits while abandoning entirely their former metal influences.
Name
The name "Klimt 1918" is a reference to Gustav KlimtGustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. His major works include paintings, murals, sketches, and other art objects...
and his year of death, 1918, which also saw the end of the First World War. According to Marco Soellner, Klimt 1918's music features the same qualities of de-contextualization, secession and post-modernism found in Klimt
Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. His major works include paintings, murals, sketches, and other art objects...
's art.
Year 1918 itself, in Marco's words, represents the definitive collapse of "belle epoque
Belle Époque
The Belle Époque or La Belle Époque was a period in European social history that began during the late 19th century and lasted until World War I. Occurring during the era of the French Third Republic and the German Empire, it was a period characterised by optimism and new technological and medical...
" values and a full transition to 20th century.
The name may also be a tribute to Bauhaus
Bauhaus (band)
Bauhaus was an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978. The group consisted of Peter Murphy , Daniel Ash , Kevin Haskins and David J . The band was originally Bauhaus 1919 before they dropped the numerical portion within a year of formation...
, which was originally named "Bauhaus 1919".
Members
- Marco Soellner - vocals, guitar
- Francesco Conte - guitar
- Davide Pesola - bass
- Paolo Soellner - drums
Former members
- Francesco Tumbarello - guitar (2000–2002)
- Alessandro PaceAlex VegaAlessandro Pace, better known by his stage name Alex Vega, is an Italian musician and part-time DJ. Founder of the Gothic Doom Metal musical project known as The Foreshadowing, he was previously associated with the bands Dope Stars Inc. and Klimt 1918. Pace assumed the name Alex Vega in 2005 when...
- guitar (2002–2006) - Alessandro Pace (born May 20, 1977), better known as Alex Vega, is an Italian musician and former member of the industrial rock group Dope Stars Inc.Dope Stars Inc.Dope Stars Inc. is an alternative and industrial rock band formed in Rome, Italy in late 2002, though the band was not officially formed until 2003. The band was founded by Victor Love, Darin Yevonde, Grace Khold and Brian Wolfram. They have four albums and three EPs released, with the latest being...
and the alternative rock band Klimt 1918. A member of Klimt 1918 from 2002–2006 under his birth name, Pace assumed the name Alex Vega when he joined Dope Stars Inc.Dope Stars Inc.Dope Stars Inc. is an alternative and industrial rock band formed in Rome, Italy in late 2002, though the band was not officially formed until 2003. The band was founded by Victor Love, Darin Yevonde, Grace Khold and Brian Wolfram. They have four albums and three EPs released, with the latest being...
in 2005 as a replacement guitarist. He left the band in 2007. He founded the band, The ForeshadowingThe ForeshadowingThe Foreshadowing are an Italian gothic metal/doom metal band with ambient influences.-Origins:The band was officially formed at the dawn of 2005, but the project was actually started back in 1998, from an idea of Alessandro Pace ), who involved his friends Andrea Chiodetti and Francesco Sosto ...
, which signed to Candlelight Records in 2007. Alex is also a DJ.
Discography
- Secession Makes Post-Modern MusicSecession Makes Post-Modern MusicSecession Makes Post-Modern Music is the first, self-produced demo by Italian band Klimt 1918. It was released in 2000.This first release features a heavy and layered gothic sound, very atmospheric yet melodic, drawing consistent influence from doom metal and reminiscent of Novembre and mid-period...
(self-produced demo, 2000) - Undressed MomentoUndressed MomentoUndressed Momento is the first full-length album by Italian alternative rock band Klimt 1918. It was released in 2003 on My Kingdom Music....
(My Kingdom Music, 2003) - DopoguerraDopoguerraDopoguerra is the second full-length album by Italian alternative rock band Klimt 1918. It was released in 2005 on the German label, Prophecy Productions, which gave the band exposure outside their home country....
(Prophecy, 2005) - Just in case we'll never meet again (soundtrack for the cassette generation)Just in case we'll never meet again (soundtrack for the cassette generation)Just in case we'll never meet again is an album by Italian rock band Klimt 1918, released in June 2008...
(Prophecy, June 2008)