_Dopoguerra_ ("Postwar") consists of, in the band's own words, "nine pieces of comforting, emotional music", "nine songs informed by the intensity of laughter born of tears". The music of Klimt 1918 (whose name comes from Austrian painter Gustav Klimt and the year of his death) demands to be looked at from a non-metallic perspective; if you don't think you can do this, then _Dopoguerra_ is unlikely to have much to offer you.

If I were to find some sort of reference for the band's sound, I would have to mention Anathema or Katatonia -- but these are no more similar to Klimt 1918 than others such as Coldplay, U2 or The Cure. If I haven't scared you off already, then this is probably a good time to add that this doesn't sound like something that was created with the aim of selling countless copies; the ingredients are there, but they just don't seem to have been mixed together with that in mind -- Klimt 1918 seem much more concerned with communicating emotion through their music than planting a chorus in the listener's mind. In other words, the band does its best to make sure their music lives up to the two keywords I quoted early on in this review: "comforting" and "emotional" -- which isn't to say this album couldn't reach some very interesting sales figures if it is presented to the right audience.

On a couple of occasions the pop elements do get a bit overbearing, but considering the nature of the album, this is kept to a relative minimum. Also, competent as the singing may be, it doesn't reach the emotional level of, say, Anathema's Vincent Cavanagh -- then again, the singing style is considerably different. In addition, there isn't enough intensity, variation, or indeed enough stand-out moments to ensure the album remains gripping throughout, turning _Dopoguerra_ into the kind of album I can appreciate and spin occasionally, but not one that entirely wins me over.