INFESTUS formed in 1997 as a Gothic Black Metal band from Venezuela. "Dresses of Darkness" is their new EP presented here, which contains five dark and melancholy tracks with a heavy edge. "Vampirica" is short instrumental into, with those deep and dark organ notes that you might hear filling a church before a Sunday service. But this is not a church for the living...it segues into "My Mournful Charlotte," which opens with bells which seem to hint at the coming of something nefarious. What follows is a slow grinding sound complete with chants in the background. The vocals are spoken words; two voices, with one whispered under the other to create a harrowing sound. I suppose I would call this Gothic Metal, though that term is pretty wide, and the harsh vocals are more in the Black Metal realm.

"The Shadow of the Vampire" is shorter and with a depressive sound. The clean vocals remind me of Ville Valo from HIM, though more agonizing as Ville is all about the love for the most part. The harsh vocals are provide the edge to the track, as the cleans are sometimes so monotone that they don't invoke much of an emotional response. From Wikipedia, "Luison is a variation of Lobizón, a name used in Argentina or Uruguay to describe the werewolf or a similar creature, which is itself a variation of the Brazilian name for the werewolf, Lobisomem, more literally wolf-man. The track "Lobizon" is similar to the previous two, but the clean vocals are wearing on me at this point. They are a bit pitchy and I much prefer the fiercer snarl of the Death vocals.

"Blood Matriarch" closes the album. The opening notes are deep and ominous, but just when they start to really take effect on you they are gone. There are some chaotic moments that follow and the chord progressions connect in a way that is very frightening in scope. Overall, there are just too few songs here that are too close in their compositions for me to get a deeper sense of the artist and the album. I hear some potential, especially in the scarier passages with the harsh vocals, but as it is I am not completely sold on the sound. But, if you like music in this genre, please give it a chance and see for yourself.