No doubt, INFESTUS has come a long way. Since their formation in 1997 and their debut album in 2004, their production has become crisp and their music has tightened into some of the best gothic doom melodic metal I've heard in a while. With their latest EP release, Undead, it showcases the band's darker gothic elements as well as their more progressive ones.

The EP opens with "Between The Evil Eyes", an incredibly clear production that never stops being awesome from start to finish. While some guitar wonks may find the second hook's guitar work oversaturated, I don't really mind. It fits the eerie, gothic sound the band's stated they're going for. Everything's where it's supposed to be: the vocals are in the front (though some could argue they're a hair too forward), instrumentals in the back. The sound quality is so clear, I can hear every ounce of sound coming through my speakers. Plus, although the vocals are guttural, the enunciation is so clear, I can understand and enjoy the dark, anguished lyrics. The guitar solo and later vocal harmonies are intense and make you bang your head at your laptop (or wherever you're listening to the track).

"New Infest" has a more progressive opening than the first song. The first part of the intro is a soft guitar melody reminiscent of a softer TOOL song. Once they burst into the opening riff, the instrumentals and vocals remind me of an interesting combination of HIM and SYSTEM OF A DOWN. The guitar riff is an excellent, gothic-sounding hook, and the vocals at first really remind me of Serj Tankian just a hair enough for me to make a connection. Another head-banging song, the pickups are great and the way the song trails off - the end effects depict the song as disappearing into a puff of smoke, a great use of musical painting in my book.

The final song, "No Muertos" has a higher-pitched guitar with some interesting, ominous sounding bends in the intro. The chorus carries on like a dirge with harmonies that soar in the background. Like their older work, they write this song in their native language, Spanish. Like their first two English tracks, the The gothic elements are also wonderful, including the harpsichord and organ sounds that crescendo in the final chorus.

Overall, the band names some influences I know and love, including TIAMAT, CRADLE OF FILTH, and MOONSPELL. I can see the influence of the first and third bands mentioned the strongest, giving the band a classic gothic doom metal sound. This definitely makes Infestus a great listen if you were into late 90s/early 2000s melodic doom metal. If you're into more melodic, cleaned-up versions of the doom metal genre, or like goth metal, this is a band you should definitely check out. If you're more into the lower, sludgier sounds, I'd recommend checking out their earlier work.