Molchat Doma's second album, Etazhi, appeared a year after their debut, and while it maintains a similarly bleak tone and a sound derived from 1980s post-punk and cold wave, it's easily a step up in terms of both songwriting and production, sounding significantly cleaner and having far more memorable hooks. The synth melodies are more prominent, while the guitars take on a nearly surf-like tone on some songs, and the rhythms are more danceable. The upbeat "Tancevat" seems to be about the escapism of a dance party, even if dancing in the company of other people feels awkward, while "Filmy" edges closer to the funk-influenced side of new wave. The lyrics are a bit deeper than the band's debut, continuing to describe loneliness, oppression, and life under communist rule, but some of these songs are more related to personal feelings. "Filmy" is about facing a harsh reality that's dramatic enough to be a movie, causing disbelief in love, and "Toska" finds relief in the end of a toxic relationship. The buzzy, winding synth melody of "Prognoz" belies how apocalyptic and foreboding the song's lyrics are. "Sudno" ended up becoming a surprise viral hit in 2020, and it's actually one of the stranger songs on the album, starting out foggy and hesitant before building up to a more anthemic second half. The lyrics are based on the words of Boris Ryzhy, an acclaimed Russian poet who died by suicide at the age of 26, and it describes the difficulty of facing life and finding it much easier to die. "Kommersanty," originally released months after the band's debut appeared in 2017, maintains the lower fidelity of that album, as well as its more political nature, describing how businessmen rewrite history and flood the world with frightening propaganda. Etazhi's subject matter is often harrowing and unflinching, but the songs themselves are remarkably well crafted, even heartbreaking at times, and the whole thing stands up to repeated, obsessive listening.