This is the second album from French blackened death metallers Mithridatic.

2016’s Miserable Miracle was heavy and dirty, in a very good way. Blackened death metal of this sort is frequently done poorly, but Mithridatic got the formula right on their debut album.

Darker and grittier than the band’s first album, but also tighter and with leaner song lengths as a result, Tetanos Mystique contains 37 minutes of material that hits hard.

The songs are satisfying examples of how to balance the black and death metal sides of your sound when you’re essentially going for dark, malevolent death metal with blackened atmospheric enhancements. The balance between the black and death metal elements in the music is mostly well-judged, with the brutal aggression counterpointed with grim mood in various places and ways.

There’s plenty of tasty riffs to digest, and the delivery can occasionally get quite technical in places. Aggressive and foul, the music is well-written and does its job nicely.

A recommended listen.