SHTURM is a Russian band formed in 2003. In the meantime they have one single and three full length albums under their name. Their latest full length album "Karmaruna" was released recently by Darknagar Records and is an album that shows how much they've grown since their debut album "Fresh Christian Meat".  SHTURM plays the Black / Death / Heavy Metal genres making "Karmaruna" sound like a heavy loaded tow truck that's able to pull, grind and drag along.

SHTURM is a Russian radio guided anti-tank guided missile system and a multi-purpose tracked armored vehicle. How that name suits this band and their album "Karmaruna".  Drum work's moving, bass's loaded, guitars are aimed and vocals are ready to scream through all kind of radio silences, sometimes as hard to follow as easy to understand.

The great thing about music is that one doesn't need a spoken language to understand. Music's even able to express feelings that are hard to catch with words and if one genre doesn't do it, one can combine genres, just like feelings can be combined. And that's what I find inside the SHTURM album "Karmaruna". This album's truly a mix of feelings expressed in genres combined. When you're not a fan of just Death or Black or Heavy Metal you still might like this band anyway because next to their balanced mix of styles, they also sound a bit progressive.

The first song on this album is a true intro, like they're turning the switch to get their vehicle running. Once running it bursts on in frustration, anger and fear, but also in accepting and finding balance again to stay on the road. SHTURM's teamwork does fire off explosive work, fast sweeping draggers, but also melodic sweet and sad sounding tunes. All combined inside this solid album that's definitely worth a listen.

"Karmaruma" sounds better than their former work not only within their material but also concerning the production. I cannot say that their former work's bad, just saying that they have grown on more than just one level since their first album. To me that is a good thing, simple because that makes me even more curious about their next album.