DEMIRICOUS 'Two (Poverty)' (Metal Blade) RATING: 7/10

By JEFF MAKI

Demiricous' debut album, One (Hellbound), was an adrenaline-pumping thrasher, channeling the inner-child of Slayer—nothing original, but it's all-out aggressiveness was admirable. With their follow-up, the ingeniously titled Two (Poverty), the Indianapolis band continues along the same path to similar results.

Demiricous is not a complete Slayer clone, but they are damn close. Lead vocalist/bassist Nate Olp has the exact same vocal delivery as Slayer's Tom Araya. The tempo and raw sound of the rhythm section is also near identical. Divine Intervention, though an excellent album, is one of Slayer's lesser known releases. However, it seems to be the blueprint for Demiricous. Two (Poverty) gets excellent production from acclaimed producer Erik Rutan (Hate Eternal, Through The Eyes of the Dead, Nile); he is becoming the go-to guy when it comes to producing metal records. Other than Slayer, the band combines elements of thrash, hardcore and death metal, which the band has dubbed “street metal.” On a humorous note, according to guitarist Scott Wilson, the album was named “poverty” after the financial state of the band. The band spent a whole year working on the album and subsequently had to work some shitty jobs during the process.

Demiricous delivers on “Engineer,” “Celebrations of Damage” and “Stress Fetish.” Hell, just pick one out from the album and thrash away. On the other hand, the songs, nearly all of which are the same tempo, are almost interchangeable. But the band is sure to raise some eyebrows and break a few necks along the way. After two albums in the exact same vein, it's time for Demiricous to spread their wings and take some risks next time around. They are good at what they do, but there is potential to do a lot more.