Slick Southern Rap duo $uicideboy$ return afresh. Having built a cult fan base from the ground up, New World Depression marks another benchmark, their highest billboard charting to date! Impressive, but not reflective of the albums substance. Spending weeks with these cuts, Ive felt the sparkle fade gradually. Now accustom with their dreary tuneful sing-raps, slanted Southern cadences and difficult topicality, their routine of snappy beats and weighty rhymes fizzles into just that, a routine.
The closing stretch catches my ear. Covering U.N.L.V's classic Drag Em N Tha River makes for a memorable shift in tone. Stabbing string jabs and a jarring piano riff mixes up the mood. Its proceeded by the records darkest and best track. Us Vs Them ushers in criminal melodies mustering a tone for stealthy mischief as the pair rap devious carefree threats. The Thin Grey Line indulges in a similar mysteria, the beat conjuring conspiratorial vibes for the duo to exchange their sharpest flows.
Mostly dabbling with moody, glum instrumentals, brief moments of insightful lyricism fall between the cracks of boisterous showboating wordplay. Relatable messaging of struggles and drug abuse dull as a result. Previously their words soared. Its either familiarity or the routine I alluded too but New World Depression simply entertains before fading from consciousness. Competent record, but lacking a fresh spark.
Rating: 6/10