The latest release from $uicideboy$, “I Want To Die In New Orleans,” proves that they have come a long way since their first album in 2014. The Soundcloud rap duo has put out another vivid depiction of the seventh ward, their drug fueled, fast moving lifestyles and descriptive imagery of taking their own lives. None of what makes them $uicideboy$ has changed, but this album looks at a bigger picture with more attention to detail.

About a minute into “King Tulip” you can already tell Ruby’s vocal range has expanded. Ruby is $crim’s cousin, and according to no jumper they’ve been a part of each other’s lives since they were in diapers. He was also in many punk rock bands before $uicideboy$ as a drummer. It sounds like he’s honed in on his craft and has more control of what he can do vocally. It’s a great song to start, and the track has a less eerie vibe than the rest of the album. The mood completely changes with the second song, ‘Bring Out Your Dead.” The audio from a New Orleans news channel starts by describing shots being fired at police officers. Then a muffled bassline fades in, like the rattling speakers of a car passing. By the time the second track starts, you’re already in the car with the song blaring and in for a ride, cruising the seventh ward, “strapped” to the teeth in the back seat. The transition from song to song on this album is smooth and perfectly executed, building a horrific urban atmosphere.“Nicotine Patches,” is the third track on the album; it’s just another sad boy rap song. The only special aspect is how much they switch up the flow, sound and timbre of their voices. This track communicates much more of the personality and attitude that they bring to the whole album. In “10,000 Degrees,” Ruby doesn’t miss a beat and hardly takes a breath; there’s just so many small, unique sounds, interesting ad-libs and creative ways they go about showcasing their talent. After Ruby starts the fifth track, “122 days,” with his angsty, late 90’s pop-punk vocals that he is known for; people either love or hate him. $scrim comes on the track sounding nasally, wasted and slumped, which you also either hate or love him for, and those are the last of the chill, depressing songs for a couple tracks. You’re then thrown headfirst into the sixth song, “Phantom Menace,” which bombards you with a fed up Ruby and $scrim and a constant throbbing bass.

“WAR TIME ALL THE TIME” is definitely the banger on this album; an unhappy $crim hacking up short, choppy and confrontational bars right in your face. They capture a vibe that they know will stir up the fans and turn the pit into a violent bloodbath, and they could totally land themselves a nice big fine from the unlucky venue. Ruby then jumps in with a chant-like flow and wraps up the hardest-hitting track in the smoothest way possible.

“Coma” is also an interesting song; the beat and intro are dissonant and unusual. Ruby comes onto the song sounding like he’s possessed, and then — pretty much out of nowhere — the tone of the song completely changes. Like everything else on this album, it’s executed smoothly, going from a dark, creeping-through-the-New-Orleans-streets vibe to a floating, higher place. Then it’s cut short with another snippet from the news about water breaking through a levee.

“Carrollton” is one of the tracks released before the album was dropped, and the beat makes you want to jump even though they sound Geeked and slumped. Toward the end of the song, Ruby gets heated and choppy with his words, and it really adds an edge to one of their less aggressive tracks, and then, it’s ended by a man over church bells telling you that you need to go to Mass Sunday morning to tell God you’re sorry for your drunkness, to only go out and drink again.

“F*%& The Industry” is the thirteenth track, and Ruby brings this kind of LiL PEEP vibe that I couldn’t put my finger on. But it’s good, and the song is heavy and low with different ad-libs I’ve never heard them use before. They end the track with a remembrance of the $uicide Boy$, as if they had died, and the guy talking is awkward-sounding yet weirdly cool, and I really liked how they completely switch genres.

“I No Longer Fear The Razor Blade Guarding My Heel (IV)” is the 14th and last track on “I Want to Die in New Orleans.” It’s a seven minute song of what seems to be four different songs in one mix. It comes off really chill at first, and there’s all these interesting voices and sounds and add-libs and a really catchy chant about their set.

“Grey 59 B**** I signed my life away”, then acoustic guitars come in and an angsty Ruby singing about hating this new world and not wanting to be here. After that — about three minutes in — it goes back to that trap hi-hat-based beat with a looped sample of a man saying, “You can feel the bullets from my steel, son.” The best part of this part of the track is Ruby. I’ve never heard him sound so good. His vocals on this track and so many other times on this album are a clear indication that either $crim or Ruby was beefing up on rock music, talking and trying to incorporate it into this album even more than before. Right before the last part of the song, they have a sample of an older woman who talked about the bizzare things she saw in the graveyards in New Orleans, with off-putting samples of rain and female laughter and  unidentified noises. Then, the last of their work starts with a quick beat over slow, depressing, lo-fi synth, which I feel was pretty good way to end the album.

“I Want To Die in New Orleans” felt like an attempt to try to do different things. Appeal to more people but keep the same sound that got them their popularity while being true to the fans that hold them up. This album will push them forward; it felt cohesive, meant to be heard in order, track by track, but it very well can be enjoyed in any sequence. Overall, I would give the whole album a B.