It’s been over two years since the original Boyz N Da Hood released their self-titled album and last week they followed it up with Back Up N Da Chevy. Though the BNDH roster changed with Gorilla Zoe replacing Young Jeezy, there hasn’t been much of a change in the group’s music. Gorilla Zoe may not be a sufficient replacement for someone like Young Jeezy, but with their sophomore release, BNDH still manage to churn out a decent album. However, there are definitely some weak songs on Back Up N Da Chevy, and Jody Breeze and Big Gee are still the only two in the group with any talent.

Back Up N Da Chevy starts off with the first single “Everybody Know Me,” which gives you a pretty good idea of what the rest of the album sounds like. Pretty much every song is on some street shit with some real loud bass and some Mannie Fresh sounding hi-hats. This ordinarily wouldn’t be a bad thing, if these guys could actually write some decent lyrics and hooks. The next song, “Bite Down,” is one of the only club songs on the album, where the BNDH members talk about rolling on ecstasy and having a good time with some females. This is actually one of the better songs on the album, as it takes us away from the gritty BNDH world of guns and dope for a minute. “Say What’s On Your Mind” takes us back to that familiar territory, though it’s followed by one of the best songs on the album “Nothing Is Promised” with Yung Joc. The beat and the lyrics are solid on this song, and the way the rappers trade off verses with such clean transitions sounds great.

Unfortunately, there only a handful of songs on Back Up N Da Chevy that are on the same level as “Nothing Is Promised.” The abundance of similar street material gets a little boring after a while, especially when three of the songs even have similar titles (“We Ready,” “We Ridin,” “We Thuggin”). There are definitely some good tracks on this album, though most of them have a featured artist on the hook or spitting a guest verse. “Choppas” has a tight guest verse from Ice Cube. “Paper” has a guest verse from Rick Ross. And the only other club song on the album, “Table Dance,” features T-Pain. While all of these songs are pretty good, BNDH rely heavily on the features and the production to carry the momentum of the album. Back Up N Da Chevy is pretty much what everyone expected out of a follow-up from BNDH minus Jeezy. It’s not as good as their first album, but it’s still a pretty decent effort from Atlanta’s Boyz N Da Hood and luckily it’s Diddy-free. Now where’s my Jody Breeze solo album?