Insane In The Main Brain (Black Sunday - Cypress Hill)

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Product:	Black Sunday - Cypress Hill
Date:	17/02/01 (41 review reads)
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Advantages: SO CHILLED OUT

Disadvantages: no go area for Straight Edgers

In 1991, the climate for hip-hop, as it had in alternative music with the advent of Nirvana, was undergoing radical changes. Around this time, when Cypress Hill released their eponymous debut, George Clinton's influence on rap was becoming more apparent, most notably in Dr. Dre's 1992 G-Funk trendsetter THE CHRONIC. This album encapsulated many Parliament and Funkadelic-inspired elements, including the whining synth melodies (prior to this, it was rare to have melody at all in rap), deep funky bass grooves, and instantly catchy but with a decidedly eerie flavor. At a time when too many East Coast MCs were content to rap over James Brown samples and simple unsyncopated beats, the West Coast sound became truly innovative. Though the psychedelic, "one-nation-under-a-groove" party vibes that Clinton created and the violent gangsta imagery of Dr. Dre's and (to a lesser extent) Cypress Hill's work were worlds apart, no one could accuse the latter of being mere style plagiarists as they brought Clinton's acid-saturated hooks into the mix with their own view of how rap should be performed.

Neither of them had to worry about lack of individuality among themselves as well. Their sounds occasionally bled into one another and were often likened to one another, but they did the opposite of the other. While Dre's debut did seem to hint at a new acceptance for drug use in the rap community but focused mainly on gangsta hedonism ("chronic" is a potent strain of weed), Cypress Hill were not at all ambiguous regarding their penchant for pot, but did dabble in gangsta-style amoralism if only to keep pace. The majority of their rhymes on the debut just glamorizes marijuana's use with titles like "Stoned Is the Way of the Walk" and "Something for the Blunted," sounding rather overdone by the end but Clinton's influence can still be felt subtly with every rumbling bassline and laid-back beat. The follow-up B
LACK SUNDAY uses the same formula of stoned beats and lazy low end courtesy of DJ Muggs (worked w/House of Pain and Funkdoobiest) coupled with the fierce nasal lead rhymes of B-Real, but the mix remains compelling if somewhat trying with the relentless herb references.

The album's dynamic flow is as captivating as B-Real's raps, his lyrics snaking through the dense collage of spaced-out samples and doped-up rhythms. Though he is unquestionably a talented rapper, his incredibly nasal delivery sometimes appears exaggerated and even funny. But that just makes his style all the more unique and provides a good balance for the album's randomly violent nature. This does overshadow his partner in rhyme Sen Dog, whose raps are decent but forgettable after hearing B-Real's wild verbal antics. DJ Muggs like Dre is masterful at keeping the funk loose but focused at the same time, but the intricacy and variety of Muggs' sampling, scratching and programming does keep the listener guessing more than with THE CHRONIC, even tracks that concentrate on the instrumental side ("Legalize It", "I Wanna Get High," "Lockdown"). A few tracks falter along the way, like the back-to-back violence of "Lick A Shot" and "Cock The Hammer" which barely crawl along with short, boring samples and uninventive words.

Ligt up relax and enjoy

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