Cypress Hill
Black Sunday

THE REVIEW

The Cypress Hill (Los Angeles, CA) entered the world of hip hop/rap in 1986 under the name DVX, but it was only in '91 that they secured a contract with Columbia Records, which guaranteed them a brilliant and long career.
1991 marked their debut year with the self-titled album "Cypress Hill," but it was only in 1993 that the band emerged from the underground scene with their masterpiece "Black Sunday," an album that sold millions of copies worldwide.
This was a true new school of rap from which illustrious figures like Eminem and Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against The Machine have taken inspiration.

"Black Sunday" is a dark and humorous album at the same time: the melodies accompanying the nasal and clownish voice of frontman B-Real are characterized by the heaviness of the bass sound, exceedingly dark and repetitive, yet capable of creating haunting and paradoxical atmospheres in songs like "I Ain't Going Out Like That," "Cock The Hammer," and "Insane In The Brain," the hit-single that secured the Los Angeles group international success.

For his part, the true mastermind behind the success of Cypress, Dj Muggs, demonstrates his talent by composing, mixing, and producing the loops of the album. Despite hip-hop's lack of appreciation due to its recurring monotony in rhythmic bases, Muggs breaks the mold and creates particular drum sequences that are hard to forget, even though they are simple and, all in all, sparse.
The presence of Sen Dog, B-Real's long-time companion, and Bobo (the band's percussionist, drummer, guitarist, bassist, and additional MC) brighten the dark atmospheres of the album, sometimes exaggerating them to reach situations of hilarity, as in "A To The K" or in "When The Shit Goes Down" and "Hands On The Glock."
This desire of the Los Angeles quartet to lead the listener towards a sort of fun-filled "Cypress Hill Party" does, however, touch on serious themes such as gang conflicts (Lick A Shot) and the legalization of marijuana ("Legalize It" and "Hits From The Bong"), an obsession that still characterizes the LA group.

"Black Sunday" is especially an album to remember for its influences on nu-metal bands like KoRn and Limp Bizkit, but also on English DJs including Liam Howlett of the Prodigy and Fatboy Slim.
As an example, the bass riff of "Lick A Shot" was later taken up by Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu in "Blind" by KoRn.

The Cypress Hill have continued to produce albums up to the present day without, however, repeating the success of "Black Sunday," even venturing into rock-inspired and crossover albums. But perhaps it's precisely their variety of ideas and the enormous dose of charm they inspire that makes them worth listening to still.
In short, "Black Sunday" is an album to listen to and relisten to, no matter the listener's preferred genre; it is one of the keys to the evolution from classic hip-hop to the rock/rap hybrid of RATM and Limp Bizkit that is so fashionable these days!