Cypress Hill IV
Cypress Hill is either hip-hop's most secretly talented band or its luckiest. How else do you explain four albums--Cypress Hill,Black Sunday,III (Temple of Boom), and nowIV--over seven years that all use the same rote formula? DJ Muggs hooks up the dusty dungeon beats, filled with slow, rolling bass lines and dirtied drum breaks. B-Real revs up his nasal flow and spins yarns about (a) why police suck, (b) why Cypress can't be screwed with, and (c) marijuana, marijuana, marijuana. Did we mention that they talk a lot about weed?IVoffers no new surprises, but Cypress faithful won't be disappointed.--Oliver Wang