CD name: ‘Rise Up’

Artist: Cypress Hill

Genre: Hip-hop/rap

Sounds like: Rage Against the Machine covering Cypress Hill songs

Soundwaves: 2.5/5

Release date: 4/20/2010

Gone is the focused, sonically unified production style that has characterized Cypress Hill in the past, as the band seeks to return to the mainstream with its latest album, ‘Rise Up.’ Instead, the West Coast rap pioneers bring in a mix of outside pop production and modern influences. The result is an inconsistent, yet perhaps more accessible, album that will either mark the return of Cypress Hill or die as a wasted pop effort.

Cypress Hill has never replicated the success of its 1993 sophomore effort, ‘Black Sunday.’ Besides putting the group on the map, ‘Black Sunday’ best captures its trademark style: trippy, Latin-influenced raps over dark and expansive beats. The focus stayed on music and the mood. As hip-hop’s aesthetics changed, Cypress Hill tried to evolve with the times, somewhat falling off the scene in the process. ‘Rise Up’ is the first album in six years, a loud call to arms for a classic group eager to make a comeback.

The album opens with the banging ‘It Ain’t Nothin,’ a hardcore street track. B-Real’s familiar high-pitched voice sounds refined, as he displays impressive control of his flow over the beat. ‘Light it Up’ is a standout track, produced by the legendary Pete Rock. Some old-school magic is recaptured over a suave, jazzy beat that complements boastful rhymes about rocking microphones.

Unfortunately, a string of flawed hard-rock collaborations and mainstream tracks cut short a promising beginning to the album. ‘Rise Up’ is the first of this type. The song features Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, who also provides his aggressive and head-bobbing riffs to the 14th track, ‘Shut ‘Em Down.’ Cypress Hill has always toed the line between rap and hard rock, but these new songs are noticeably lopsided. Both ‘Rise Up’ and ‘Shut ‘Em Down’ sound like Rage Against the Machine songs that feature B-Real and Sen Dog. This is a problem.

Things get worse with ‘Get it Anyway,’ a generic track from producer Jim Jonsin, the man behind pop smashes such as ‘Whatever You Like,’ ‘Kiss Me Thru the Phone’ and ‘Lollipop.’ Accordingly, ‘Get it Anyway’ is a standard pop-rap song that sounds insincere coming from Cypress Hill. And the trend continues. ‘Trouble Seeker’ features System of a Down, which produces a confusing and unpleasant outcome. And the album’s biggest misfire comes on ‘Take My Pain,’ which mixes an uncomfortable electronic loop with sloppy-sounding Everlast, who is featured in the chorus.

What makes the album so frustrating is that Cypress Hill hasn’t lost it. Some of the better cuts on here could very well wind up as anthems. Naturally, the group is at its best when remaining true to boasting and smoking. ‘Pass the Dutch’ is a hazy, blunted return to Cypress Hill’s past. Longtime group producer DJ Muggs handles the beat, and the familiar, creepy vibe should induce people everywhere to spark up. ‘K.U.S.H.’ is another tribute to the herb, this time built on a catchy beat and self-assured rhymes about blazing. The best song, though, may be album closer ‘Armada Latina,’ which features Marc Anthony and Pitbull. The Latin beat and Spanish lyrics have real soul — if only Cypress Hill could have tapped into these roots earlier in the album.

The main issue plaguing ‘Rise Up’ as a whole is Cypress Hill’s decision to ditch consistency in favor of experimental, mainstream collaborations. There are some good tracks, but this album is a disjointed collection of songs that often frustrate rather than relate. Maybe ‘Rise Up’ will bring Cypress Hill back into hip-hop’s forefront with its modernized sounds. It better, otherwise the group loses a lot of style here by departing from its comfort zone of dark beats and eerie atmospheres.

ajhaeder@syr.edu

 

 

Published on April 25, 2010 at 12:00 pm