Cypress Hill Album: “Live at the Fillmore [PA]”

Description :

Cypress Hill: B-Real, Sen Dog (rap vocals); Eric Bobo (drums); DJ Muggs (turntables). Additional personnel: Jeremy Fleener, Andy Zambrano (guitar); Frank Mercurio (bass). Recorded at The Fillmore, San Francisco, California on August 16, 2000. Cypress Hill: B-Real, Sen Dog (rap vocals); Eric Bobo (drums); DJ Muggs (turntables). Additional personnel: Jeremy Fleener, Andy Zambrano (guitar); Frank Mercurio (bass). Recorded at The Fillmore, San Francisco, California on August 16, 2000. Cypress Hill exploded onto the rap scene 10 years ago proclaiming their hatred of police officers ("Pigs"), and love of the sticky green stuff ("Stoned is the Way of the Walk"). The band hasn't deviated much from these topics in the intervening years. After all, they're precisely what make for great crowd chants and live albums. Cypress Hill's last album, SKULL & BONES, showed the group's metal side, which has carried over to its live shows. That album's "Can't Get the Best of Me" and the infectious hit "(Rock) Superstar" work well, both live and in comparison with Cypress's previous two albums. Reinvented classics from that era, such as "Cock the Hammer" also benefit from their new live metal sound. "A to the K," new to the band's live set, is equally as thunderous. Never short on stage dialogue, B-Real makes the requisite request of the San Francisco crowd ("who's got some green northern Cali in their pocket tonight?") before launching into "I Wanna Get High." Being masters of the bong doesn't detract from Cypress Hill's legitimacy as the premier hip-hop/rock group, though, as LIVE AT THE FILLMORE clearly attests. Cypress Hill exploded onto the rap scene 10 years ago proclaiming their hatred of police officers ("Pigs"), and love of the sticky green stuff ("Stoned is the Way of the Walk"). The band hasn't deviated much from these topics in the intervening years. After all, they're precisely what make for great crowd chants and live albums. Cypress Hill's last album, SKULL & BONES, showed the group's metal side, which has carried over to its live shows. That album's "Can't Get the Best of Me" and the infectious hit "(Rock) Superstar" work well, both live and in comparison with Cypress's previous two albums. Reinvented classics from that era, such as "Cock the Hammer" also benefit from their new live metal sound. "A to the K," new to the band's live set, is equally as thunderous. Never short on stage dialogue, B-Real makes the requisite request of the San Francisco crowd ("who's got some green northern Cali in their pocket tonight?") before launching into "I Wanna Get High." Being masters of the bong doesn't detract from Cypress Hill's legitimacy as the premier hip-hop/rock group, though, as LIVE AT THE FILLMORE clearly attests.

I've been a fan of Cypress Hill for a long time, and this CD is possibly the best of them all. It has all of the best songs, and are played with great energy and momentum. Many, if not all of the songs sound much more energetic and alive then on the studio albums. Even stuff from the newer albums, which I didn't like very much, is worth listening to again and again. Bottom line is, if you liked the early Cypress Hill albums, and dig live material you'll love this CD. It's one of the best live CDs I've ever heard.

A party with a six-foot bong is the easiest way to describe Cypress Hill's live set. I bought this after attending a little concert they put together called Smoke Out. I loved Cypress Hill's Skull and Bones album, which, was the first rock-rap combo coming from an experienced rap group. The live disc takes Skull and Bones further because they rewrote some of their older tunes to hard-rock beats, with backup courtesy of Sen-Dog's metal group SX-10, like A to the K, Lick a Shot, and I Ain't Goin Out Like That. There's also their "stoner songs", like I Wanna Get High, Stoned Is The Way Of The Walk and the silly Hits From The Bong. It's also got great versions of one of my favorite songs, Insane In The Brain, as well as some good songs like Riot Starter, Cant Get The Best Of Me and Rock Superstar. It's also great to see the way Sen-Dog and B-Real interact with the audience (the audience sings along to Can't Get The Best of Me and Insane In The Brain). Cypress Hill's much better live than I thought.

This album showcases Cypress Hill's best material as well as their skill at performing live. They deliver off-the-hook versions of killer songs like "Aint goin out like that", "Rock superstar", and of course "Insane in the brain". I like the way the performances keep the hardcore style intact, but put a spin on the way the songs sound compared to the original recordings. My only complain deals with the dvd--they should have included more of the Fillmore show instead of putting all the videos on it. Or simply released 2 dvd's--one of the entire show, and the other with all the Hill's videos. Holla.

"Live At The Fillmore" confirms my thought that live rap albums just don't really work. Even with the great Cypress Hill this only comes off as ok for fans. I initially had high hopes for this disc because the tracklist is killer. I wish the "Greatest Hits" album had these songs. And while this is still decent, soundwise it just doesn't have the impact that the albums do. Mid-way through the songs all start to sound the same. This is something the fanatic will probably love, but otherwise I'd say stick with the first three albums, and maybe "Skull & Bones".