REVIEW: CHRISTOPHER DANIELS | I found Cypress Hill about eight years ago on a hard drive my friend’s dad let me borrow. Among albums ranging from Alice in Chains to Tiesto was Cypress Hill’s Black Sunday. It had very raw production, reminiscent of guys rapping on the side of the road on a hot summer day in South Gate, California. They were the first group that pulled me into the world of hip hop, partially due to their Hispanic origin. Something I found very relatable.
Kray spared no time getting the crowd hyped. Most of their songs were short but fairly memorable. They led the crowd in several call-and-responses; one fondly remembered was “FUCK TRUMP,” which garnered quite a bit of participation. They flowed decently off each other, although it was hard to hear what they were saying over the music and their set was very short.
It was a while before Immortal Technique took the stage. DJ STATIC played a solid ten to fifteen minutes and then instead of Immortal Technique coming on immediately after, his hype men did a rather long set. Although it was clear that they were very seasoned rappers, I feel like they overstayed their welcome. They should’ve been billed as a separate act. I felt a tad aggravated, thinking “C’MON, GET TO IMMORTAL TECHNIQUE ALREADY!!”
When Immortal Technique did come out, he performed one of the most impressive hip hop sets I’ve ever seen. I was expecting the majority of his set to be about the government and the illuminati, but instead many of the songs were social and political commentary. One song in particular that really hit home was about a rape and murder. Of course I’m speaking of his biggest hit, “Dance with the Devil.” The seriousness of the message he was trying to convey played into the passion of his performance. He screamed through some of it, imploring the audience not to follow the same road as the teenager the song is based on. Immortal Technique is an incredible rapper whose flow and stories make him worthy of the name.
Finally, the group that everyone came to see was here to hail the leaf. It was time to get funky with CYPRESS HILL! The group tore it up from minute one and the crowd lost their collective shit.
It was expected that they’d play a variety of songs, but I was pleasantly surprised that they played many personal favorites, such as “Hits From The Bong,” “Insane In The Brain,” “Hand On The Glock,” among others. It was very interesting to see the band explore their discography. I personally prefer the older hits but the newer material was amazing to hear live in its own right. You could hear their evolution as a group.
Needless to say there was quite a bit of weed being smoked in the audience and B-Real himself was passed a couple joints from the crowd. It’s hard to believe that they’ve been doing this for well over 25 years. Their set was lengthy but they kept the energy up, flowing and moving as well they did in their youth.
B-Real and Sen Dog are amazing rappers and MCs. After the show I had the honor of hanging out with both of them. Turns out they smoked 20 blunts before they performed.
If you are into hip hop, see Cypress Hill. If you haven’t been to a hip hop show and want to check one out, see Cypress Hill. As a music fan of Hispanic descent it is amazing to see hip hop that comes from those roots and this show was full of it.
IMMORTAL TECHNIQUE
