Real Psycho – Self-Titled review

Real Psycho is a superduo consisting of Los Angeles, California emcee B-Real as well as Queens, New York emcee/producer Psycho Les. One of whom is notable for being the frontman of Cypress Hill & the other being 1/2 of The Beatnuts. After only collaborating with each other a couple times in the past off songs like “Fuck ‘Em If They Listenin’” & the Robosonic-produced “High Like”, they’re getting together for an official full-length debut album.

After the titular intro, the first song “Doin’ What You Never Did” starts with a jazzy boom bap instrumental talking about never falling off whereas “Laugh 2 Da Bank” hooks up this mind-altering beat for them to talk about puttin’ in the work that they do & eventually cashin’ out. “What We Came to Do” featuring Too $hort unites the trio for them to aptly tear the party up prior to “You Might Know Us” warning your arms will get broken if you touch them.

“Put That Work In” featuring Son Doobie finds all 3 of them linking up for 4 minutes talking about showing y’all how it be done while “Excuse Me” goes for a generally old school vibe to the beat making this joint feel like it was taken straight from a mixtape. “Once in a Lifetime” has a quirkier instrumental talking about how you’ve haven’t seen this freshness previously just before “This Goes Hard” featuring Big Twins & Demrick lets off hardcore lyricism in their own unique styles.

Reaching the conclusion, “Timbos” hooks you Eric Bobo’s signature percussion flexing that he be tiptoeing around in the titular brand of boots while “Lyrical Hammers” embraces a rap rock sound reminding us that they be hanging around henchmen. “Stay Calm” brings a psychedelic boom bap flare suggesting to relax as they spark the bong & “Kitty Kat” for a closer feels underwhelming tackling the theme of sex in an uneventful manner.

For all the hardcore Cypress Hill & Beatnuts fans, I have a pretty good feeling that you’re gonna come away from Real Psycho’s debut with an enjoyable side project from both veterans. Psycho Les hasn’t lost a step with his production game attesting to The Beatnuts being underappreciated behind the boards & his chemistry with B-Real on the mic flows very well during 45 & a half minute experience.

Score: 4/5

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Cypress Hill – “Back in Black” review

This is the 10th full-length album from South Gate’s very own Cypress Hill. Consisting of B-Real & Sen Dog on the mic as well as DJ Muggs on the boards & Eric Bobo on percussion, the quarter would take the west coast by storm a little over 3 decades back off their eponymous full-length debut with Muggs’ unique production style & their pro-marijuana legalization themes. Other standouts in the group’s discography include Black Sunday, my personal favorite Cypress Hill III: Temples of Boom, the criminally underappreciated Cypress Hill IV & even their last one Elephants on Acid. But with the 4 year anniversary of the latter coming up in the fall & since DJ Muggs has been busy fully producing projects for other people ranging from Rome Streetz to more recently Rigz, they’re bringing in Detroit veteran Black Milk to produce Back in Black.

“Takeover” is an energetic opener talking about the return of the group on top of a cloudy boom bap instrumental whereas “Open Ya Mind” goes into a funkier direction celebrating weed being legal in their home-state. Demrick comes into the picture for the groovy “Certified” rightfully bragging about their legacies just before the Dizzy Wright-assisted “Bye Bye” pensively details the warzone that is the hood & the drums are so goddamn dusty.

Meanwhile on “Come with Me”, we have Cypress Hill coming through with a decent homage to the iconic Outlawz joint “Hail Mary” leading into “The Original” taking a funky boom bap route to talk about being OGs in this shit. “Hit ‘Em” finds B-Real & Sen Dog on top of some hi-hats to get anthemic while the song “Break of Dawn” works in a guitar talking about never stopping. The penultimate track “Champion Sound” mixes some elements of trip hop & digital dancehall to declare themselves champs, but then “The Ride” ends the album by jumping on top of a vibraphone & some bongos to tell the story of a crack dealer.

Now for all the fans who weren’t really fucking with Rise Up, then you’re gonna like Back in Black a lot more. In fact, I think it’s one of the best albums that Cypress has put together yet. After all the experimenting that they did on Elephants on Acid, they manage to get one of Detroit’s greatest producers to take them back to their roots & succeeding.

Score: 4/5

Cypress Hill – “Elephants on Acid” review

Cypress Hill is a legendary West Coast hip hop group consisting of MCs B-Real & Sen Dog alongside producer DJ Muggs & percussionist Eric Bobo. Their first 3 albums are widely considered to hip hop classics, but their material since then has been considered average. However, they are returning with their 9th full-length album after an 8 year hiatus.

After the Tusko intro, we go into the first song “Band of Gypsies”. Here, B-Real & Sen are spirting battle bars over a psychedelic beat. The track “Put ‘Em in the Ground” gets murderous over an eerie vocal sample & after the “Satao” interlude, we go into the song “Jesus Was a Stoner”. Here, B-Real makes many references to weed & religion over an instrumental with a haunting atmosphere.

The song “Pass the Knife” returns to the murder bars over an eerie beat & after the “LSD” interlude, we go into the song “Oh Na Na”. Here, B-Real of course talks about getting high over some infectious horns. After the “Holy Mountain” interlude, we go into the song “Locos”. Here, B-Real & Sen deliver street bars over a gritty beat.

The track “Falling Down” confrontationally talks about life over a distorted bass line & after the “Elephant Acid” interlude, the song “Insane OG” pretty much speaks for itself over a apocalyptic beat. However, I wish it was longer than just 84 seconds. “The 5th Angel” is an instrumental interlude that sounds like it could be playing in a trailer for an upcoming horror movie while the track “Warlord” talks about judgement day over a fitting boom bap beat.

The song “Reefer Man” is a sequel to “Dr. Greenthumb” with a tuba-inflicted boom bap beat & after the “Thru the Rabbit Hole” interlude, we go into the song “Crazy”. Here, B-Real & Sen talk about insanity over a trippy beat. The track “Muggs is Dead” is a psychedelic instrumental interlude while the penultimate track “Blood on My Hands” sees B-Real comparing himself to the Grim Reaper over an ominous beat. The closer “Stairway to Heaven” sees B-Real talking about his prediction of the afterlife over a prominent woodwind sample.

From front to back, this was a strong return to form for Cypress. Sure there are WAY too many interludes, but DJ Muggs’ production is just as gritty as the old days & it’s a bit more experimental too. The lyricism is sharper as well. If you wanna hear a fantastic comeback album from one of the greatest West Coast groups ever, PLEASE give this a listen.

Score: 4/5