SKULL & BONES contains a "Skull" disc featuring hip-hop tracks, and a "Bones" disc featuring rock tracks.
Cypress Hill: Eric Bobo (rap vocals, drums); B-Real, Sen Dog, DJ Muggs (rap vocals).
Additional personnel includes: Eminem, Noreaga, Everlast (vocals); Reggie Stewart (guitar, bass); Andy Zambrano, Mike Fingers, Rogelio Lozano, Dino Cazares (guitar); Christian Olde Wolbers, Jeremy Fleener (bass); Brad Wilk (drums).
SKULL & BONES contains a "Skull" disc featuring hip-hop tracks, and a "Bones" disc featuring rock tracks.
Cypress Hill: Eric Bobo (rap vocals, drums); B-Real, Sen Dog, DJ Muggs (rap vocals).
Additional personnel includes: Eminem, Noreaga, Everlast (vocals); Reggie Stewart (guitar, bass); Andy Zambrano, Mike Fingers, Rogelio Lozano, Dino Cazares (guitar); Christian Olde Wolbers, Jeremy Fleener (bass); Brad Wilk (drums).
Personnel: Dino Cazares, Jeremy Fleener, Andy Zambrano, Reggie Stewart (guitar); Eric Bobo, Brad Wilk (drums).
Audio Mixers: Michael Barbiero; Muggs.
Recording information: Ameraycan Studios, North Hollywood, CA; Larrabee Studios.
Editor: Stretch Armstrong .
Illustrator: Cartoon.
Arranger: Muggs.
Despite the best efforts of DJ Muggs, Cypress Hill ran out of gas fairly quickly, entering a tailspin as soon as their third album. Back at full strength with the return of Sen Dog, Cypress Hill devised a full-scale comeback with their fifth album, Skull & Bones. The idea behind the album was to divide it into two -- a hip-hop disc ("Skull") and a rock disc ("Bones"). This would guarantee some publicity, at the very least, and, hopefully, it would win over the new generation of adolescents who flipped for rap-metal acts like Kid Rock and Limp Bizkit. On paper, it's a sound theory, but there was a slight flaw -- the group is kind of lame when they rock. Their band is competent enough, and B Real's voice does sound good with overdriven guitars, but their rock songs utterly fall apart, since they have no hooks, no catchy riffs, and no character. If rap-metal was all there was to Skull & Bones, it would be a bit of an embarrassment. Fortunately, the "Skulls" disc is their finest effort since Black Sunday. Muggs is in prime form, creating funky, ominous, evocative soundscapes, which B Real makes the most of with fluid rhymes. At times, B Real does descend into tastelessness ("Stank Ass Hoe"), and neither he nor Sen Dog really find any new lyrical ground, but sonically, "Skulls" is a blast; B Real's whine and Sen Dog's gruff, blunt style are the perfect match for Muggs' darkly cinematic soundscapes, and, on a purely sonic level, it's quite intoxicating. At their best, Cypress Hill are a hip-hop experience unlike any other, and, ignoring the "Bones" disc, this is the best they've been in a long, long time. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Cypress Hill's unique sound sets it apart from all the other outfits in the hip-hop genre. Since its breakthrough album, 1993's BLACK SUNDAY, its drug and gun-related lyrics have helped it maintain a hardcore fan base. SKULL & BONES is split into two separate CDs, the "Skull" disc being the dedicated rap segment, with "Bones" devoted to rock.
Synthesized orchestral strings and kick drum propel B-Real's distinct nasal rap on "(Rap) Superstar," which lays bare the pitfalls awaiting artists who attain their dreams and make it big in the music industry. B-Real and Sen Dog's lyrical skills are on display throughout this set, notably on the rebellious, attitude-driven "What U Want From Me." The second disc features members of Fear Factory, Rage Against The Machine, Downset, and SX10, with Cypress' Bobo on drums. The group's quick raps flow over a monstrous sound that puts most rap pretenders to shame. "Get Out Of My Head" is a speedy, riffing number with a great hook, while "Dust" pays homage to the Anthrax/Public Enemy collaboration of a decade ago. SKULL & BONES 2 CD set will satisfy longtime Cypress fans while also appealing to a new metal audience.
Cypress Hill's unique sound sets it apart from all the other outfits in the hip-hop genre. Since its breakthrough album, 1993's BLACK SUNDAY, its drug and gun-related lyrics have helped it maintain a hardcore fan base. SKULL & BONES is split into two separate CDs, the "Skull" disc being the dedicated rap segment, with "Bones" devoted to rock.
Synthesized orchestral strings and kick drum propel B-Real's distinct nasal rap on "(Rap) Superstar," which lays bare the pitfalls awaiting artists who attain their dreams and make it big in the music industry. B-Real and Sen Dog's lyrical skills are on display throughout this set, notably on the rebellious, attitude-driven "What U Want From Me." The second disc features members of Fear Factory, Rage Against The Machine, Downset, and SX10, with Cypress' Bobo on drums. The group's quick raps flow over a monstrous sound that puts most rap pretenders to shame. "Get Out Of My Head" is a speedy, riffing number with a great hook, while "Dust" pays homage to the Anthrax/Public Enemy collaboration of a decade ago. SKULL & BONES 2 CD set will satisfy longtime Cypress fans while also appealing to a new metal audience.
Despite the best efforts of DJ Muggs, Cypress Hill ran out of gas fairly quickly, entering a tailspin as soon as their third album. Back at full strength with the return of Sen Dog, Cypress Hill devised a full-scale comeback with their fifth album, Skull & Bones. The idea behind the album was to divide it into two -- a hip-hop disc ("Skull") and a rock disc ("Bones"). This would guarantee some publicity, at the very least, and, hopefully, it would win over the new generation of adolescents who flipped for rap-metal acts like Kid Rock and Limp Bizkit. On paper, it's a sound theory, but there was a slight flaw -- the group is kind of lame when they rock. Their band is competent enough, and B Real's voice does sound good with overdriven guitars, but their rock songs utterly fall apart, since they have no hooks, no catchy riffs, and no character. If rap-metal was all there was to Skull & Bones, it would be a bit of an embarrassment. Fortunately, the "Skulls" disc is their finest effort since Black Sunday. Muggs is in prime form, creating funky, ominous, evocative soundscapes, which B Real makes the most of with fluid rhymes. At times, B Real does descend into tastelessness ("Stank Ass Hoe"), and neither he nor Sen Dog really find any new lyrical ground, but sonically, "Skulls" is a blast; B Real's whine and Sen Dog's gruff, blunt style are the perfect match for Muggs' darkly cinematic soundscapes, and, on a purely sonic level, it's quite intoxicating. At their best, Cypress Hill are a hip-hop experience unlike any other, and, ignoring the "Bones" disc, this is the best they've been in a long, long time. [Skull & Bones was also issued in a "clean" version, containing no vulgarities or explicit lyrics.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine minimize