Cypress Hill
1991
Ruffhouse Records
If NWA’s Straight Outta Compton feels like a street riot on wax, Cypress Hill’s masterful debut reveals the quieter but sinister underside of L.A. gangsta rap: no sunshine, all noir. Lead by the nasal wheeze of B-Real, gruff bark of Sen Dog, and meticulously layered and tenebrious beats by DJ Muggs, the album tackles everything from police corruption (“Pigs”) to rapping en español (“Latin Lingo”), all cloaked in copious clouds of ganja smoke.
Recommended by
Who also suggested
- Scratch Perverts
- Lil Wayne
- Freddie Gibbs
- Gang Starr
- Danny Brown
- MF DOOM
- Public Enemy
- LL Cool J
- Ice Cube
- Dr. Dre