Live Review: Cypress Hill

Hip hop originals Cypress Hill made sure those who turned out for last night’s show got every dollar’s worth. Bracing the stage in a square shape that created an audience divide of east side vs west side, the four-piece revved up the crowd’s inner gangster to wave fingered glocks in the air.

Opening with classic, I Ain’t Goin’ Out Like That, the crowd was bouncing in time with the command of the rapping duo’s raised hands. B-Real wore a shirt boldly representing ‘Cannabis’ in the same font of the recognisable Compton logo, fitting for the dubious smells and embers that filled the Enmore. As they dropped Hand On The Pump, that aggressive beat hit hard, like the power of the performance behind it. B-Real and Sen Dog working the stage with their robotic movements, knee jerks and vertically held microphones.

DJ Julio G commanded the decks in a five-minute session of electronic mastery. B-Real joined in and the pair tagged each other in-and-out as the sounds had everyone in awe of that old-school vinyl scratching bliss. A girl in a marijuana leaf dress showed her gratitude by flashing her boobs in a 360 motion, Cypress Hill all nodding in approval.

To fit with their notorious dismissive attitude to authority as Dr. Green Thumb dropped, B-Real tossed his cap to the audience in favour of a fedora. With his dark black shades he was reminiscent of Heisenberg from Breaking Bad. Percussionist Eric.B finished off the track with a solo, literally punching the high hat.

Towards the end of the set B-Real and Sen Dog moved in closer together to deliver bangers like A To The K, Cock The Hammer and finished with (Rock) Superstar. In bidding farewell they announced that they’ve been “Twenty years strong, with hits from the bong,” leaving the audience feeling ‘high’ and nostalgic about ‘90s gangster rap.