Three Decades of Hazy Vibes: Revisiting Cypress Hill's Smoked-Out Sophomore Album Black Sunday

How Cypress Hill's Black Sunday solidified their signature stoner sound.

The crossover success of Cypress Hill has always been fascinating. The Southern California-based group is hardly the portrait of a collective whose music sounds like it was crafted to sell millions of units. It’s dark and dusty “gangsta” rap, featuring tales of blood-soaked revenge and anti-police screeds, juxtaposed with hymns to consuming copious amounts of marijuana.

Cypress Hill became unlikely stars after the release of their self-titled debut album in 1991. It featured the nasal vocal tones of Louis “B-Real” Freese paired with the fierce, husky rhymes and ad-libs of Senen “Sen Dog” Reyes. Lawrence “DJ Muggs” Muggergud handled the production, crafting a gritty soundscape of samples from late ’60s soul and rock, often paired with vocals from the film Wild Style.

Based on the success of songs like “How I Could Just Kill a Man,” “Hand On the Pump,” and “Latin Lingo,” the album went double platinum and gained crossover acceptance. The group took part in the second Lollapalooza summer tour in 1992, and their videos received play on MTV. They also received play on commercial radio and often on alternative rock-based stations. Maybe it was the references to weed or because sometimes great music gains acceptance across all boundaries.

Cypress Hill released their follow-up album, Black Sunday, 30 years ago. Even three decades later, the album remains hard to classify. It features their most commercially successful single but still feels darker and less accessible than Cypress Hill. It barely features any of the rapping in Spanish, which had become a well-known part of their repertoire. One thing that remains clear is that the group’s initial success didn’t alter their musical approach. The group plays to their strengths, subject matter-wise. A fair share of the real estate on Black Sunday is used to extol the virtues of smoking marijuana, while even more space is given to grim tales of street reality.

B-Real continues his lyrical excellence; he’s perhaps known for his nasal voice, but he’s an extremely capable emcee. And while Sen Dog is best known for functioning as a marijuana-fueled Flavor Flav/Bobby Byrd, he continued to improve as a rapper. DJ Muggs remained adept behind the boards, often creating an even more menacing musical palette for the album. On Black Sunday, he specializes in digging deep, resonant, and almost hollow-sounding basslines that enhance much of the album’s gloomy feel.

Yet Black Sunday was a massive commercial hit and their most successful album to date. Mainly based on the success of its first single, “Insane in the Brain,” it’s certified triple platinum. Regarding quality, it’s not quite as good as the self-titled debut but remains a rock-solid follow-up and features some of the group’s most unheralded songs.