Despite performing just their second date on the Rise Up tour, Cypress Hill were a well-oiled machine during their Toronto stop. Sen Dog and B Real looked genuinely happy to be performing together and in front the throng of fans that had jammed into the Mod Club.
The duo wasted no time in working the crowd into a frenzy with Rise Up's "Get 'em Up." They followed with "Lick a Shot" from their monumental crossover Black Sunday, before going full bore into "Hand on the Pump," a track from their nearly 20-year-old self-titled debut whose first verse B Real performed a cappella. It was enough to whet the appetite of fans who would soon lose their minds when DJ Julio G dropped the classic Muggs production that sampled Gene Chandler's "Duke of Earl."
Why Muggs wasn't there to drop the beat himself was not explained, although we did find out from B Real that percussionist Eric "Bobo" Correa was held up at the border. B Real also credited Julio G during the performance for helping them get signed to their new deal with Priority Records/EMI. In true hip-hop form, the duo left the stage to allow their DJ to show off his skills, and Julio may have left town with the distinction of letting off the most (audio) gun shots by a DJ, rivalling the mark set by Evil D on his many visits.
Throughout the show, Cypress Hill did what any group with their repertoire should do: they mixed some exceptional-sounding new material, such as "Latin Armada" and "Rise Up," with a boatload of classics, including but not limited to "Insane in the Brain" and" Latin Lingo." After performing "I Ain't Going out Like That" and "Rock Superstar" in a two-track encore, Cypress Hill exited, leaving the venue one giant sweaty hot box.
The duo wasted no time in working the crowd into a frenzy with Rise Up's "Get 'em Up." They followed with "Lick a Shot" from their monumental crossover Black Sunday, before going full bore into "Hand on the Pump," a track from their nearly 20-year-old self-titled debut whose first verse B Real performed a cappella. It was enough to whet the appetite of fans who would soon lose their minds when DJ Julio G dropped the classic Muggs production that sampled Gene Chandler's "Duke of Earl."
Why Muggs wasn't there to drop the beat himself was not explained, although we did find out from B Real that percussionist Eric "Bobo" Correa was held up at the border. B Real also credited Julio G during the performance for helping them get signed to their new deal with Priority Records/EMI. In true hip-hop form, the duo left the stage to allow their DJ to show off his skills, and Julio may have left town with the distinction of letting off the most (audio) gun shots by a DJ, rivalling the mark set by Evil D on his many visits.
Throughout the show, Cypress Hill did what any group with their repertoire should do: they mixed some exceptional-sounding new material, such as "Latin Armada" and "Rise Up," with a boatload of classics, including but not limited to "Insane in the Brain" and" Latin Lingo." After performing "I Ain't Going out Like That" and "Rock Superstar" in a two-track encore, Cypress Hill exited, leaving the venue one giant sweaty hot box.
