Cypress Hill's release of IV, produced by DJ Muggs for the Soul Assassins, marks a welcome return to the groundbreaking hip-hop group's roots in atmospheric, cutting-edge rap in all its wide-screen, larger-than-life glory. Cypress Hill revisits some of its most chilling street scenarios in "Looking Through The Eye of A Pig," the rumbling "Prelude To A Come Up" (with a guest rap by MC Eiht and samples from Mobb Deep and Amon Düül !) and the eerie funhouse-mirror carnival send-up, "16 Men Till There's No Men Left." The quartet's audio-visual flair comes through in such cinematic set-pieces as the gangsta homage, "Steel Magnolia" (featuring newcomer Barron Ricks), the disaster epic blueprint "Feature Presentation" (featuring Ricks and Chace Infinite) and the Latin-flavored "Tequila Sunrise" (also with Ricks and slated as the radio impact single), while the mythic "Clash of the Titans" and the closing "Lightning Strikes" provide a suitably apocalyptic one-two punch finale. And of course, there's a coupla odes to the chronic in the light-hearted "Dr. Greenthumb" (the b-side to the single) and the anthemic "High Times." The first single, "Tequila Sunrise" b/w "Dr. Greenthumb," will include a remix featuring Latin hip-hop icon Fat Joe and a Spanish language version. The video for "Tequila Sunrise" is being directed by Kevin Kerslake, known for his work with Smashing Pumpkins, the Offspring and Nirvana, among others. As always, Cypress Hill defy categorization and accusations of sell-out by doing things their way and not following the commercial trends of the moment. They're not just alternative, hip-hop, rock, jazz, punk, thrash, skate-core or metal, but a melting pot of cross-cultural references. Answering critics who say the band has strayed from its hip-hop heritage, B-Real says: "What people don't understand is, if we take the music as high as we can, we're not leaving it behind to do another kind of music. We're taking it with us taking advantage of the doors that were kicked open!" With IV, these smokin' legends prove the sky's the limit for how high their potpourri of modern hip-hop and rock can fly.

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