B-Real - Smoke N Mirrors (Reviews)

1. Smoke N Mirrors (Feat. Bo Roc)
2. Gangsta Music (Feat. Bo Roc)
3. Don’t Ya Dare Laugh (Feat. Xzibit & Young De)
4. Everything U Want (Feat. Buckshot)
5. 6 Minutes (Feat. Young De & Tekneek)
6. Psycho Realm Revolution (Feat. Sick Jacken)
7. Fire (Feat. Damian Marley)
8. 10 Steps Behind (Feat. Young De & Tekneek)
9. Get That Dough (Feat. Babydoll Refresh)
10. Dr. Hyphenstein (Feat. Snoop Dogg, Young De & Trace Midas)
11. Stack’n Paper
12. 1 Life (Feat. Sen Dog & Mal Verde)
13. Dude VS. Homie
14. When They Hate You (Feat. Babydoll Refresh)
15. When We’re Fucking (Feat. Too Short, Kurupt & Young De)

Via DJ Booth

The Los Angeles you know, that’s the fake Los Angeles. That’s the L.A. of The Hills and Baldwin Hills and the Hollywood Hills, a glimmering paradise built on an illusion, but those of us who actually live in the city of angels know the real L.A. The real L.A. has the largest Mexican population of any city outside of Mexico City. The real L.A. happens far from the pristine sidewalks of Rodeo Drive. The real L.A. is soccer games in MacArthur Park, old men playing Dominos in Inglewood, brutal homicides and beautiful sunsets. If we’re talking about the real L.A., then we’re talking about Cypress Hill.

And if we’re talking about Cypress Hill, then we’re talking B-Real. Real formed the lyrical core of a group that’s sold over 18 million albums in their smoky history, and now that Hill has wrapped up their record deal with Sony he thought it’d be a good time to try his hand at a solo album. The result is the surprisingly complex and detailed Smoke N’ Mirrors, an album that uses its classic west coast riding roots to reveal the hip-hop game’s hidden mechanisms and tricks (and you thought smoke and mirrors was just a drug reference). Just in case you were sleeping on B-Real’s elite rap abilities, it’s time to wake up.

B-Real starts the album off with the soulful “Children Of The Night”, a track that begins with an extended vocal sample that gives way to an orchestrated banger. B-Real uses the sonic backdrop to lay bare the harsh reality of growing up in L.A.’s hoods: “People starving in the ghetto while the rich get richer, so we hustle for the paper, you get the picture?” Ironically for a man who made his name making music about blunts, B-Real’s always had a sharp rhyme style, accentuating every syllable in his rhymes, and that crisp grittiness is on full display on Children. Real’s best work on the mic happens when he’s breaking down the hip-hop game he’s come to know so well. The Alchemist-produced beat on 6 Minutes is the album’s best, and it apparently inspired Real to construct a fearlessly honest portrait of the music industry’s willingness to pick up young talent, let them shine for a minute, then kick them to the curb without a second thought. Young rappers need to pick up a copy of Smoke N’ Mirrors: not only will they get to watch a master in action, they’ll learn some crucial business tips.

Overall Score: 3.5/5

Read the rest here

Also, via HipHopDX

It’s taken 18 years, but B-Real has finally gone solo…kinda. Cypress Hill’s frontman is following groupmates DJ Muggs, Eric Bobo and Sen Dog by releasing his own project apart from the L.A.-based foursome before Hip Hop’s first Latino superstars reunite for their eighth full-length later this year. Having partnered his Audio Hustlaz production company with indie powerhouse Duck Down (as the label continues to expand its roster beyond Boot Camp Clik members), Real has finally delivered his long-delayed solo debut. With two standout singles (and a couple other noteworthy selections) masking its mostly middle-of-the-road tracks, the album is maybe appropriately titled Smoke N Mirrors.

SNM gets off to a thunderous start courtesy of Scoop Deville’s bass-heavy remake of The Stylistics ‘70s soul classic “Children Of The Night” (which is inexplicably billed as Smoke N Mirrors title-track). And while onetime Dove Shack vocalist Bo Roc’s crooned chorus slows down the songs momentum somewhat, B-Real’s lament on the struggles of living that late night street life atop Scoop’s stellar sample flip makes for an impressive reinterpretation of the Stylistics original.

Overall Score: 3/5

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1. Smoke N Mirrors (Feat. Bo Roc) 2. Gangsta Music (Feat. Bo Roc) 3. Don’t Ya Dare Laugh (Feat. Xzibit & Young De) 4. Everything U Want (Feat. Buckshot) 5. 6 Minutes (Feat. Young De & Tekneek) 6. Psycho Realm Revolution (Feat. Sick Jacken) 7. Fire (Feat. Damian Marley) 8. 10 Steps Behind (Feat. Young De & Tekneek) 9. Get That Dough (Feat. [...]

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