by Jason Birchmeier
While Cypress Hill's Skull & Bones album showcased their sudden interest in merging hard rock with rap, Live at the Fillmore stands as a better testament to the group's newfound ability to synthesize the two styles into an invigorating formula. The album gets off to a fiery start with some rowdy renditions of the group's early-'90s material -- &Hand on the Pump,& &How I Could Just Kill a Man,& &Insane in the Brain& -- before the sound of heavy metal guitars appears mid-set. Besides integrating guitar riffs into Muggs' already adrenalized beats, the group reinterprets older songs such as &A to the K,& making them sound new. Of course, Cypress Hill wouldn't be Cypress Hill without their adamant smoking advocacy, and starting with the trippy siren intro to &I Wanna Get High,& the group moves through a medley of bud-smoking songs before the mosh-inciting conclusion of &Riot Starter& and &(Rock) Superstar.&