In the wake of N.W.A's brilliantly produced yet warped glorification of inner-city turmoil on Efil4zaggin this past summer, the Los Angeles-based rap group Cypress Hill jumps into the hip-hop gangsta scene with a debut album sure to raise a few eyebrows. Pushing the credo of "funky awareness" – street-life experiences riding over head-bobbing beats and samples – rappers B-Real and Sen Dog and DJ Mixmaster Muggs have produced an album that is engaging and innovative in spite of its hard-core messages.

The first song on Cypress Hill, "Pigs," is a sing-along reminiscent of the childhood nursery rhyme about little piggies – with a twist: The "pigs" in this tune are L.A.'s men in blue. Over a casual, strutting bass line and a stinging guitar figure, B-Real's high-pitched voice proclaims his community's contempt for the city's law enforcers.

While "Pigs" is somewhat reserved stylistically, "How I Could Just Kill a Man" bum-rushes listeners with a stomping drumbeat toasted with blaring horns and random shouts. The title is purposely misleading. The song is actually about ghetto-survival techniques: "Say some punk tried to get you for your auto/What, are you gonna one time play role model?/No, I think you'll play like a thug."

Cypress Hill's freshness is further evidenced on "Hand on the Pump," which features a running sample of the early rock classic "Duke of Earl." And dig the live bass and percussion and guitar licks on the Spanglish "Latin Lingo." Cuban-born Sen Dog shows his dexterity as a rapper as he swings with the beats between his native tongue and ghettocentric jargon.

Cypress Hill unveils an arsenal of sounds ranging from reggae to rock, all firmly rooted in the distinct cultures of Southern California. Rather than capitalize on the violent images prevalent in gangsta rap, this trio spins tales of reality that play down the shock factor; the album is a merger of craft with the commitment to inform. To paraphrase B-Real, you don't know where they're at if you don't know where they've been. It's worth finding out. (RS 614)

KEVIN POWELL