Kottonmouth Kings, High Times’ 2000 Band of the Year, have returned with their third full-length album, Hidden Stash II: The Kream of the Krop. The six-piece outfit creates a grooving hybrid of hip-hop, reggae, and punk rock to complement their loving obsession for marijuana on every single tune. With song titles like “All About the Weed” and “Grow Room Jam,” subtlety is not in the Kings’ vocabulary.
The production is flawless, and would sound heavenly with the bass cranked all the way up on a car stereo. But the album’s downfall is the nonsensical, witless lyrics, which aim unsuccessfully for humor. Only a few songs save this overly long album (with a 66-minute running time) from complete monotony. The laidback reggae tune “On The Run” invokes radio-friendly Sugar Ray, and the Geto Boys’ “My Mind Playin’ Tricks On Me” is given a moronic ganja-themed remake. Fans of the Kings’ previous efforts will not be disappointed, but it would be best for the uninitiated not to take a hit on this joint.
Archived article by Brett Rosenthal