The Lytics

If Winnipeg rap crew the Lytics were a bit bummed that the venue was at less than maximum capacity, it wasn't evident on this night. What was clear, based on the night's presentation, was that perhaps the hip-hop quintet deserved a Polaris Prize nod for their highly underrated 2012 album They Told Me. In today's rap landscape, the group are defined as alternative hip-hop; the crew's devotion to hip-hop acts like Jurassic 5, the Roots and the Pharcyde were reflected in their old school swagger and crowd-hype abilities. It's an obvious family affair: MCs A-Nice, Munga, Ashy and B-Flat are related by blood and their fluently coordinated manoeuvres and slick interaction with each other — there was a seamless exchange due to a faulty mic at one point and no one missed a beat during the handoff — along with the performance of cuts like "They Said," "Toot Your Own Horn" and "Stay Humble" from their The Lytics and They Told Me albums were on point. "Pretend there's 10,000 people in the room," B-Flat asks the crowd during the hook to "Voices" — they responded in kind. As professional crowd pleasers, the Lytics did their jobs well.