When it comes to Hip Hop coming out of Canada right now, Drake is pretty much dominating all the reports from platforms outside of the North American country. For those who wish to dig a little deeper though, there is a huge treasure trove of great music to be found and one of our most exciting discoveries is The Lytics.
Often citing Pharcyde, De La Soul, Slum village and The Fugees as inspiration, this group of young rappers are ready to release their third studio album, but before they do they decided to share a five-track EP entitled Hold On and it’s ridiculously good. If you’re a fan of that really classic and uplifting Hip Hop sound, then this is going to be your new favourite release.
With a musical pallet rooted in Reggae, Soul, Jazz and all things ‘Boom Bap’, the group have managed to combine all their influences into an offering that is unqiuely brilliant. Opening track ‘Friction’ is the featured single from the release and it’s easy to see why as the catchy hook, hypnotic beat and party vibe is certainly a crowd pleaser and sets the EP off at an industrious pace. Whilst the project is super in its entirety, for us ‘Daydreams’ is the real standout track from Hold On.
From the mesmerising female vocal that pieces the track together, to the compelling raps and insatiable piano hooks that weave between it, ‘Daydreams’ is not only the strongest track on a hugely impressive project, but it’s also one of the best tracks that we’ve heard from the Hip Hop scene in a very long time.
The group are heading over to the UK to perform three dates in London and Bristol and details of those shows and the rest of their European tour can be found below. All of the UK shows are free entry so there’s no reason not to get yourself down there to see one of the most exciing Hip Hop collectives around right now.
The Lytics Hold On EP is out now and you can download your copy on iTunes here.
Matt Tarr
@MattTarrJourno
The Lytics European Tour Dates
April 21 2016 Clapham – Stane Street Syndicate
April 24 2016 Bristol – Start The Bus
April 25 2016 London – The Old Blue Last
April 26 2016 Paris – L’international
April 27 2016 Brussels – Bonnefooi
July 08 2016 Lux – Rockafield Festival
July 09 2016 Berlin – Feel Festival
July 14 2016 Dusseldorf – Internatinal Musiksommer
July 15 2016 Leeuward – Welcome To The Village
July 16 2016 Hamburg – Milintor Gallery
July 22 2016 Das Fest – Karsruhe
July 23 2016 Wiesen – Hip Hop Open Austria
Aug 12 2016 Summerstale Festival
Aug 13 2016 Haldern Pop