Dragon Fli Empire is the Calgary duo consisting of DJ Cosm and Teekay. They started all the way back in 2002, and went strong until 2013, when they released their last album, Mission Statement. Since that time, both members have been relatively quiet. That is, until now, when they make their comeback with the EP Banff Avenue.

Banff Avenue isn’t a statement record of any kind, unless you consider that statement to be something along the lines of, “Hey! We were really good at this for a while, and now we felt like doing it again.” They’re not trying to sound “relevant” or change their sound or anything – it’s more like they found their old bike in the garage when they were doing some spring cleaning, decided to take it for a spin, and then remembered they really enjoyed that and so they went on a nice long ride. From the moment you press play, to the moment you get to the end of the seventh and final song, you’re just getting incredible solid classic boom bap from a duo with great chemistry together. It’s just that head nodding goodness with soulful laidback grooves laid down by DJ Cosm, while Teekay hops on the mic and rhymes with an easy going flow that sounds very conversational. Over the course of the EP, he’s discussing obvious things like hip hop culture and how it’s changed over the years, reflection on their hometown, to literally talking at the movies. You get everything from shit talking to philosophizing to funny anecdotes, giving you that well-rounded approach that you’d expect from a veteran emcee like Teekay. It’s an EP that just gives you solid, quality hip hop without a lot of frills, and invites you to get on their level.

Banff Avenue isn’t a return with a bang. It’s a return that casually says, “We’ve been here this whole time,” subtly gives you seven solid songs that deliver the goods without being flashy, then gets out of the way. It’s nice to have them back.