Buffalo’s own Pseudo Intellectuals played to a hyped up crowd at the Slyboots School of Music on Friday, and it was a family affair all night long. Beatmaker Tone Atlas had his wife, mother and cousin in attendance, and album guest star (and brother) Nick Zero made a surprise appearance on stage towards the end of the show, to the crowd’s amazement and enjoyment. Wearing a mask and a Vancouver Canucks' jersey with his last name emblazened on the back, Nick slipped onstage to cheers and performed one of his best and well-known tracks, the piano-driven Keep Diggin Watson.

The Buffalo hip hop community is close-knit, and the excited yet intimate crowd felt like playing at a family reunion. Almost 200 people crowded into the small school to listen to the many acts who performed. From the breakdancers to the frenetic Zulu dance group that kicked off the evening to emcee A.L.Third’s amazing cover of Common’s "I Used to Love H.E.R." that had the crowd rhyming along with him, the entire evening had the crowd dancing and singing.

Rhubarb’s own Nick Gonzales accompanied Pseudo throughout their high energy set, the strings providing an excellent contrast to the beats and breaks provided by Tone and DJ Cutler. Cutler, clad in a Rust Belt tee, kept the crowd moving all night, even after the venue ran out of beer.

The $11 admission came with a Pseudo Intellectuals CD, coffee mug or pint glass, and those who opted for the glass were seen sipping from them all evening long. Not even running out of brew, or the technical difficulties that occurred towards the end of the show, could put a damper on the evening.

This show marked the first time in years that the original members of Pseudo performed onstage together, and the chemistry was evident in the between-songs banter they had. Any fan of Buffalo’s underground hip hop scene knows how big Pseudo is, and how big this record is going to be.

If you missed the show, you can still hear the music: Dope Grindwork is available for purchase on Amazon.com and iTunes. Don’t sleep on this album; it’s already sold out on Amazon.