Game's early recordings sophomoric

by Jeff Dalton

Daily Lobo

Don't expect The Game's latest release to delve into the life of a Compton gangsta.

After The Game's success with his first mainstream album, The Documentary, producer JT Bigga Figga decided to capitalize on the rapper's hype by releasing West Coast Resurrection, an album of previously unreleased material recorded before The Game's arrival at the Aftermath label.

Though a few tracks on West Coast Resurrection exhibit the intriguing lyricism expected of the young rapper, whose real name is Jayceon Taylor, it does not wholly deliver the raw style of The Game.

This can be credited to the fact that he shares far too much mic time with JT Bigga Figga and Blu Chip. Having only two solo tracks, "Promised Land" and "Streetz of Compton," The Game's opportunity to display his verbal strength is limited.

Despite the sub-par lyrical performance, the album, released by Get Low Records, gives listeners a reason to nod their heads. With pure hip-hop beats untainted by commercial expectations the album delivers an array of sounds, exemplified through a strong guitar sample in "Streetz of Compton." Still, these beats weren't enough to take The Game to the top.

West Coast Resurrection is not as much a rebirth for West Coast hip-hop as The Documentary, but it allows The Game's fans to hear the artist evolve in his quest for stardom. You can see The Game growing and emerging as a true authority of his style in the track, "Blacksox," where he gives a strong lyrical performance.

Still, this display is inconsistent throughout the entire album. This blunder is one of the major factors the album is so disappointing.

This album is good in that it shows what a rising star sounds like before he is polished and cleaned by the expertise of prominent producers. It seems that talent shines in the presence of powerhouse producers like Kanye, Dr. Dre and Eminem. The Game's glow was not nearly as bright in the company of JT Bigga Figga as it is today, but his release satisfies our curiosity about where The Game came from before he was introduced to the masses.

Fortunately for The Game, he did not release this album before his debut with Aftermath - otherwise he might be searching for the resurrection of his career rather than that of an entire coast.

West Coast

Resurrection

The Game

Get Low Records

Grade: C