California rapper Game came out with his sixth studio album Blood Moon: Year of the Wolf Oct. 14. The much-anticipated release aims to compare Game to the “Wolf” of the hip-hop industry, devouring those he doesn’t associate with in his path, howling at the moon and peeing on objects (or other rappers) to mark his territory.
While the album ambitiously aims to designate Game as the predatory steward of hip-hop, the content of the album really just seems like filler until his much-awaited release of The Documentary 2, set to drop Jan. 15, 2015 — exactly ten years after his two-time platinum album The Documentary.
Game’s new trend of feature-heavy track lists seems to be in line with his claim to want to “put on” other artists he works with. With appearances from the usual suspects of Lil Wayne, Tyga, 2 Chainz, T.I., Young Jeezy, Chris Brown, French Montana, Too $hort, Yo Gotti and Stat Quo, Game brings back many of the artists he has used on past releases.
Not limited to the more recognizable names, Game also features the up-and-coming Dubb, Skeme, King Marie, Sam Hook, Stacy Barth, Jake, Papa, Eric Bellinger, Pharaoh Prophet, Bobby Shmurda, Kevin Gates and AV. Where this feature-heavy approach to a musical compilation worked on Jesus Piece — an album boasting some of the best production sonically in the last five years of hip-hop — the application on Blood Moon: Year of the Wolf fails to make a meaningful impact.
Much of the musical production seems rushed and microwaveable. While songs like “Bigger Than Me” have been sitting in someone’s computer for a while, just waiting to be put onto a mixtape or album, many of the other cheap trap-beat tracks on the album seem like they were made within months, if not weeks, of the release.
But it’s not all bad on Blood Moon: Year of the Wolf. When people throw on a piece of Game music it’s because they want to either get amped or hear an authentic perspective on life from an ex-gang member from Compton, California, who now has millions to his name and three children. That hunger is satisfied on “F.U.N.,” “Cellphone,” “Bigger Than Me,” “The Purge,” “Black on Black,” as well as bonus tracks, “I Just Wanna Be” and “Bloody Moon.”
After you listen to “The Purge” and “Bloody Moon,” songs that talk about purging all of the evil in the world and witnessing the molestation of his sister, you have to wonder why Game put so much heart, effort and pain into some of the tracks on the album, and then cheats us with other cuts like “Or Nah,” “Take That” and “Hit Em Hard.”
The only explanation for such a rushed and forgettable project would be that Game has been directing his focus towards The Documentary 2 project, which brings back production from Dr. Dre as well as high expectations to match the greatness of The Documentary.
Without Game sparking the resurgence of West Coast hip-hop in the mid-2000s, there would be no such thing as a Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q or Tyler, the Creator. Not to mention that he has mentored and continues to feature these artists on his music to heighten their success. As the Godfather of West, and the “Wolf” of hip-hop, fans should expect better from Game on his albums and Game should feel a need to meet that standard.
2.9 out of 5 stars.
