The Game is at the Moore tonight and Larry Mizell hates that he loves him.

Somehow, though embattled and beset on all sides by his former friends (Fitty’s G-Unit), family (his own brother dissed him mercilessly last year), and father figure (Dre), Game fucked around and made an incredible record—probably even better than the one he would have made with Dr. Dre. Lyrically, the man who dubbed himself “Chuck Taylor” cut the talk and b-walked the walk. Instead of merely invoking the holy names of N.W.A. in a crass nostalgia cash-in, he concocted a potent blend of MC Ren’s gothic nihilism, Cube’s pit-bull rabidity, and Eazy’s crass lust for life. Then he simply rolled it up in a Zig-Zag, lit the ass, and inhaled.

If you ain’t buyin’ Larry’s love, though, we also covered a bunch of tonight’s shows in this week’s U&Cs—Papa Roach at the Showbox (seriously), Comeback at Chop Suey, Subtle at Neumo’s, and Noh-Suspend at the Funhouse. Click, read, learn.

And here’s one more:

TINY VIPERS, SAM MICKENS, THE PWRFL POWER
(Gallery 1412) Rare is such an evening of delightfully skewed acoustic pop—especially considering that tonight’s bill focuses exclusively on homegrown fare. From the ghostly mysticism of recent Sub Pop signee Tiny Vipers to the just plain spooky quaver of Dead Science frontman (and The Stranger’s resident cracker hiphop enthusiast) Sam Mickens, you’ll have a tough time casting your ballot for the belle of this particularly competitive ball—but my money’s on the Pwrfl Power. Having thoroughly conquered the hearts and minds of Seattle’s experimental music community and beyond, Na’s Kazu Nomura sets his sites on virtually everybody else with the Pwrfl Power, his latest project focused on more traditional song structures—further evidence that experimental musicians always make the best pop music. ZAC PENNINGTON

The Pwrfl Power has a Stranger Band Page, so head over to hear a few samples.