By Joshua Sholes

Bam Bam Baklava is back, and bringing the heat. White Bronco, Action Bronson’s latest album dropped this past Thursday and lives up to the hype as a whole. A well curate, 11 track album, White Bronco boasts features from artists A$AP Rocky, Yung Mehico Meyhem Lauren, and Big Body Bes, the latter two are part of Action’s core posse. In this album, Bronsoliño showcases his comedic and lighthearted adlibs, his affinity towards rock, specifically the guitar, and his psychedelic inspirations.

The second track on the album, “Irishman Freestyle”, is in reference to Martin Scorsese’s upcoming Netflix film, The Irishman, which is headlined by Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci. The Irishman will also be Action Bronson’s acting debut, with Scorsese blessing Bam Bam with a small role in the mob thriller. This song commemorates Bronsoliño’s landmark and features a few lyrics in reference to his co stars on the film. In the song, Action also gives a shout out to freak athlete, NBA superstar, and the person with the most difficult name to pronounce in all of professional sports, Giannis Antetokounmpo; “Shit was bonkers, Bronson slam like Giannis, Mega wellness hat, I’m unconscious”.

Like the Giannis’ lyric in “Irishman Freestyle”, every track on the album boasts impressive references hidden within Action’s exemplary lyrics. One of my personal favorite references is to the 1992 classic flick My Cousin Vinny on the track “Mt. Etna”. On “Mt. Etna”, Action shows off his affinity for word play with the lyric “Finesse at its best (Yup), White Bronco, others known him as LeBronson (It’s me)”. The song “Live from the Moon” has a melodically, haunting beat with and an enchantingly smooth saxophone layered in. “Live from the Moon” features lyrical references to cult classic movie franchises, Star Wars and Indiana Jones, as well as icons Don Cheadle and David Bowie.

The title track of this album, “White Bronco” opens with entrancing bells and a heartfelt saxophone riff, but transitions into a bell-centric, hypnotic beat. Throughout the song, Bronson’s lyrics cut through the beat, with references to gator-skin boots, Janet Jackson, Taye Diggs, and arguably the best golfer of all time, Tiger Woods. Action also references his F*CK That’s Delicious cookbook, named after his show on Viceland of the same name. His cookbook includes many of Action’s essential recipes, personal stories, and intriguing photographs. On the show, Action and his friends travel the world, touring, experiencing various cuisines and cultures, and smoking hella weed. The show has an essence similar to that of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations, with the way Action is able to capture an authentic cultural experience.  

On the track “Telemundo” Action Bronson references the psychedelic concoction, ayahuasca, which is consumed in various South American cultures for its spiritual healing powering. The proceeding song on the album, “Picasso’s Ear”, features the powerful imagery of Dikembe Mutombo’s iconic finger wag; “Standing over victims like Mutombo with the finger waving (No, no, no, no, no)”. As a basketball fan in the 90’s Bronseliño, a born and raised Knicks fan, witnessed Dikembe’s dominance on the court first hand. “Ring Ring”, which features Action’s cousin, Big Body Bes, also includes a handful of distinct references. Such mentions include Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, Europe Cup soccer, and a BMW E30.

“Swerve on Em”, the final song on the album is my personal favorite track from this album and boasts the best feature, A$AP Rocky. Both artists showcase their lyrical mastery and spit some high quality rhymes. From Action’s brilliance in the line, “The style icon, ‘bout to get the dough like tae kwon, beat the pythons” to Rocky’s suave tongue twisters like “…you phony, bitch, everything Johnny, jabroni, everything getting jolly, lil homie”, this song boasts some unique bars.

“White Bronco” delivered on providing fans with an entertaining listening experience. Bronson blends hypnotic beats with rock and prog-rock inspiration to create complex, bewitching melodies. While Action crafted some exquisite reference, I wish he would have included more culinary mentions, due to his history in the culinary arts. Bam Bam’s artistic side did shine through not only through his music, but through his painting skills, as the album art was hand painted by Bronseliño himself. If you are interested in learning more about Action Bronson, check out his music on Spotify, SoundCloud, and Apple Music and his show on Viceland and YouTube.