Action Bronson - Manchester Club Academy 12/05/2014

Bringing the Blue Chips 2 Tour to the UK, the first disappointment for Bam Bam was the downgrading (in terms of size) from Academy 2 to Club, but that’s nothing compared to sharing the bill with The Hoosiers In Liverpool – quite a booking, I must say.

Released in November last year, Blue Chips 2 has put to rest the Ghostface Killah comparisons and earned the East Coast MC a reputation for being an overblown and excessive, back flipping giant - pretty much the one depicted on the cover of Rare Chandeliers. Revealing his granddad was of local origin, Action seemed genuinely enthused to be in Manchester, if not quite up to date with current footballing matters “And when I play the guitar I’m always on acid/She said I look like Wayne Rooney when she see me floating in Manchester”.

Baklava’s flows could be accused of being pretty samey across most of his projects; however the real spice lies in the instrumentals with producer Party Supplies, combining 80’s flavoured pop with some classic soul and Motown recordings. “Contemporary Man” is interminably silly with its mix of Phil Collins and Peter Gabriel samples, potentially creating tension for any big-Genesis fans present, It is nonetheless a far more solid usage of “Sledgehammer” than 3rd Bass managed. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the name of the tour, there was a noticeable lack of Dr.Lecter material but “The Symbol”, with its vintage guitar solo snaking its way through the track, did give a fleeting glimpse of his work with The Alchemist. The customary crowd expedition saw this lucky reviewer come face-to-face with the man himself; the recent weight loss doing nothing to reduce his predator-like presence.

What makes Bronson so endearing is the inherent tongue-in-cheek nature of his persona, “It’s Me” brings out the braggadocios word-play “I won’t even dine if there isn’t a fucking ice sculpture of me on the dinner table”. Rhyming over African Jazz, Bronsolini was heading towards a magical path, fo sho. “Strictly 4 My Jeeps” draws the biggest chants for “Bronson” of the night, with no let-up in energy from Bam Bam an hour in he leaves the stage somewhat unexpectedly after his verse from “1 Train”. The night ends abruptly, at just 10pm – I guess it was a school night.

With such a diverse range of beats and off-the-cuff humour it’s hard not to love the man formerly known as Arian Asllani, however not even half-eaten cupcakes could ease the disappointment following the brief nature of the set. Value for money issues aside, Action Bronson is a man constantly growing; whether he can shake his ostentatious themes and present another side to himself remains the big question in his development.