Action Bronson Breaks Down His Album "Rare Chandeliers"

A track-by-track look at Bronsolino's new project with The Alchemist.

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Image via Complex Original
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It’s been a while since we first heard about Action Bronson and The Alchemist’s collaborative project Rare Chandeliers, and today, after heavy anticipation, it finally dropped. The cover art is awesome, as is the video for its first single, “The Symbol.” And with Bronson’s streak of partnering with producers to prepare high quality full-lengths (Blue Chips with Party Supplies, Well Done with Statik Selektah, and Dr. Lecter with Tommy Mas), and his pal Alc’s 15-year history of lacing MCs from Nas to Snoop Dogg with bangers, Rare Chandeliers is a sure bet to satisfy.

We hit Action Bronson on the cell yesterday while he was cooling out in Miami after the first night of his tour with Cypress Hill, and he graciously gave us a track-by-track breakdown of Rare Chandeliers, taking us behind-the-scenes at Alchemist’s in-house, L.A. studio, with guest stars that include ScHoolboy Q, Roc Marciano, Styles P, Evidence, Sean Price, and more. Peep the recipe.

As told to Daniel Isenberg (@stanipcus)

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Big Body Bes Intro

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“Big Body Bes Intro”

Action Bronson: “That’s my Albanian cousin, straight off the boat type shit. He’s one of those really wild, in and out of jail Albanians. He’s a star, though. He needs to be seen and heard. So we let him get the intro, to introduce the album. It’s not really an intro to the project though, it’s just him talking pretty much. It’s just him talking about himself.

“It has nothing to do with the project, honestly. He doesn’t say my name one time. He’s says nothing about the project, nothing like that. But he deserves [the shine]. It brings light to the record. It brings pizazz and life. It’s great.”

Rare Chandeliers

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“Rare Chandeliers”

Action Bronson: “I had just woken up [at Alchemist’s house] and it was about four in the morning. And I woke up to this sound, and it was that beat. And I got up and I was like, ‘Holy shit.’ And I just started writing right away, [and then we recorded it right after]. That was that.

“The thing is, when you record with Al at his house, you gotta live on his schedule, or else you’ll never get any work done. [His schedule is] stay up ‘til you pass out, wake up whenever, eat whenever, and at any time, anything could be done. We [recorded around the clock].

“We [had enough songs that we] could have put out an album after three days. But we just continued on, and kept going at it and working and working and working. We almost did forty songs. When you get in a zone, you can’t really stop. You don’t say, ‘We’re gonna stop at ten,’ or, ‘We’re gonna stop at fifteen.’ You keep creating and creating and you pick the best out of the lot.

“At the end of the day, I’m just a fucking one of a kind, and so is Al, [and that’s what that title represents]. We’re just some rare chandeliers. You can’t find us everywhere. You gotta go to the south of Latvia for that shit.”

The Symbol

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“The Symbol”

Action Bronson: “We were sitting in the room, smoking. And Al just puts this record on, and out of nowhere, that plays. And I was like, ‘Oh my god.’ I instantly lost my shit, wrote that shit right away, laid it right away.

“That was my favorite song. It just embodies what Al’s doing now, and what I’m doing now. That’s me. That’s the type of shit I like. That hard, prog-rock riff, with the bass line. It’s not typical, and it gives you room to do whatever, which are two things that I enjoy.

“I’ve been performing it live for a couple months. I just wanted to let the people get acquainted with it. At the end of the day, people who are gonna love it are gonna love it. It’s not gonna be anything that’s played in the club or anything like that. But that’s me. I’m not concerned about that. I’m concerned about quality music. Timeless shit. I’m not just trying to be here for this [season].

“The video was my mastermind [idea]. Me and Rik Cordero, we pretty much knocked that one out. I just gave him basic ideas, and he had all the people and wrote up a lot of shit. And I just acted my life away.

“You see the cover art, and everything like that. I’m trying to go with a theme here. I’m rap’s vigilante. I’m out for justice. I’m a [superhero] in a sense to some people, but I’m a threat to a lot, and a terror. But I’m a hero to a lot as well.”

Sylvester Lundgren

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“Sylvester Lundgren” f/ Meyhem Lauren & Ag Da Coroner

Action Bronson: “It’s Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren mixed. It seems like after I started naming my songs after people, I started seeing a real influx of that in the industry. And a lot of food talk, and this and that. But at the end of the day, I was like, ‘I’m mixing a name, and calling it that.’ No one’s done that. Let’s see who’s gonna do that now.

“Yeah, [Mayhem Lauren and AG Da Coroner], those are my guys. Meyhem comes strong all the time. I heard that beat, and it was like something that makes you want to kick a kid in the face, you know? Just one of those. And those guys had to be on it.”

Randy The Musical

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“Randy The Musical”

Action Bronson: “Alchemist signed this new kid, this producer named Randy. He’s one of the illest out. He produced that joint. He’s a real human. He’s from Tampa, and he’s just ill. He was out there [with us in L.A. at Alchemist’s house] chillin’. He’s coming up under Al’s wing, and he makes some better shit than Al, to tell you the truth. Randy’s a motherfucker.

“That’s the only joint he did on the album. We only gave him one. He killed it. It’s a three-part joint, and he killed every part of it. It’s a musical, so it changes three times.”

Demolition Men

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“Demolition Men” f/ ScHoolboy Q

Action Bronson: “I was at the studio, and he came through. I didn’t really know who he was. We had heard of each other, but we didn’t really know each other like that. We clicked, we vibed. I made lamb chops and shit, and he was lovin’ ‘em. That’s my man at the end of the day, now. That’s the homie. He’s the man. He fuckin’ murdered that joint. I’m glad that we have that song.

“We don’t have anything right now planned, but anything can happen. Ab-Soul and ScHoolboy, those are the people that I actually know [out of that camp], and I fuck with them heavy. So of course, we’re gonna work again in the future.”

Eggs On The Third Floor

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“Eggs On The Third Floor”

Action Bronson: “The first part of the song is one of those crime-type, mysterious beats. And then it just switches into an all-out cipher in a lunchroom or something. It drops out into a lunchroom scene, and switches into a party-type song.

“They’re all stoned titles. I think Alchemist called it ‘Eggs’ because I said, ‘I’m buttnaked in the kitchen cooking eggs like Ving Rhames in Baby Boy.’ And ‘Third Floor’ comes from when I was in high school, all the shit popped off on the third floor. Motherfuckers would just break out into song, dance, or whatever, you know? Like quick little ciphers.”

Modern Day Revelations

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“Modern Day Revelations” f/ Roc Marciano

Action Bronson: “Yes. One of my favorite joints on there. Roc was staying out there for a minute, he was doing his work out there, so we linked up at Al’s crib. I heard that loop, and no one was really feeling it except me, and I was fuckin’ going nuts. So I was like, ‘Roc, we gotta do this one right here.’ And we did it, and look how it came out.

“[Roc’s new album] Reloaded is great. It’s a great album. We have enough songs done to do [a project together]. He’s gonna take off right now, and let’s see what happens with me. I’m sure we’re gonna make something happen.

“It’s a good week for music. It feels good.”

Dennis Haskins

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“Dennis Haskins”

Action Bronson: “That’s Mr. Fucking Belding [from Saved By The Bell] if you don’t know who Dennis Haskins is. And he’s a friend of a friend of mine. And my man had put him on to my music, and he loved it. And my man was like, ‘Mr. Belding wants to come through so I can introduce you.’ So he came through to my show in L.A., we linked, and that was that. Needless to say, he’s not Mr. Belding to me anymore, he’s [my boy now]. It’s a ridiculous situation.

He’s the homie, [which is why I named the record after him]. He’s a creep. He was [at the show] trying to find some young bitches. The thing is, [I had him come out and introduce me to the crowd at the show], and not everybody at the show knew who he was. He’s [known by] the older generation, not the younger generation. It definitely [went over a couple people’s heads].”

Btch I Deserve You

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“Bitch I Deserve You” f/ Evidence

Action Bronson: “That’s just one of my favorite joints period. It’s meaningful, it’s not just rap. It’s one of those where you just sit back like, ‘Damn, look at what just happened in like a year, year and a half.’ And Ev is the homie. Good dude. He was around a lot [during the making of Rare Chandeliers].”

Gateway To Wizardry

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“Gateway To Wizardry” f/ Styles P

Action Bronson: “That’s another one of those switcheroos. It goes in from the first joint into the Styles joint. I had done a couple joints with Styles already, and he was out there with Al. And I hit Al, like, ‘Yo, tell him to jump on something.’ It’s sickness.”

Blood Of The Goat

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“Blood Of The Goat” f/ Big Twin & Sean Price

Action Bronson: “Yes. Yes. Big Twin is one of my favorite rappers. He’s next level. [His voice] is amazing, and he’s a great dude. Him and Al are real homies, and he [lives out in L.A. now]. And he needed to be on that record.”

“And P needed to be on that shit, too. So I sent the track to PF Cuttin, my man who does a lot of recording for P. So they did it over there and knocked it out for me, and that was that. [I also thought the freestyle Sean Price did over the ‘Pouches Of Tuna’ beat] was cool. He did a good job.”

Mike Vick

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“Mike Vick”

Action Bronson: “That’s it. That’s the ending. It’s putting a statement on everything. This shit is simple. I roll out of bed and do this. I get off the couch and do this.

“That’s how the drugs get stuffed in the asshole of a pitbull. We call it, ‘We don’t want to Mike Vick you. Chill dog, I don’t want to have to Mike Vick you.’ It’s some slang.

“I wanna shout out everyone that was out there [while we were making Rare Chandeliers]. Hip-Hop Since 1978, he’s the big homie. Good fuckin’ dude. Big Body, Tommy Mas, Ag Da Coroner, Meyhem Lauren, and everyone who came through on the project and did it right.”

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