Action Bronson, aka Bronsoliño, Bam Bam, Mr. Baklava, has returned to grace us with more animal noises, food metaphors, and intricate production choices as these Crocs (his fans) steady their hunger before pouncing. It’s comparatively tame, making us slowly indulge the scenery with colorful lyricism and production that makes you feel the multi-faceted layers on the tracks. It isn’t as immersive but more collected and structured as we siphon through the 10-track-album Cocodrillo Turbo. It hits the proper notes of a good Action Bronson album; it circles intricate flex raps and atmospheric complexions to good effect. Cocodrillo Turbo doesn’t keep me fully invested, but within this open swamp, there are still remarkable highlights that keep the Bronson in your ear on repeat.

Cocodrillo Turbo has quality tracks, no doubt. However, it doesn’t circumvent the somewhat boring verses that shroud the delicately rich production. Cocodrillo Turbo sets the tone: you’re on a porch smoking a joint and watching nature, night and day, along the swamps, reflecting and flexing through intricate allusions. From the getgo, it’s a slew of flex-rap building upon metaphors to reaffirm these claims. Though, they are nothing without the production, which brilliantly uses animal noises, forest sounds, and southern music to create a progressive sonic concept album. It uses these colorful productions to place us in a calming swamp where Action Bronson comes across as the gator and reminding listeners that it’s still hungry. Compared to the production, the amount of food presented by Bronson isn’t always as satisfying. He’s still lyrically detailed, but it isn’t always profound, like the production.

The production realizes the atmosphere and sonic complexions, which mirror what we’d hear in swampy, jungly areas. Whether it’s “Jaguar,” where we hear jaguar roars (and the death of a pig at the end) on the back of the production as he comes across fiercely, or the bass grooves and percussion on “Subzero,” it comes in troves as it buoys many, except for lesser tracks like “Estaciones” and “Turkish.” In the latter, there are nocturnal sounds encapsulating the production that poorly contrast the tone and lyrics of Bronson. Though it isn’t to say it’s devoid of additional issues. It has a poor opener in “Hound Dog,” where the production completely drowns Bronson’s verse that you almost forget he has one. It would have been more effective as an instrumental since his verse isn’t that special.

After “Hound Dog,” an ever-growing escalation of allusions to how hard Action Bronson loses its touch due to a lack of creativity. Despite the detailed lyricism within tracks like “Jaws” or “Zambezi,” it isn’t as clever as the ones in “Tongpo.” It switches rhyme schemes often when compared to the latter, weaving various layers instead of repeating the “-it” scheme. However, there are flares to the flows; it balances it out for “Zambezi,” not “Jaws.” But there are more times where Bronson brings this kind of flourish, like on “Subzero” or “Ninety-One.” But ultimately, it juggles keeping a consistent presence in front of the lavish production as it steals the spotlight. It comes down to personal preference on its effectiveness. For some, “Jaws” may have that impact “Ninety-One” had on me, head-bopping smoothness.

Furthermore, it doesn’t benefit Cocodrillo Turbo that its 30-minute run time comes and goes swiftly. When you get to track 3, “Estaciones,” Bronson’s lyricism starts to meld together with a similar frequency that you almost forget he’s coming at it differently. The flows stay shifting, keeping the interest level consistent enough. Though there are aspects to enjoy, Cocodrillo Turbo comes with some hiccups. It doesn’t keep you on your toes like Only For The Dolphins, but it’s enough to keep on the backlog of Action Bronson projects of lesser quality, like S.A.A.B. Stories. But it does have enough to pack a wallop from the Cocodrillo Turbo himself. I thoroughly enjoyed the good and kept the forgettable in the back as they don’t feel compartmentalized within the rest. The production maybe, but not always the verses. Due to that, it is a modestly underwhelming project.