Bilmuri continues his ascent to the top with the brilliantly weird KINDA HARD.
Trying to predict a Bilmuri album is like trying to explain a fever dream after three energy drinks and no sleep. On KINDA HARD, Johnny Franck once again invites you deep inside his weird and wonderful brain, a place where genre rules don’t exist, and frankly, common sense doesn’t get a look-in either. Sax solos? Sure. Chuggy breakdowns? Obviously. Eagles screaming over riffs like they’ve just spotted their next meal? Why not.
Opener KINDA HARD is an outright assault on the senses, with crushing riffs and the avian screeches setting things up like you’re about to be dragged through a full-blown metalcore battering. It’s chaotic, ridiculous and kind of brilliant. Naturally, Bilmuri immediately pulls the rug, as TWICE flips the switch into a glossy pop-punk anthem that feels built for sun-soaked festival sing-alongs.
That unpredictability is the whole point, and anything goes, because why not? ROCK BOTTOM morphs into something far more progressive, stretching out into an atmospheric closer that feels oddly serene, while MORE THAN HATE might be the purest snapshot of Johnny’s brain at work. It’s all soaring hooks and infectious bounce, until a set of death growls crashes in and turns it into a full-blown metalcore stomp.
The collaborations only add to the chaos. WHERE TO FIND ME featuring Novelists injects a slick metalcore sheen, while ALWAYS LET YOU DOWN with A Day To Remember’s Jeremy McKinnon leans into emotional pop-rock with arena-sized hooks. Elsewhere, HONEST is a slower beast, but with added summer-drenched saxophone, it makes you want to ride around with the top down feeling the fresh air. Closer WAVES rounds things out with a surprising sense of clarity, offering moments of sincerity amid the madness.
KINDA HARD is, fittingly, kind of impossible to pin down. It’s eccentric and full of curveballs but that’s the magic. In Bilmuri’s world, anything goes. And honestly, you wouldn’t want it any other way.
Verdict: 4/5
For fans of: A Day To Remember, Beartooth, Dayseeker
KINDA HARD is out now via Columbia.
