Bilmuri

After leaving his position as rhythm guitarist and clean vocalist in Ohio metalcore outfit Attack Attack!, Johnny Franck launched the solo endeavor Bilmuri in 2016 via the album Jaguar Shark. The project blends post-hardcore, pop punk, indie pop, electronic, emo, and country elements, and it has produced a varied sequence of recordings such as Banana (2017), Solid Chub (2018), Goblin Hours (2022), and American Motor Sports (2024), the last marking his first release on a major label.

Franck exited Attack Attack! in 2010 to prioritize his faith, then established the experimental pop band the March Ahead alongside Sacramento multi-instrumentalist Mike Caswell. The pair worked with producer Joey Sturgis on a self-titled EP issued in 2011. Two years later they delivered a high-impact rendition of One Direction’s “Story of My Life,” which accumulated millions of streams.

Franck started Bilmuri in 2016, favoring a pop-punk foundation centered on playful emo-pop sensibilities, evident on the debut full-length Jaguar Shark. Additional titles followed, among them Bilmuri, Letters, Frame, Banana, Solid Chub, Taco, and Wet Milk, steadily building the project’s audience. On 2019’s Rich Sips he reunited with former Attack Attack! colleague Caleb Shomo for “Thicc Thiccly,” a send-up of the group’s 2008 single “Stick Stickly.” The 2020 collection Muri and Friends included appearances by Dayseeker, Jonathan Young, and No Dice, while Eggy Pocket, 400LB Back Squat, and Goblin Hours later incorporated Knox, Brody, Seneca, and additional guests. Ahead of American Motor Sports, Bilmuri signed with Columbia Records; the country-inflected album features contributions from Thicc Boi on “Better Hell,” Dylan Marlowe on “Emptyhanded,” and Mitchell Tenpenny on “All Gas.”