Bilmuri with NOVELISTS and Knuckle Puck
Theater Of The Clouds // Portland, OR // October 1, 2026
Review by: Bruna Cucolo
It was the best kind of rowdiness, a high level of excitement, multiple mentions of hogs. It was a Bilmuri concert.
Known as the post-hardcore project Bilmuri, singer-songwriter Johnny Franck had been on the Kinda Hard North American Tour: The Second Crank for a month, which started on September 4. Joining them on the road were NOVELISTS from Paris, France and Knuckle Puck from Chicago, IL. On the night of October 1, the three bands played Theater Of The Clouds in Portland, OR for an extremely lively crowd.
Kicking off the show was the French metalcore band NOVELISTS, who wowed those who showed up early. Frontwoman Camille Contreras went on stage with her super cute pink dress and impressed everyone with her insane vocals. She got people to scream and cheer along during the set, getting the crowd even more eager for the night. Next was pop punk band Knuckle Puck, bringing a great amount of energy to the stage with their 11-song set. Lead vocalist Joe Taylor was so pumped to be there; it was seen through the liveliness of his performance with the rest of the band and his interactions with the crowd. The multitude of people present were hungry for more, and that’s when it was time for the main band to put on a sensational show.
As soon as blue lights lit up the stage, the fans got excited for the headliner, shouting “Crank that hog!” something the fanbase would know to chant. Vocalist Gabi Rose came out with her saxophone and played a beautiful tune as everyone cheered even louder. Soon enough, Franck appears with his band, and Bilmuri’s set was in full swing.
The entire venue enjoyed the band’s performance to the fullest. There were mosh pits, there were crowd surfers; there was an immense amount of excitement every time bubbles emerged from the machines on stage and floated over those in the pit. With over 20 songs on the setlist, Bilmuri delivered a chaotic experience in the best way possible. Franck made sure to play songs for both new and OG fans, such as “ROCK BOTTOM” and “ABSOLUTELYCRANKINMYMF’INHOG,” it’s so sure that expectations from both were exceeded with his stage presence. He interacted with the crowd, had them split down the middle for more moshing, “cranked the hog” with them, and even got down to the front of the barricade for part of a song, high-fiving people in the front as he walked past them.
Ending with their popular track “BETTER HELL (Thicc boi),” they put on a one-of-a-kind concert for fans to never forget and leave with an almost surreal memory to relive forever. It’s no wonder this fanbase keeps growing. Bilmuri had been on over 60 stops as this was also a world tour, and, hopefully, there will be more in the future. Until then, “Crank Honkers,” AKA the fanbase, can continue listening to the music and reminisce about the moments they share with Bilmuri.
