The Bright Smoke, Karlie Bruce, Johnny Lewis

The Bright Smoke is the creation of Brooklyn-based musician, Mia Wilson. Formed in 2012 alongside producer/musician Q. Ledbetter, the sound blends indie rock, blues, and ambient experimentation in a way that is both melodic and haunting.


A native of Sydney, Australia, Karlie Bruce now makes her home in Brooklyn, New York. She is one of many voices of the post-disco big band Escort, has toured extensively as a background and session vocalist, has opened for pianist Brad Mehldau and appeared alongside Matt Wilson and Larry Goldings at New York’s esteemed Carnegie Hall.

In September 2012, Karlie released her highly anticipated debut LP, "Paperback Lover," alongside long time band-mates, bassist Derek Nievergelt (Robin McKelle), drummer Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), and guitarist and often-collaborator, Chris Parrello (Things I Wonder).

The eight-track release garnered rave reviews; the spare, lilting reveries likened to a “1960’s Greenwich Village” by Ears To The Ground and coined “A soothing masterpiece” by Music You Need.


Johnny Lewis melds the north-country sound of acoustic guitars with progressive Americana, unique lyrics and electronic ambiance, replanting the poetic verse into a timeless songwriting style for a new generation of listeners. He releases his self-titled debut album on Sept 23, 2014.

Johnny Lewis' musical background is not that of the ordinary Folk Artist. Stemming from Minneapolis, MN, Johnny moved to Colorado in 2008 to pursue electronic production for a number of touring acts including The Larva Ink, Lizzo, Bokonon and many more. Accepted into the festival community, Lewis opened extensively for national acts such as The Flaming Lips and EOTO, but after tirelessly working in the electronic world, Lewis came to terms with his obsession for acoustic music. This in turn, drove him away from production and into his passion - writing songs.

Johnny grew up listening to music from a world he didn't belong to. His uncles would listen to the crackling records of Charley Patton, Chet Baker, Johnny Hartman and Bob Dylan, which drew Johnny to the acoustic guitar at the age of twelve and played songs by legends all the way through high school.

After his stints in Colorado and Minneapolis, Johnny began slowly moving away from the electronically oriented acts he had formed and the scene he had engrained himself in and moved to New York City to start his music career over. He wrote dozens of songs in a short amount of time and decided it was time to release his first solo record.

Johnny Lewis' self titled debut is a is a gorgeous fusion of dream-folk, Americana and meticulously layered production, combining all spectrums of Lewis' passions. Lewis now resides in New York City.