Bright Smoke, or Bryony Fry as she is known off stage, is one of those undiscovered artists of a certain calibre that makes one shake their head in puzzlement as to how such talent has largely escaped the listening ears of the great and the good.
We first came across the Southampton-based acoustic indie folk singer/songwriter last autumn, and although she has played festivals such as Glastonbury, Glade and Blissfields, she was a new name to us. Once hearing her exquisite voice, however, we were hooked.
She's been described as 'kooky', her songs like a 'hippy psych folk trip', and on this, 'Snowdrop', her latest wistful yearning, she adeptly utilises guitar, flute and cello to 'lift' the song in a haunting way that takes it beyond 'folk' and draws in a number of influences.
But given Bryony's backstory and of how she has risen up from the low point of her life and battled demons, it is testament to her resolve of where she is today and how much she has accomplished, as well as giving an insight into the writer behind the songs.
My life had deteriorated into a debilitating mass of drugs, alcohol, sleepless nights and emotional distress spanning across many years of unbridled hedonism. Getting clean was one of the hardest things I have ever had to, but choosing the option to be happy and find inner peace was ironically one of the easiest decisions I ever made...
People often ask me what it was that drove me to make such a drastic change. What was my wakeup call? It was the tragic story of Amy Winehouse and her premature death, brought about by drugs and alcohol, which initially motivated me to change my ways. I’ll never forget the moment I heard that she had passed away. I was sat in my living room in London, feeling sick with anxiety, with sadness, whilst on day two of the most intense come down that I had ever faced. I had been out “partying” for days. It was the typical end of a bender; I had no food, no sleep, and no memory of how I got to laying behind a brick wall in the middle of Camden in the pouring rain. I’d lost my jacket, phone, and keys. I had no money to get home. I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to have found help from some incredible people who rescued me in my greatest hour of need...
An addiction never goes away, an addiction is for life. You have to remember that no matter what your mind tells you, no matter how confident you feel you will be able to go out and just have “a few drinks”, you have to be constantly aware that an addiction won’t let you do that. You’ll end up in a tailspin, out of your mind on a potent cocktail of drugs and booze before you even realise it...
It took another year of on and off drinking and counselling to reach the point I was ready to give up completely. My life is now at a point where I am becoming very successful in so many ways. People are taking my music more seriously. My song writing and guitar playing have both improved ten-fold. My voice is stronger than it has ever been, and I’m singing with more passion and conviction than I have ever done before..."
Bryony now fundraises for the Amy Winehouse Foundation, and you can support her at her Just Giving page.
As another string to her bow, she is also a talented artist and has an exhibition of her multimedia pop art work at The Strand Gallery in London from May 6 - 11. See more here
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