The heroism of pioneers

How the Dead Live is the latest CD from Jordan Reyne: her creative response to a Wild Creations Residency in 2004.

Jordan's fifth album is inspired by the story of one of New Zealand's early pioneers – Susannah Hawes. Susannah left her life in Gravesend, London to sail to New Zealand in 1874. After three months on the ship “Micheal Angelo”, Susannah and her husband Henry arrived in Nelson. From there, they were sent on to Karamea, in the remote Northwest of the South Island of New Zealand, as part of a disastrously unplanned settlement programme.

In How the Dead Live the character “History” argues with Susannah about her place in historical narrative. History has a lust for drama and blood, and she is 'uncomfortable' with the 'ordinariness' of Susannah’s tale. Susannah, on the other hand, is not interested in History’s approval. She feels that perhaps 'ordinary' people are in fact 'The Brave' and while they might be ignored by History, their tale of facing and overcoming the harsh and difficult conditions and desolate isolation of Karamea in the late 1800's is no less heroic.

Jordan on the banks of the Karamea River in the remote Northwest of the South Island.

Jordan spent six weeks in Karamea (where she also grew up) researching Susannah's letters and the local legends surrounding her character. She sourced the sounds that that would have made up Susannah's aural environment at the time: rain, surf, basic farm implements, steam ships, saws and sluices, and interwove these with music using folk instruments and her own evocative vocals.

How the Dead Live is a CD that will resonante with people at many levels:
•  it crosses musical boundaries of folk, rock, classical, electroacoustic and sonic art;
•  it has a strong egalitarian message;
•  it is a poetic interpretation of our country's colonial history; and
•  it will appeal to those interested in that history reminding us that History is composed equally of the heroic acts of ordinary people facing harsh conditions at home as the bloody experiences of heroes on battlefields overseas.

"It's a fierce and unflinching vision, familiar to those who know Reyne's work, and it's perfectly etched with double vocals combined with that dense, intense electronic backdrop..."
William Dart, New Horizons, RNZ 19 April 2009

"How The Dead Live is a fascinating and intense listen. Reyne's voice is, as ever, a gift. And the fact that she chooses to use it by applying the tools of a story-writer and an illustrator, rather than just taking the easy route, is all the more encouraging..."
Simon Sweetman, Dominion Post, 17 April, 2009

Click here to listen to an interview with Jordan by Sam Wicks from Radio New Zealand National. More information and music available here.

Cick here to download an interview with Jordan and Mike Higgins broadcast by KiwiFM.

Click here to find out more about the album or to purchase it from SOUNZ.
Click here to download a pdf with more information about Jordan and How the Dead Live .
Click here to go to Jordan's own website. 
And click here to find out more about some of Jordan's previous albums, also available through SOUNZ.

The "Wild Creations" programme was a joint scheme of Creative New Zealand and the Department of Conservation which ran between 2002 and 2007. It sought to give New Zealand artists an opportunity to experience the people, stories and challenges of our country’s unique natural and historical heritage.