Five stars out of five
The collaborative project Secret Path by Gord Downie and Jeff Lemire was released on Oct. 18, and man, is it a hard hitter.
Secret Path tells the story of a young Anishinaabe boy named Chanie Wenjack who passed away in 1966 as he tried to get back to his family following his escape from the Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School in Kenora, Ont.
The project is a multi-media work of art featuring a 10-song album written by Downie, a graphic novel drawn by Lemire, and an hour-long television special combining the songs from the album with animation by Lemire. The animated special premiered exclusively on CBC on Oct. 23.
Secret Path is an incredible example of what can be done when artists who specialize in different media are on the same wave-length.
Flipping through the graphic novel while the music plays is hands-down the best way to experience Secret Path, and experience is the only word to describe it; you cannot just listen to, or read Secret Path, you need to experience it. The combination of visual and auditory stimuli truly evokes real emotion in the participant.
The graphic novel, drawn by Toronto-based artist Jeff Lemire, is laid out like a complicated lyric insert. Similar to the booklets that accompany most albums the only words in the book are the lyrics from the songs. The illustrations follow the lyrics, and take the participant through the journey home which ultimately led to his death.
The illustrator and the poet take you through the last few days of a young boy’s life. The lyrics give life to the illustrations on the page. The viewer connects to the character during the earlier faux-hopeful songs “Swing Set” and “I Will Not Be Struck.” While experiencing Secret Path, you don’t want Wenjack to die, even though you know that is the inevitable conclusion.
The artists tear you down as you watch the life fade from the boy on the page during “The Only Place to Be” and “Here, Here and Here.” The trauma the boy experiences is almost tangible as you watch memories pass by, listen to the guitar or piano chunk away, and hear poems that scream at you from your speakers.
In the songs, Downie plays in different musical keys and with different instruments, though much of the album is vocal-focussed. He uses his voice to provide both the lead lines and backup vocals. The way he whispers or screams sounds like the beginning of hope or the breaking of a spirit. He is a master of his craft and it shows. Some songs have a catchy vibe and might be pleasing to the ear, but it is more important to listen to the emotion being presented and the lyrics.
The animated special allows everyone to experience the pictures. The first 45 minutes of the special are a moving version of the graphic novel. The participant can watch the movement of Chanie’s eyes and the tightness of the hug in “Son.” I would argue that this is perhaps an even more immersive way to experience Secret Path.
The last 15 minutes of the special follow Gord Downie, the mastermind behind the project, as he visits Chanie Wenjack’s surviving family at his sister Pearl’s home. These few minutes flesh out the story, reminding those watching that the character with whom they’ve spent the last forty-five minutes connecting was a real person.
In a press release about Secret Path from Sept. 9, 2016, Downie said, “This is about Canada. We are not the country we thought we were. History will be re-written.” If re-writing history is the goal, Downie is on the right path.
Photo courtesy of Gord Downie and Jeff Lemire.