• THE PYRE PARADE - SOUTH

• (2020)

Rough Band • Death Walk  • Community • Ritual

THE COVID LOCKDOWN PYRE

In 2018 and 2019, hundreds of people gathered in Ipswich for the Pyre Parade, marching bad news through the town in big, noisy processions before ceremonially setting it alight. In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic made it impossible to gather together safely, so the Rough Band invited people to send their bad news to be burned on their behalf.

A document was created for people to print at home, providing space to write down their bad news before folding the sheet into a small paper boat, concealing the words inside. How To videos in English and British Sign Language were shared online to make the process as straightforward as possible. The completed boats were then sent by Freepost to the Rough Band, where they were gathered into a wooden box along with other combustible materials.

On All Hallows Eve, the box was taken to an undisclosed location and set alight. The burn was streamed online in real time, allowing people to watch from home and perhaps create their own small, remote Pyre Parade. Together, but apart.

The Rough Band accompanied the event with a specially written text:

There have been highs,
there have been lows,
for all in 2020.
And yet throughout,
one thing is clear,
we still hold hope aplenty.

And so upon All Hallows Eve,
we once more build a pyre.
But this year we will be apart,
and we will light the fire.

We urge you,
write your bad news down
and fold it into a boat.
To sail upon a sea of flames,
to burn up what you wrote.

This year the pyre is lit for you,
apart but not alone.

And we remain united,
through the wishes we each own -

Good health, an end to violence, equity, fair lives,
and positive futures for all.

- The Rough Band, 2020

A Secret Symbols & Soul Cakes download formed part of a wider kit for people to use at home. It included a recipe for Pyre Parade ginger cake, the lyrics to the Souling Song as sung by Simon Sparrow and the Pyre Choir at the 2019 burn, and a selection of Pyre Parade secrets. The Rough Band also created a Pyre Parade 2020 Playlist for people to enjoy at home, bringing some Rough Band energy to the lockdown.

The 2020 project also acknowledged the emotional weight of the ritual. Each Pyre Parade had offered people an opportunity to write down and process their bad news before sending it to the fire; this year, with that process taking place remotely, participants were reminded to take care of themselves and each other. For anyone who found the experience brought up difficult emotions, the mental health charity Mind was signposted as a source of support.

Although the parade itself could not take place, the ritual continued: bad news was gathered, boats were made, the fire was lit, and people came together from a distance to imagine a way through.