(CelebrityAccess) — Australian rock icons Midnight Oil announced plans for one more studio album and a farewell tour before hanging up their touring spurs for good.
The tour and album, both titled Resist, will debut in 2022 with dates scheduled throughout Australia and New Zealand, starting on January 23rd at Royal Park in Launceston, Tasmania and at Auckland Spark Arena in New Zealand, on May 13th.
While they announced plans to retire as a touring band at the conclusion of ‘Resist’ the members of Midnight Oil – Peter Garrett, Rob Hirst, Jim Moginie, and Martin Rotsey – all affirmed they plan to continue with their own projects in the years ahead.
First formed as the band Farm in 1972, Midnight Oil rose to prominence in Australia with their debut album in 1978 and came to worldwide attention a decade later with their seminal 1987 album “Diesel and Dust.”
Rob Hirst says: “If I look back, I see a blur of familiar names and faces: Jim, Pete, Martin, Bear and me, slamming loud prog-pop in a Chatswood garage; Giffo, magnificent, rocking back and forth at his first Royal Antler gig; Bonesy, headphones on, singing, lounging on the deck learning our catalogue.”
“I see our managers in their offices – Gary, Zev and John; our tour managers in their cars and buses – Constance, Neil, and Willie Mac; our producers in their studios, Keith, Lez, Glyn, Nick and Warne; and our crew on countless stages, Michael, Oysters, Ozzy, Doc, Nick, Jock, Gerry – and so many more. ”
“I see our folks-in-the-engine-room that the outside world has never seen: Stephanie, Wayne, Diana, Arlene, Jonesy, Craig, Geoff H, Chris P, Peter T, and Mel C.”
“I see our wives and trusted friends, and the tiny faces of the ‘Baby Oils’, watching us from side of stage, from Sydney to Sao Paulo to Saskatoon.”
“But mostly, blinded by stage lights, I see the first two rows of a thousand gigs: Midnight Oil fans, pumping, jumping, singing louder than the band.”
“But I don’t look back.”
Peter Garrett says: “We all know time refuses to stand still for anyone but after many years together the band’s spirit is deep, the music and words are strong, and our ideas and actions as bold as we can make them. We’ve reached people in ways we never could have imagined. Our desire to create and speak out is undimmed. We hope everyone who hears this album and gets to one of the shows will come away charged up about the planet’s future, saying ‘why stop now?’. Having always tackled every tour like it’s the last – this time it actually will be.”
Jim Moginie says “We’ve played intensely physical gigs since our humble beginnings back in 1977 and we never want to take even the slightest risk of compromising that. A lot has happened over the last five years. Much has been achieved and with the passing of Bones much has been lost, so it now feels like we’re at the end of a cycle.”
“These will be sad and beautiful gigs but luckily we’re still capable of blowing the roof off any stage and that’s what we intend to do. You could call this a farewell tour, but Midnight Oil will still continue in some form or other as we’re brothers, family. We stand as one, dependent on each other and grateful in all the important ways that make great bands great.”
Martin Rotsey says: “A huge thank you to all our fans around the world. We’ve shared so much together from the swelter of Sydney pubs to magical nights under starry skies. Your energy took us further than we could ever have dreamed.”
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