The Makarrata Project
by Midnight Oil

From Brad1770 12/16/2020 08:27 | #262757

Forget AC/DC, forget INXS, forget Cold Chisel, forget any Australian band from the past 60 years and take it to the bank Midnight Oil are Australia’s best band ever bar none and incredibly have released one of their best albums in a glittering catalogue in the twilight of their career. And I say this with authority being an Australian music fan having followed the band passionately for the best part of 40 years

MO reached their zenith with the landmark releases ‘Diesel And Dust’ 1987 (still the greatest ever Australian album) , 1990’s ‘ Blue Sky Mining’ and the excellent but under appreciated ‘Earth And Sun And Moon’ then fell off the cliff with a couple of stinkers before an extended hiatus as Peter Garret pursued a political career in federal parliament

However Midnight Oil never really went away staying relevant with the regular drip release of live albums, best of’s and B-Sides/ Rarities and ultimately “coming back “ in 2017 with a record setting national and world tour

And so we have here the bands first new material in 18 years and considering the gap it’s remarkably powerful and tight. I could go on and on about lyrical content and guest appearances but I’ll simply leave it with Peter Garratt to explain and I quote

“It’s been 250 years since Cook landed, when Aboriginal and Islander peoples’ children, land & waters were first taken away. Yet the impacts of the original dispossession are still widely felt. We urgently need to up the ante on Reconciliation generally and follow through on the ground breaking Uluru Statement. These songs are about recognising that our shared history needs settlement, and that more than ever, as the Statement From The Heart proclaims, we need to walk together to create a better future.”

Note 1: Hands down my number one album for 2020

Note 2: One of the most important Australian releases of our generation

Note 3: I this doesn’t win the ARIA for record of the year it’s a traverse of justice