POSTCARDS FROM ENGLAND AND IRELAND

It’s been a quarter of a century since the Oils played Manchester in England’s north, so it was an apt first stop for a European tour that will mainly visit cities which missed out on shows during 2017’s Great Circle. As Pete remarked from stage, Mancunians have a proud local musical heritage – from Factory Records and the Hacienda through to Oasis – but accents in the crowd tonight also included many folks from further afield. Australian expats and visitors were joined by American, Canadian and Scandinavian fans who had flown in specially for the first three tour dates. There was even a particularly keen fan from PNG.

Aussie French Open tennis winner Ash Barty got a shoutout from the stage while show standouts included ‘Jimmy Sharman’s Boxers’ and ‘Hercules’.

Second stop was Dublin for a show at the legendary Olympia Theatre. This was another piece of ‘unfinished business’ from 2017 when the band made several fruitless attempts to somehow squeeze Ireland into The Great Circle Tour. Fortunately tonight’s overdue gig made it a worthwhile wait for local Oils fans.

Jim Moginie makes Ireland his second home these days, so that made this – kinda, sorta – a hometown gig. The special guest was talented local mate Declan O’Rourke who was joined for the closing song of his set by Jim and fellow local ‘transplant’ Nick Seymour from Crowded House.

The Oils opened their show with ‘The Dead Heart’, tore straight into a searing cover of The Saints’ ‘Know Your Product’ and then gave fan favourite ‘Say Your Prayers’ an all too rare airing. Clearly they meant business and what unfolded from there won’t be forgotten any time soon by those lucky enough to have experienced it. This venue has seen some epic shows over the years – it would be easier to list music icons who HAVEN’T played there than those who have – and the walls plastered with famous photos all added to the sense of occasion. After promising to reverse the country’s immigration story for one night, rare song inclusions included a reworked ‘Spirit Of The Age’ and a celebratory ‘Written In The Heart’. Apart from one full and frank description of prospective UK PM Boris Johnson, the focus was totally on music and spirit and the special sense of community it can conjure in a place like this. Midnight Oil’s all too brief visit to Ireland closed with an uplifting song that now took on new meanings for many … ‘One Country’.

The final show before hitting continental Europe was staged at the cavernous Brixton Academy two nights later. Young Adelaide band Bad//Dreems put a rocket under the crowd to start proceedings before the Oils delivered a show that included extra songs from the two albums they recorded in England back in the day, including ‘I Don’t Wanna Be The One’ and multiples from ’10-1′. Politics returned to center stage as Tory leadership turmoil dominated both the local news and Pete’s stage banter. What do King Canute and Ricky Gervais have in common? You had to be there to find out. So with a loud “let it burn!!” still ringing in everyone’s ears, the Oils now cross the channel for the next chapter.