TANKS FOR THE MEMORIES

ROCKERS REDISCOVER SOME TREASURES

Bathed in blue light, the Tanks Arts Centre could pass for a giant fish tank.

The converted World War II naval oil storage tank, and the lush rainforest backdrop of the Cairns Botanic Gardens, are the perfect backdrop for a concert dedicated to the Great Barrier Reef.

“We’re not going to be rockers tonight; we’re going to be tropical fish,” Midnight Oil’s drummer Rob Hirst jokes backstage.

MAX cameras were there to capture the benefit show dubbed Oils at the Reef.

This is no ordinary Oils show. The band members hand-picked a selection of songs related to their latest campaign for increased protections for Australia’s great natural wonder.

“We have a lot of songs that directly involve the environment if not the reef in particular,” Hirst says. “We’ll play all those and a few good old-fashioned protest songs – there are a few of those in the cannon.”

Unlike their other shows on the band’s world tour, don’t expect to hear Beds Are

Burning or Power and the Passion. Blue Sky Mine did make the cut, though, alongside

Koala Sprint, Shakers and Movers, Sometimes, Dreamworld and the set-closer Progress.

“What tends to happen is you find some have got a bit more longevity than others,” Peter Garrett says. “You think ‘Why didn’t we play that one more?’ We have found some hidden treasures.”

Interpreting every guitar riff with his signature dance moves, Garrett, 64, ramped up the energy in the show’s second half, stepping off stage briefly to don a Stop Adani T-shirt.

It’s a sympathetic crowd, of course, but that’s a good thing. Die-hard fans lapped up the chance to hear a more obscure Oils set list and their enthusiasm was infectious.

“We’re past the point where we have to figure out what goes where – that’s a good feeling,” Garrett says. “The performances can just unfold really naturally.”