‘It’s the first time I’ve ever talked about it’: Why Midnight Oil have never performed at the AFL grand final
The AFL grand final has seen some of the world’s biggest names in music perform the famous pre-game show – Ed Sheeran, KISS, Robbie Williams, Jimmy Barnes, The Killers and Powderfinger just to name a few. And as it turns out, Australian legends Midnight Oil have been asked to perform before. However, there’s been one simple condition for the band that is yet to be met.
Appearing on The Plug with Neil Griffiths podcast to promote his newly-released second solo album, The True North, Oils frontman Peter Garrett revealed there has been many discussions in the past with the AFL about getting the iconic group on stage at the MCG.
The sticking point? They just want to perform at night.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever talked about it, but I’m happy to say it. That’s always been my condition,” Garrett said.
Peter Garrett. Pic by Kane Hibberd
“I think that you will get the production values, I think it really heightens the experience of the entertainment, which is as big a part of the Super Bowl as what the game is.”
Garrett acknowledged that the topic is quite divisive for AFL fans and that many believe the afternoon game to be a tradition that should not be abandoned. However, the songwriter referenced some of the Super Bowl music productions – which all take place at night – as a reason to consider why the game should be moved.
In fact, in 2017 The Killers famously played both before and after the match where they even performed Midnight Oil’s Forgotten Years.
“I’m a massive AFL fan, and I totally get that for most AFL fans, it’s not about the entertainment at all, it’s about the game, and it gets played on Saturday arvo at that time…Okay, all of that taken, but I’ve seen enough [Super Bowl shows] to know, why can’t we do something like that? We could do it, we’ve got the cameras and the people and the skills,” Garrett argued.
“And for me, that would be a big proud moment, you know, for us to be able to put on something, which when it was shown in other parts of the world, would really move people. I don’t think you get that at daytime. It’s just really hard to in the middle of the afternoon.”
“So to get that intensity… the excitement, the spotlights when the drones and the helicopters come over the G. The rockets go off.”
Listen to the full episode with Garrett here.
Subscribe to the daily newsletter
Got a tip?
Neil Griffiths is the editor of Mumbrella. He joined the company in October 2023.
Linkedin
Have your say