Midnight Oil takes aim at Scott Morrison’s COP26 climate plan on new single Rising Seas
‘He’s got a lame, do-nothing plan in place, which is just a bunch of slogans, cliches and culture war conundrums,’ says Peter Garrett of Scott Morrison. ‘So let’s call it for what it is.’
Two days before the United Nations COP26 conference begins in Glasgow on Sunday, Sydney rock band Midnight Oil has taken aim at prime minister Scott Morrison’s record on addressing climate change in a new song named Rising Seas.
“Temperature rising, climate denying / Fever is gripping, nobody’s listening,” sings Peter Garrett in the second verse of an upbeat rock track that pivots on a tight rhythmic interplay between drummer Rob Hirst and former bassist Bones Hillman, who died last November, aged 62.
“We’re pretty pleased that we’ve got this song out there, and got the clip done, to give it a chance to get some clear air before the world goes into the important discussions and meetings in Glasgow,” said Garrett in an interview with The Australian on Thursday.
The song’s music video blends a recent band performance in Sydney – minus Hillman, whose instrument sits silent in a stand beside Hirst’s drum kit – with footage showing the catastrophic effects of floods, cyclones and bushfires.
In its extended introduction before the band kicks in, Garrett sings: “Every child put down your toys and come inside to sleep / We have to look you in the eye and say we sold you cheap / Let’s confess we did not act with serious urgency / So open up the floodgates to the rising seas.”
Halfway through the video, the band includes a brief clip of Morrison’s most infamous political moment as federal treasurer in 2017, when he brandished a black lump in parliament as a prop. “This is coal,” said Morrison. “Don’t be afraid. Don’t be scared.”
Garrett said the band included that clip “because it really went to the heart of the massive moral, political and economic failure of our polity, and the current government in particular, in addressing the issue of the climate crisis – and those trivialising and misrepresenting what is actually going on, and using the parliament to do it.”
“We just felt: he’s now the prime minister,” said Garrett of Morrison. “He’s got a lame, do-nothing plan in place, which is just a bunch of slogans, cliches and culture war conundrums. So let’s call it for what it is.”
During a break in activity for the band, Garrett was Labor’s federal environment minister from 2007 to 2010 under prime minister Kevin Rudd, who previously described climate change as “the greatest moral, economic and social challenge of our time”.
The former MP knows better than most the difficulties of enacting meaningful political change.
“The Coalition – and all parties to some extent – have been in thrall to the fossil fuel industry,” said Garrett. “[They are] mainly international companies, many of whom don’t pay their full share of tax, assisting and providing donations into the political process, and constantly running lines about why they should be permitted to continue with what essentially is their merchant-of-death activities.”
“They have constantly run lines up the flagpole that they think can work in the political debate,” he said. “First it was denial, and now it’s delay, but it amounts to the same thing: it’s allowing those companies that make money out of producing materials, which is going to turn the world into a fiery, unlivable furnace, so their activities go on longer than they should.”
The six-minute music video concludes with a message for all political leaders ahead of COP26: “2050 is too far away. We need real action now.”
Rising Seas is the first release from the band’s forthcoming 13th album, as yet untitled. Like last year’s collaboration with Indigenous Australian artists, The Makarrata Project, it was recorded pre-pandemic with producer Warne Livesey and bassist Hillman.
Last week, Midnight Oil and its collaborators received five ARIA Award nominations including best group, best Australian live act and album of the year for The Makarrata Project, a reconciliation-themed collection. It is among the headline artists at the rescheduled Bluesfest Byron Bay in April.
The band’s record label Sony Music Australia has been the subject of international headlines in recent months, when managing director and chief executive Denis Handlin was fired on June 21 after 50 years at the company. A successor has yet not been announced.
On October 11, a Four Corners investigation painted a damning portrait of Sony’s toxic corporate culture under his leadership, prompting music industry organisations including ARIA and APRA AMCOS to strip Handlin of honorary accolades.
Midnight Oil has worked with Sony and its subsidiary labels for 40 years, since its third album Place Without a Postcard was released by CBS in 1981. The upcoming 13th album will be released by Sony, too.
Asked for his response to the allegations aired in the Four Corners program, Garrett said, “We were never mistreated by anyone at Sony and we didn’t see any of that behaviour. It goes without saying that we oppose bullying; any form, anywhere. So for those company staff that have spoken up, and whether they’re people that were there before or those [there] at the moment, we would strongly support them.”
“We would say pretty clearly that the behaviour was inexcusable, and that Sony New York needs to step up,” said Garrett. “They were aware, it turns out, of what was happening. They need to support their staff, but also they need to do something serious. I think they’ve got some sort of investigation underway, but they need to take responsibility for their governance failures.”
In response to detailed questions on this matter sent by The Australian, Sony’s New York office said in a statement: “We take all allegations of bullying, harassment and other inappropriate behaviour from our employees very seriously and investigate them vigorously. Only recently did claims surface and we are examining them expeditiously.”
“We are not in a position to comment further on allegations concerning matters which occurred over 20 years ago particularly given that the persons involved at that time are no longer at the company,” said a company spokeswoman. “To the extent these matters have been raised, Sony Music has been reviewing them.”
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