Midnight Oil announce three new shows as part of final tour

The band has announced a return to Canberra on October 1 to make up for the April concert that was called off with fans waiting in torrential rain in Commonwealth Park.

It will be one of three shows added to the last leg of the band's final tour - with make-good shows being put on in Cairns and Darwin, where COVID restrictions forced cancellations.

Frontman Peter Garrett said the band was determined to make it up to fans.

"We were very frustrated that COVID cost us two gigs up north and that Canberra safety officials then pulled the plug on that show due to lightning," he said.

"We said at the time that we would do everything possible to make it up to everyone in those places who missed out."

The tour will be their last as a band, with the band announcing late last year of their intention to stop touring, however, they are yet to rule out the possibility of future studio albums.

The shows will also celebrate the release of the band's most recent album titled Resist which was released earlier this year to critical acclaim reaching number one on the ARIA charts.

Midnight Oil guitarist and chief songwriter Jim Moginie said the new album was a protest record at its core, dealing with issues such as climate change and the mismanagement of Australia's natural treasures.

"In the grand tradition of protest music, I think a lot of the songs just deal with a certain issue," Moginie said.

"We've got the usual litany of lyrical obsessions, but once we made the record, it was interesting to look back and think, 'hang on a minute, I think we've just made a protest record'."

The band are currently in the middle of the European leg of their world tour, playing the album in iconic venues such as London's Roundhouse and the famous Olympia in Paris.

"The album's been received really well and it's got good reviews and we're playing it live over here [in Europe] and the songs are going down a storm," Moginie said.

In what could be called a bittersweet moment for the band, the tour has been billed as their last ever. The 11-time ARIA Award winners announced in November last year that they would be embarking on their final tour, with shows in Australia, North America and Europe to mark their send off.

It's not the first time Midnight Oil have called it quits. In 2002, frontman Peter Garrett announced he was quitting the band to refocus on his political career while the remaining members continued to work together, but not as Midnight Oil, effectively bringing an end to the band.

The band have reformed twice since 2002. First in 2009, to play two fundraising concerts and then again in 2016, when they announced their intention to reform and embark on their first tour since 2002.

Over the years, Midnight Oil gigs have become synonymous with loud, high energy, sweat-fuelled celebrations of rock and roll.

However, Moginie said the band were wary of the effects their ageing bodies would have on their live shows saying they didn't want to risk compromising the quality of their performances.

"We don't want to be grasping onto the handrails of rock," he said.

"I think we're at the top of our game in a way, but I think we're sort of not wanting to go into that dangerous territory where people come along and just applaud the presence of the artist."

Although it may be their final tour, the band have made it clear that they remain open to recording new material together in the future.

"When we did the Grand Circle tour in 2017, people asked me if we were going to make another album and I said I don't know, but it'll happen if it happens," Moginie said.

"It's an organic process, we can't really predict when or if something is going to happen.

"You could call this a farewell tour, but Midnight Oil will still continue in some form or other as we're brothers, family."

Midnight Oil will play Cairns on August 25, Darwin on August 27 and Fellows Oval, ANU, in Canberra on October 1. They are likely to play additional shows in Melbourne and Sydney to complete their tour.

Ticket sales open online to the general public on Monday, July 18 at 12pm.