Search - Midnight Oil :: Diesel & Dust

Greatest Album by greatest band of all time

Coach K | NY,NY | 05/11/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"My single favorite band of all time - nothing will ever come close. This album is a great introduction to their sound. Full of incredible passion, powerful lyrics, unreal guitar solos, and creativity and originality in every song. The popular Beds are Burning is not even in my top 5 songs on this album (Sell My Soul is #1, and possibly my number 1 song of all time. Dreamworld is pretty special too).



If you fall in love with the album, as I did, you can move onto some of their older stuff - 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1, or Red Sails in the Sunset are similarly incredible, and even more creative.



The Oils are truly a special band, and 6 years after their breakup, I still pop in my mix CD's in the car when my kids aren't around. I'll never understand why they didn't become as popular as, say, U2 or REM - they are all that and more. But I suppose it makes it that much more amazing for the die hard fans that still rave about the Oils to this day.



Hope you enjoy - I'm pretty certain you will.

"

This Land Don't Change and We Don't Leave

Jack Baker | LeRoy,IL | 02/12/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"More than anything else, Diesel and Dust seems like a love letter to the land, people, and culture of Australia. Some of the songs explore themes familiar to long time listeners of the band, such as the anti-war "Put Down That Weapon", but for the most part the album is a well crafted look at the culture of Australia that Midnight Oil wanted to protect and defend ("Bullroarer"). This is the "land of wide open spaces" referred to on 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1's "Maralinga", a precious commodity being encroached upon by the modern world ("Warakurna", "Dreamworld"). It's also a land of traditions and cultures maligned ("Beds Are Burning", "The Dead Heart"). Midnight Oil reminds us not to give up what is most precious to us, that the fight is always worth the effort ("Sell My Soul") even if we get knocked around a little ("Sometimes"). Not only are these messages delivered with poignant, insightful lyrics, but with stirring anthemic music, evocative of the very land they champion. This was a masterpiece when it was released and it has stood the test of time. One need not be Australian to get the point of these songs. Change the place names to cities and deserts in the States (or any other country) and the message remains the same. Protect what you have before its gone, embrace your cultural roots, and fight for what you hold dear."