1328. Midnight Oil / Species Deceases [EP]. 1985. 3.5/5

Midnight Oil’s growing popularity out of the late 1970’s on the back of their first two albums, their self-titled debut and the follow up “Head Injuries”, had come on the back of constant touring and the hard working ethic shown in their concerts, where nothing was left when they finally left the stage. They began to break through on the Australian charts with their EP “Bird Noises”, recently reviewed on episode 168 of this podcast, and then the follow up album “Place Without a Postcard” which went to #12 on the Australian albums chart. However, it was the release of 1982’s “10-1” that saw the band top that wave and become the band that their fans always knew they could be. The songs that became tinged with lyrics that spoke of the world around them, of the causes they believed in and the political situations at home and abroad, began to burst forth, with singles such as “Read About It”, “US Forces” and “The Power and the Passion” taking on a life of their own. The album went to number 3 in Australia, and was then followed by “Red Sails in the Sunset” in 1984, which became their first number 1 album, with a continuation of their lyrical exposes and descriptions. Despite being a controversial entity in some places and corners, the ideology of the band spoke to the times they were living in, and their fan base was growing as they became as much a mouthpiece with their music as a popular band in itself.
In September of 1985, the band headed to the studio for four days to put down four new tracks that had been put together over their touring for that album. On the back of the success that “Bird Noises” had crested five years earlier, they looked to release a new EP rather than release another song off the album as a single release. It also gave the ban the chance to further bring their current stories to song, and to have a new release for the fans rather than a song from an album they had released a year earlier. This came Midnight Oil’s second EP and one that created history for the band, provocatively titled “Species Deceases”.

Like their previous EP, this one again comes with just the four tracks, and each is targeting a different piece of the world that the band sees as worthy of being spotlighted. “Progress” lyrically comes at the way that everything seems ot have to make way for progress, to push forward at the expense of the environment all for the betterment of industry or government. Musically it has moved away from the experimental side that the band had used over the previous two album and settled into a contemporary sound that is stripped back a little from what they have been offering. “Hercules” is the big song off the EP, one that is still played on radio and music video around the world. The mid-1980's in the South Pacific with nuclear testing happening and the rise of Greenpeace to protest it in particular influence the lyrical content of the song. Lead singer Peter Garrett had recently run for the Australian Senate as a member of the Nuclear Disarmament Party, something he narrowly failed to achieve, but it advertised heavily his thoughts on this subject in particular, and this song heavily pushed that theme here.
“Blossom and Blood” speaks about the nuclear argument again, here referencing Hiroshima and discussing the outward fallibility of talking about peace while preparing for war. The words here from Rob Hirst and Jim Moginie are compelling as always. Finally we have “Pictures”, outwardly about the nuclear apocalypse and the desire to not be a part of one. Lines such as “I just want to watch the paradise, I just want to see that clear, clear light, Don't want to be a member of a species that's deceasing, Keep on making those promises that they aren't keeping”. And also “Oh, I was a talking to the people next door, They said don't want to die in a nuclear war” - are pretty reflective of what the band is suggesting here.
The EP’s title is fairly specific just what the band has proposed here on these four tracks. Each speaks of their belief of the destruction of the environment and of the nuclear desolation that awaits if things don’t change. And it is very reflective of the time. The mid-1980's was a time where nuclear exchanges were considered to be a ‘not if, but when’ proposition, something that 40 years on might appear to be an overreaction from this point in time, but growing up and living in the time it was much more real that it might appear. And albums such as this weren’t as rare as you might think either. The fact that the band released this as a statement piece, a short retort to what they saw occurring on their (and our) doorstep, is perhaps the most important and compelling part about “Species Deceases”.

I still very much remember when this EP was first released. It was a couple of days before we had our Year 10 graduation dance at high school at the end of 1985. The previous week we had been on a school camp to Bundanoon in the NSW southern highlands, and discussion at the time was of the impending arrival of a new Midnight Oil release. On the night of this dance, there was a band who kept promising that they would be playing lots of great songs that were popular at the time, a promise that was most definitely not kept. However, the one thing they did do was, during the break in their set, whoever was doing their PA put on the brand-new release from Midnight Oil, and it got the biggest reaction of the night from the congregation.
This came out at the exact same moment as my heavy metal revelation, which more or less began at the camp that I just mentioned that was a week before this EP was released. But the popularity and exposure that this EP received is still very bright in my memory. It was everywhere at the time, on the radio, on the music TV shows, and of course in the school yard when we returned to school in February. And it went to #1 on the Australian singles charts, and remained there for six weeks over the Xmas period. It was also the only time the band had a number one single, which in retrospect seems incredible.
I did not get this EP on its release. As I said, this was literally when Iron Maiden was dropped into my lap, and that obsession took over everything for a long time afterwards. I heard the songs on the radio but didn’t feel the need to acquire it. That would come eventually, as I bought up the entire Midnight Oil discography. And listening to it again this week has been fun. It brings back a lot of memories of that time, of when I was on the cusp of moving into the senior years of high school. And it was a great reminder of songs that don’t always get recognised now in the Midnight Oil catalogue. Everyone knows “Hercules”, but the other three are somewhat forgotten. This week has been a good reminder for me of their excellence as well. Something that always makes these podcast episodes worthwhile in more ways than one.