Oz rock royalty Midnight Oil have been announced as Friday night headliners for the August Broken Hill Mundi Mundi Bash, rounding out an all star bill. The Oils will join fellow festival headliners Jimmy Barnes and Missy Higgins, and a slew of fellow all-time Australian music greats for Outback NSW’s biggest ever live music event. 

The iconic band will take the stage on the striking red terrain of the Mundi Mundi Plains – a spectacular outback landscape synonymous with the band and their many seminal rock anthems including Beds Are Burning – the clip for which was shot on the Mundi Mundi Plains, Power And The Passion, The Dead Heart and more. 

The three-day festival (18-20 August 2022) will follow Midnight Oil’s final North American and European Tour in June/July. It will be one of the last chances for Australian fans to see the legendary rock outfit on home soil, and the only chance to see them on the red dirt of the Australian outback 

For fans old and new, this unique outback concert is sure to be a celebration of Midnight Oil’s indelible contributions to Australian culture, politics, environment, history and music – a legacy that spans five decades, 13 albums, 47 singles, 20 million album sales and countless accolades. 

Looking ahead to their Mundi Mundi Bash performance, Midnight Oil guitarist/keyboardist Jim Moginie said: 

"Very much looking forward to revisiting the Mundi Mundi plains, where the ‘Beds are Burning‘ clip was shot, for this 12 volt Woodstock on the edge of Mad Max’s wasteland, and playing for a special gathering of pilgrims listening to new music, and the soundtracks of their youth under an endless Australian night sky”. 

Midnight Oil previously headlined the Mundi Mundi Bash’s sister festival, the Birdsville Big Red Bash – the most remote music festival in the world staged on the edge of the Simpson Desert – in outback Queensland in 2019. True to his roots as a passionate environmental advocate, Peter Garrett performed in a t-shirt that read ‘DON’T FRACK THE OUTBACK’ to protest mining companies lobbying to coal seam gas frack in the pristine Channel Country region where the Big Red Bash is held. 

“While Midnight Oil’s 2019 Birdsville Big Red Bash remains a once-in-a-lifetime coup for many festival-goers, the band’s upcoming Mundi Mundi Bash performance is sure to be an equally special and memorable bucket list experience. With this being the final tour by Midnight Oil, we feel honoured to be hosting them in such a unique and iconic outback location that befits their spirit, legacy and connection to Australia. Midnight Oil are a true national treasure, and we should grab and cherish every opportunity we have to see them live!” said Broken Hill Mundi Mundi Bash and Birdsville Big Red Bash festival organiser Greg Donovan, who is Owner and Managing Director of the Outback Music Festival Group. 

“We are also thrilled to be offering music lovers and travellers in the southern states – who may have struggled to see Midnight Oil in Birdsville – a more accessible opportunity to see one our greatest ever music acts perform in a quintessentially Australian outback location. Bring on the August Mundi Mundi Bash! It’s definitely not one to be missed!” Greg Donovan added.

Minister for Tourism Stuart Ayres said the Mundi Mundi Bash with Midnight Oil was a quintessential NSW experience that should be on everyone’s bucket list.

“There is no greater example of the convergence of culture and nature in NSW than watching one of our most celebrated bands perform against the spectacular backdrop of the NSW outback. The NSW Government is committed to investing in regional events like the Mundi Mundi Bash to reignite the visitor economy of regional NSW, which has been hard hit by successive years of natural disasters and the pandemic. If travellers ever needed incentive to get on the road and support our regional economy, then surely watching the legendary Midnight Oil perform The Dead Heart in the heart of outback NSW has got to be it!” Mr Ayres said.   

Midnight Oil join an already stellar roster of Australian rock, blues and country music greats for the August Mundi Mundi Bash. Jimmy Barnes and Missy Higgins will co-headline the all-ages dog-friendly camping festival, along with Kasey Chambers, Jon Stevens, Daryl Braithwaite, The Black Sorrows, Richard Clapton, Russell Morris, The Wolfe Brothers, Sarah McLeod, Busby Marou, The Rolling Stones Review Starring: Adalita, Tex Perkins & Tim Rogers, Bjorn Again, Mick Thomas (Wedding Parties Anything), Ash Grunwald, Pierce Brothers, Eurogliders, Mel Dyer, The Buckleys, Kyle Lionhart, Bachelor Girl and more. 

Collectively, the bumper lineup of more than 20 Australian artists has won over 50 ARIA awards, 26 APRA Awards and 15 CMAA Golden Guitar Awards, as well as releasing more than 160 albums and countless hit singles. 

In addition to the music lineup, the Mundi Mundi Bash will feature a stacked program of outback entertainment and activities including a Nutbush City Limits World Record dance attempt (the World Record is currently held by the Birdsville Big Red Bash) and a Mad Max dress-up theme World Record attempt – both of which will raise much-needed funds for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.  

The latter World Record was set at the April Mundi Mundi Bash in a location that has become synonymous with the Mad Max movie franchise. The Mundi Mundi Bash is staged on the spectacular Mundi Mundi Plains, a location that was chosen by movie director George Miller for iconic Mad Max II scenes back in 1981. Now, 40 years on, The Mundi Mundi Plains will once again star in the upcoming Furiosa Mad Max instalment featuring Chris Hemsworth.   

The festival will also offer a range of colourful daytime activities including daily morning yoga sessions, dunny door painting, Doggie ‘Fashions on the Plains’, the ‘Mundi Undi’ charity fun run, scenic helicopter flights, camel rides and more. 

With bragging rights as outback NSW’s biggest ever event, the August Mundi Mundi Bash is expected to draw close to 10,000 festival-goers from across Australia – providing a welcome economic boom for Broken Hill and other remote and regional communities en route from capital cities and regional areas. 

Proudly supported by the NSW Government via Destination NSW, the Mundi Mundi Bash offers up a uniquely Australian destination adventure for music lovers, families, grey nomads, camping and caravanning enthusiasts, and intrepid travellers.  

The Mundi Mundi Bash can be accessed by road, as well as scheduled and charter flights, bus tours and train transport. The event does not sell alcohol; however, ticket-holders are permitted to bring their own food and alcohol onto the festival site. In addition, there will be a large range of food vendors selling both hot and cold food and beverages at the event. 

The festival is a proudly family-friendly event, offering dog-friendly camping and concert areas, with children aged 11-and-under able to attend for free.  

Tickets to the August Mundi Mundi Bash are still on sale and can be purchased at www.mundimundibash.com.au - ticket prices have not increased with the addition of Midnight Oil to the line-up. 

What:            August Broken Hill Mundi Mundi Bash

Where:          Belmont Station on the Mundi Mundi Plains 

                      9km north of Silverton; 35km north of Broken Hill

When:           August 18-20, 2022

More info:     www.mundimundibash.com.au