Capricornia

Midnight Oil | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 19, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Liquid 8
• ASIN: B00005Y40M
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  DVD Audio  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #187,584 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Golden Age

2. Too Much Sunshine

3. Capricornia

4. Luritja Way

5. Tone Poem

6. A Crocodile Cries

7. Mosquito March

8. Been Away Too Long

9. Say Your Prayers

10. Under The Overpass

11. World That I See

12. Poets & Slaves

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Since 1990's benchmark Blue Sky Mining disc, Australian agitprop rockers Midnight Oil have arguably functioned better in theory than in practice. You can't nitpick the band's politics--however left they may lean, they are at their core humanist--but while theirs is a noble cause, music, at its core, is entertainment. Tough talk about land misappropriated from aboriginals is just not what most folks crave day after day, record after record. While no one will walk away from Capricornia confusing Midnight Oil with knuckleheads like Sum 41, most will notice an appreciable softening of the edges, especially musically. Songs like the outstanding "Tone Poem," though lyrically driven by sobering ecological questions, is also notable for a bridge and chorus built on a chiming, instantly memorable guitar part. Similarly, "Under the Overpass" drapes a snippet of melody from Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" over a springy keyboard bit that Brian Wilson might have fashioned for a top-down corker. Capricornia--its title track buoyed by one of the Oil's most insistent choruses--is a rock record, but it's one with more settings than "pummel." --Kim Hughes

Product Description

Import version of 2002 album includes 2 bonus audio tracks, 'Kiss That Girl' & 'Pub With No Beer' plus 3 videos 'Luritja Way', 'Forgotten Years' & 'A Crocodile Cries/Mosquito March'. Sony. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a way to go out, December 17, 2002

By 

"rixster" (London) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Capricornia (Audio CD)

On 2 December 2002 Midnight Oil announced that Peter Garrett would be calling it quits. That's 25 years and 14 full-length albums. That's quite a track record. I seem to recall the Beatles tried something like this when they were ready to call it quits - a "back to roots" attempt, something that resulted in Get Back and which was so bad McCartney had to crawl back to Martin on his knees.

The Oils have returned to their roots here. Watch the video on the CD to get an appreciation for what they're doing: The pan of the instruments is the same on every track. The guitar on the left is Martin, the one on the right (with occasional keyboard) is Jim, Rob's drums are out back, Bones is on the bottom, and Peter is up front. This is so effective it defies description.

Many might say Diesel and Dust is their finest; others will say it's Head Injuries. Still others no doubt like Earth and Sun and Moon; but this is arguably the best they've ever done. And what a way to end a show.

And if you've never seen these guys live, you really missed it. And I don't mean on the telly either: I mean live, preferably in a little steamy pub somewhere so Peter Garrett looms over you like the son of Boris Karloff and the precision of the guitars attacks your senses and the drums and all the rest...

The first time I saw Midnight Oil, it took the venue management fifteen minutes to get the crowd under control. I was standing with their sound engineer in the middle of this sea of people. He wasn't even phased. In the end the management had to threaten to close the place if the crowd didn't calm down. In the meantime the venue had pressured their sound system to its limits in an attempt to drown out the hooting public. Fifteen minutes of foot stamping and clapping and shouting and cheering - fifteen very long, very tense minutes. Yes, you had to be there. And that is the effect these guys and girls have on people. To call them cult would be an understatement.

What a way to go. Thank you, all you Oils, for the one exceptional experience in rock. Peter, Rob, Martin, Jim, Bones, Gary Morris, Peter Gifford, Neil Murray, Andrew James, and all the rest, the crews, the roadies: I hope you realise what you've done for the world you live in. Thank you very much. Godspeed to you all.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the Golden Age!, May 26, 2003

By 

Bruce H. Franks (Chicago, ILLINOIS United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Capricornia (Audio CD)

Longtime musical champions of the earth and its indigenous peoples, Midnight Oil built their reputation on superb songwriting, topical issues, and their legendary live shows. This version of Capricornia is no exception.Familiar Oils' themes of corporate greed, pollution of the earth, human rights, and homelessness are found throughout(no surprise here), but the music is a return to the Diesel and Dust and Blue Sky years. Crackling guitar work and a live feel make songs like "Golden Age", "Too Much Sunshine", and "Capricornia" irresistable.All the tracks are excellent, with "Tone Poem" and "Under The Overpass" other standouts. Bonus tracks are "Kiss That Girl", a typical Oils rocker with outstanding dual guitars, and "Pub With No Beer", an Australian standard. Three CD-Rom videos are "Forgotten Years", "Mosquito March", and "Luritja Way" live at Cold Chapel in 2002.I have always found the Oils' music to be uplifting and inspiring, and this album fills the bill.Never ones to back down, the Oils go out the way they came in- on their own terms. Apparently their last album, this one's a gem.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not the Oil's Best...But Close, February 20, 2002

By 

Matthew Millard (Chattanooga, TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Capricornia (Audio CD)

After their last two disapointing studio efforts ("Breathe" & "Redneck Wonderland"), one might wonder if Midnight Oil were still capable of making music filled with hooks, melodies, & memorable choruses. All doubts melt away with the refreshing intro to "Golden Age", the lead track on "Capricornia". With its chiming duel guitars & melody, one can't help but be reminded of the Midnight Oil of old...the sound is earily similar to both "Diesel and Dust" and "Earth and Sun and Moon". The entire album is great, & best enjoyed when listened to as a whole rather than one track at a time. Any of the first three songs could be released as singles (Golden Age, Too Much Sunshine, Capricornia), but this album's strengths lies in its shifting mood swings from song to song. A must have for even the casual Midnight Oil fan.