Peter Garrett joined The Presets to deliver a powerful live rendition of Midnight Oil’s Power And The Passion at the 2026 APRA Music Awards, recognising the legacy of Rob Hirst and his impact on Australian music.
by Paul Cashmere
The 2026 APRA Music Awards 2026 closed with a defining moment as Peter Garrett and The Presets united on stage to perform Power And The Passion in tribute to the late Rob Hirst. The performance brought together multiple generations of Australian music in a coordinated homage to one of the country’s most influential drummers and songwriters.
Held in Sydney, the APRA Awards ceremony annually recognises excellence in songwriting and composition. The decision to close the 2026 event with a large-scale tribute underscores Hirst’s standing within the industry, not only as a member of Midnight Oil but also as a key creative force behind some of the band’s most enduring work. His contribution to the Australian music canon spans over four decades, shaping both the sonic identity and political messaging of Midnight Oil.
The performance itself was structured as a collaborative reinterpretation. The Presets, comprising Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes, brought their electronic framework to the arrangement, while Garrett returned to the microphone for a vocal delivery closely aligned with the original recording. The production expanded beyond the core performers to include a multi-drummer lineup featuring Rhyan Clapham, Dave Jenkins Jr., Cecilia Coleman, River Langford and Abby Constable, reflecting Hirst’s percussive legacy.
Additional instrumentation came from a horn section featuring Andy Bickers on saxophone, Anthony Kable on trombone and Angus Gomm on trumpet. The scale of the ensemble transformed the performance into a layered interpretation rather than a straightforward cover, with rhythmic density and dynamic shifts emphasising the structural complexity of the original composition.
The tribute was curated by François Tétaz and Georgia O’Connor, whose role focused on balancing fidelity to the source material with a contemporary live arrangement. Their approach positioned the performance within a broader orchestral-electronic framework, aligning with current trends in live reinterpretation of catalogue works.
Originally released in 1982 on the album 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Power And The Passion marked a pivotal point in Midnight Oil’s evolution. The track combined driving percussion with politically engaged lyricism, addressing themes of power structures and social responsibility. It also became one of the band’s first international breakthrough singles, introducing their sound to audiences beyond Australia.
Within Midnight Oil’s catalogue, the song sits at the intersection of their early raw energy and their later, more globally recognised work such as Diesel And Dust. Hirst’s drumming on the track is widely regarded as a defining element, characterised by its urgency and precision. His compositional input extended beyond rhythm, contributing to the band’s songwriting architecture and reinforcing their identity as a politically conscious rock act.
The significance of the APRA tribute extends beyond individual recognition. It reflects a broader industry pattern of reassessing legacy artists through collaborative reinterpretations involving contemporary acts. By pairing The Presets’ electronic sensibility with Garrett’s original vocal presence, the performance bridged stylistic and generational divides, offering a model for how catalogue material can be recontextualised in a live setting.
While tribute performances can sometimes lean heavily on nostalgia, the scale and execution of this presentation positioned it as a curated artistic statement rather than a retrospective gesture. The inclusion of multiple drummers, in particular, served as a direct acknowledgement of Hirst’s technical and creative influence, effectively turning the rhythm section into the focal point of the arrangement.
There remains an ongoing conversation within the industry about how best to honour legacy artists, particularly those whose work carries strong political or cultural messaging. In the case of Midnight Oil, any reinterpretation must contend with the band’s historical role in activism as much as their musical output. The APRA performance addressed this by maintaining the intensity and structure of the original song, avoiding significant lyrical or thematic alteration.
The tribute reinforces the enduring relevance of Midnight Oil’s catalogue in contemporary Australian music culture. As newer generations of artists engage with legacy material, performances like this suggest a pathway for reinterpretation that respects original intent while embracing modern production techniques.
For audiences at the APRA Awards, the closing performance delivered both recognition and renewal, placing Rob Hirst’s contribution within an evolving musical landscape while reaffirming the lasting impact of Power And The Passion.
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