Australian minister rejoins Midnight Oil

Back in my college radio deejaying days one of my favorite bands to play was the Australian group Midnight Oil, so I had to post this story about their reuniting this weekend for a concert to benefit victims of the massive wildfires that swept through Australia’s south earlier this year.

What makes the story interesting is that front man Peter Garrett left the band in 2002 to pursue a career in politics and is now serving as Australia's Minister of the Environment; Midnight Oil, meanwhile, made their career on songs that, shall we say, attacked the establishment - including ones that dealt with hot-topic issues like the mistreatment of Australia's aboriginal population, and the environment (Midnight Oil once played an impromptu set in front of Exxon's headquarters to protest a massive oil spill in Alaska). Fans are wondering if Garrett will still be willing to sing songs critical of the government now that he's part of it (for the record, Garrett's said that he is).

The wildfires in Australia's Victoria state last month were some of the worst in the country's history, destroying thousands of homes and killing more than 200 people.