alex330 Posted June 15, 2008 Share Posted June 15, 2008 Dear all, so here I'm back "in" Australia without ever having been there in reality. I come from Germany, and my first encounter with Australia was the song "Beds are burning" from milestone record "Diesel and Dust" from the Australian Band Midnight Oil, whose lead singer Peter Garret today is Australia's Minister for Environment, Heritage and Arts. When the record came out in 1987 I was about 15, and the few things I had heard about Australia before were connected to a city named Sydney and a big red rock somewhere in a desert. That changed dramatically with "Diesel and Dust", a record which I still enjoy as I did on the first day I bought it - on vinyl Source: Wikipedia The record featured an intriguing world of sound and lyrics which for me became "the music of australia". While Midnight Oil's lyrics were instantly recognisable as socially and politically critical, together with the music they conveyed the atmosphere of the places and people which the dealt with. For me - they gave Australia a sound and even more, in the lyrics and music you could smell, taste, even see the Land. "In the desert in the dry, before the breaking of the rain, the temperature in the shade had reached a hundred and ten again" "Out where the river broke, the bloodwood and the desert oak, holden wrecks and boiling diesesl steam in forty five degrees" "Diesel and Dust is what we breathe" After "Diesel and Dust" I tried to get hold of every Midnight Oil record released, something that wasn't easy in good old Europe. While I still have not been to Australia (which I hope to change some time in the future), this land was no longer nondescript to me. A fascination exerted from the music and extended to my image of a vast, diverse countryside. And I got to know something about Australia's people, about their social and political problems as well as the way of living - "So it's a lonesome away from your kindred and all By the campfire at night where the wild dingoes call But there's nothing so lonesome, morbid or drear Than to stand in the bar of a pub with no beer" I still enjoy listening to the music today as well as I'm still fascinated by Australia - over all the years. That's where VOZ and FTX come into the picture. Having been a lousy pc pilot but an enthusiastic flightsimmer for many years, I've always enjoyed the ever improving depictions of landscapes and scenery. With VOZ for FS9 and FTX for FSX, finally there are some very good renditions of Australian landscape for FS, and finally I am able to explore this beautiful country visually with the help of the finest FS scenery ever made. So thank you guys for making this possible! One day I hope to visit Australia and see the real thing, until then FTX and Midnight Oil do a fine job :) BTW, I'm eagerly awaiting AU Green and Red... In the desert in the dry....! Thanks everybody for reading, I hope you enjoyed my reminiscence of some fine Australian artwork - sound, smell, taste, vision, atmosphere - a reminescence which extends into today. Lucky Country! For those who'd like to expand my still limited knowledge about Australia and its music: I am still curious about Midnight Oil's whereabouts today as well as Peter Garrett's fortunes. We don't get to know too much of this over here in Germany, but the Internet does help a lot. What I'd really like to know is the Australian view of the things I described above. How do the Australians think about the beauty of their country? How popular were the Oils? Do many people really feel, the music described the country as well as I felt it did? How was Peter Garrett's role change from protest music into politics and into the government recieved? Did he "sell out", as some voices suggested? - Should I stop asking questions like these as they are too political for a flightsim forum (That would just be ok, I really cannot judge this!)? So thank you everybody for reading and replying (and sorry for spelling mistakes or wrong expressions) says a German fan of Australia Alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxter Posted June 16, 2008 Share Posted June 16, 2008 What a great post Alex... Thanks you for reminding us about the great country we live in. When you get over here, you must come over to the West if you truely want to get a taste of the vastness of this place. I have just ended a 26 year career of travelling in the country (inspecting construction sites) averaging 60,000kms per year and not once did I get tired of it. This is the land of opportunity and anyone who puts in a bit of effort will succeed without too much trouble. We tend not to stand on ceremony and don't often take ourselves too seriously, unless it comes to the footy, rugby, cricket and any other sport pretty much. In regards to Peter Garret, I'm sure you will get many and varied opinions about him depending which side of the political divide you are camped on so to keep the post apolitical i'll defer from answering All the best and may you continue to enjoy flying in Oz through the wonderful efforts of Orbx for a very long time to come. Cheers, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffman Posted June 16, 2008 Share Posted June 16, 2008 Peter Garret, translated from native Australian "dances like spastic chicken" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Schofield Posted June 16, 2008 Share Posted June 16, 2008 Hehe - great timing Alex! I've been flying through outback Oz and on Friday I visited a place that no self-respecting Oils fan could miss... "Four wheels scare the cockatoos From Kintore East to Yuendemu The western desert lives and breathes In forty five degrees" Like you, I can't wait for Red! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex330 Posted June 17, 2008 Author Share Posted June 17, 2008 Thanks everybody for your replies! @ Geoffman: Yes, his dance style is very unique Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurice_King Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 Believe it or not I actually had some icing occur near the QLD/NT Border in the middle of spring, mind you it was 1 Deg outside at 10000'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandit Posted June 21, 2008 Share Posted June 21, 2008 Hi Alex, I too am an Oils fan. They were very popular back in the 80's. Heres a bit of mindless trivia - In fact Peter Garret went to my high school in Sydney (Barker College) before he went on to Sydney University to study law. If my memory is correct, it's there where I believe the band formed. I went to one of their last concerts in Manly, a suburb of Sydney a few years ago. It was a great night - we sang until we were hoarse. It was funny to see all these people in the mid to late 40s dancing like it was still the early 80's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex330 Posted June 21, 2008 Author Share Posted June 21, 2008 Hi bandit, thanks for your reply And your trivia maybe is not so mindless for an Oils fan I was really lucky to see them, in the 1990s they toured Europe and I saw them in Cologne, a truely impressive sight and a truely impressive concert. I'd really wish they'd make music again (thus, I don't know if I should wish Peter Garret lick for his political career, I want to see him on stage again ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bosch Posted June 23, 2008 Share Posted June 23, 2008 Great post Alex! I grew up in Broken Hill, a mining town in far western New South Wales with a lot of history! I spent most of my childhood well out of town in the bush and I miss it to this day. Whenever we travel out that way to visit my parents my wife comments on the dry uninteresting expanses ...all I see is arid beauty. I sure do miss the place at times! Oh, and the Oils have always been one of my favorite bands. Most of the music on my mp3 play is 1970's and 80's Australian pub rock even to this day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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