Home / Arts and Entertainment / Midnight Oil Co-Founder Hirst Releases Emotional EP with Daughters' Vocals
Midnight Oil Co-Founder Hirst Releases Emotional EP with Daughters' Vocals
9 Nov
Summary
- 70-year-old drummer and songwriter Hirst collaborates with bandmates
- Daughters Gabriella and Lex contribute vocals to the 4-track EP
- EP created during Hirst's recovery from major gastro bypass surgery
In November 2025, legendary drummer and songwriter Peter Hirst, 70, has released a deeply personal 4-track EP, collaborating with his longtime bandmates Jim Moginie and Hamish Stuart, and enlisting his daughters Gabriella and Lex Hirst to contribute vocals.
The EP was created in the months following Hirst's major gastro bypass operation earlier this year, a procedure that "completely replumbed the inside" as a tumor had been pushing against his guts, making it difficult for him to eat. Despite the health challenges, the recording sessions became a space of defiant creativity and familial healing for Hirst.
Hirst's daughter Gabriella, an artist based in Berlin, delivers the lead vocal on the EP's title track, a tender, melancholic ballad inspired by her father's diagnosis. Meanwhile, Lex Hirst lends her backing vocals to the opening track, "First Do No Harm." The EP also features a surprise appearance from Hoodoo Gurus bassist Rick Grossman.
Hirst, who co-founded the iconic Australian band Midnight Oil in the 1970s, has also led acclaimed side projects like Ghostwriters, The Break, and Backsliders. The band played their final show in October 2022 at Sydney's Hordern Pavilion.
