Midnight Oil drummer Rob Hirst has passed away at the age of 70.
The musician, a founding member of the Australian rock band, has passed away almost three years after being diagnosed with stage three pancreatic cancer.
The band announced his death on social media on Tuesday alongside two throwback photos of a young Hirst at the drum kit.
“After fighting heroically for almost three years, Rob is now free of pain – ‘a glimmer of tiny light in the wilderness,'” they wrote. “He died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones. The family asks that anyone wanting to honour Rob donate to @pankind_australia or @supportact.”
In a follow-up post, his bandmates Peter Garrett, Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey posted a more recent snap of the foursome standing next to each other on stage at the end of a performance.
“We are shattered and grieving the loss of our brother Rob. For now there are no words but there will always be songs. Love Always from Jim, Martin & Pete,” they captioned the post.
The rockers formed in Sydney in 1972 under the original name Farm, before changing their name to Midnight Oil in 1976. The band, known for hits such as Beds Are Burning and The Dead Heart, released 13 albums between their 1978 self-titled debut and their 2022 album Resist. They took a long hiatus between 2002 and their 2016 reunion, and embarked on their final tour in 2022.
Outside of Midnight Oil, Hirst was also a member of bands including Ghostwriters, Backsliders, the Angry Tradesmen and The Break. The latter group, a surf rock band, featured his Oil bandmates Moginie and Rotsey, as well as Brian Ritchie and Jack Howard.
Hirst, who went public with his health diagnosis last year, is survived by his wife Leslie Holland, their two daughters Alexandra and Gabriella, and his eldest daughter Jay O’Shea.
