LIVE REVIEW: Midnight Oil, Newcastle Entertainment Centre, Wednesday February 23

It was blistering. It was typically infused with forthright progressive politics. Most of all, it was a bloody good rock'n'roll show, orchestrated by a band who over more than 40 years have built a reputation as an electrifying live act.

Ever since Midnight Oil travelled up the Pacific Highway from Sydney's northern beaches to play a residency at the old Ambassador nightclub in 1979, they have fostered a deep connection to Newcastle, and a mutual respect.

So it was fitting that the Newcastle Entertainment Centre was the first stop on The Oils' Resist tour to farewell their passionate fan base.

The evening began with Cessnock's William Crighton, a charismatic performer who traverses rock, folk and country and continues Midnight Oil's legacy of singing powerfully Australian stories.

The set relied heavily on Crighton's third album Water and Dust, released earlier this month, and it was apparent when his band left the stage that his intensity had earned new supporters.

For band renown for uncompromising pub rock, Midnight Oil entered the stage shrouded in darkness to the steady intro of new song We Resist as the video screen flashed images of protest movements for social justice and environmental issues.

The new material continued with Nobody's Child and the epic The Barka-Darling River - complete with cinematic visuals, before the Newcastle crowd really ignited for the punky Back On The Borderline from their 1979 album Head Injuries.

From there the audience was with the Oils for every step.

This might have been a farewell show, but there was little room for navel-gazing. The Oils weren't here for pure nostalgia. Frontman and former Federal Labor minister, Peter Garrett, in between criticising Prime Minister Scott Morrison and advocating for a greater voice for Indigenous people, urged fans to support young Australian musicians.

Midnight Oil did their part by generously offering up the stage to the talented Leah Flanagan and Liz Stringer to perform backing vocals for the majority of the show. It was a sound move with the pair's harmonies helping to uplift several tracks, in particular, King Of The Mountain.

Gumbaynggirr man and rapper Tasman Keith also joined Midnight Oil for their The Makarrata Project track, First Nation, and he injected verve into the performance. Keith's return for a freestyle in the middle of Beds Are Burning was less successful.

While Garrett's iconic stage mannerisms and heartfelt politics are unique to Midnight Oil, the importance of the twin-guitar attack of Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey cannot be overstated. The pair, in unison with Rob Hirst's muscular drumming, are the Oils' sound.

Garrett got so carried away as he was electrified by the music that he bumped into Rotsey as he was launching into Only The Strong's solo.

Power and the Passion, Blue Sky Mine, Beds Are Burning and Forgotten Years built a thrilling crescendo to the end of the main set as middle-aged men danced freely in the aisle. No amount of urging from security was overcoming that tide.

The encore featured Put Down That Weapon - which felt extra relevant with the crisis raging in Ukraine - and the riff-heavy Redneck Wonderland, before the night closed with a rousing Hercules.

In typical Oils fashion there were no teary farewells or drawn-out curtain calls. Just like their amazing career, this 23-song set was all power and passion, delivered like only Midnight Oil can.

We Resist, Nobody's Child, The Barka-Darling River, Back On The Borderline, Dreamworld, Don't Wanna Be The One, The Dead Heart, First Nation, Gadigal Land, In The Valley, US Forces, Kosciusko, Only The Strong, Rising Seas, At The Time Of Writing, King Of The Mountain, Power and the Passion, Blue Sky Mine, Forgotten Years. Encore: Put Down That Weapon, Redneck Wonderland, Hercules.