''Breathe'' is the ninth studio album by

Australian rock Rock music in Australia, also known as Oz rock, Australian rock and Aussie rock, is rock music from Australia. The nation has a rich history of rock music and an appreciation of the roots of various rock genres, usually originating in the United ...

band,

Midnight Oil Midnight Oil (known informally as "The Oils") are an Australian rock band composed of Peter Garrett (vocals, harmonica), Rob Hirst (drums), Jim Moginie (guitar, keyboard) and Martin Rotsey (guitar). The group was formed in Sydney in 1972 ...

, which was released on 15 October 1996 under the

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

label. It peaked at No. 3 on the

ARIA Albums Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

and appeared in the top 40 on the

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

and

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri *Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia *Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports * Swiss Internation ...

Albums Charts. The album was produced by Malcolm Burn and according to Australian musicologist,

Ian McFarlane Ian McFarlane (born 1959) is an Australian music journalist, music historian and author, whose best known publication is the '' Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop'' (1999), which was updated for a second edition in 2017. As a journalis ...

, it had a loose, raw style with almost a low-key sound.

Background

band,

, released their ninth studio album, ''Breathe'', on 15 October 1996, which appeared three-and-a-half years after their eighth album, ''

Earth and Sun and Moon ''Earth and Sun and Moon'' is the eighth studio album by Australian rock group, Midnight Oil, that was released in April 1993 under the Columbia Records label. It peaked at No.2 on the ARIA Albums Chart. Background Midnight Oil's ''Earth and Sun ...

''. The line-up for the album was

Peter Garrett Peter Robert Garrett (born 16 April 1953) is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and former politician. In 1973, Garrett became the lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil. As a performer he is known for his signa ...

on lead vocals, Bones Hillman on bass guitar and vocals, Rob Hirst on drums and vocals,

Jim Moginie James Moginie (born 18 May 1956) is an Australian musician. He is best known for his work with Midnight Oil, of which he is a founding member, guitarist, keyboardist and leading songwriter. Career In addition to Midnight Oil, Moginie has work ...

on guitars, keyboards, and vocals, and

Martin Rotsey Martin Rotsey is an Australian guitarist and a member of the rock band Midnight Oil, which was active from 1977 to 2002 and resumed performing together in 2017. Career In 2006, he joined fellow Midnight Oil member Rob Hirst's projects Ghostwr ...

on guitars. The album was produced by Malcolm Burn and released for Sprint Music by

Reception

''Breathe'' peaked at No. 3 on the

and appeared in the top 40 on the

and

Albums Charts. In Australia it was certified gold for shipment of 35,000 copies by ARIA.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

's reviewer,

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, oc ...

, described it as having "a more direct sound while keeping the anthemic melodicism ... less ambitious than its predecessor, yet also more forceful". According to Australian musicologist,

, it had a loose, raw style with almost a low-key sound. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

''s Tom Moon compared it to earlier albums which "were filled with wide-screen screeds, the lectures on ''Breathe'' are offset by evocative mood pieces ... In fusing the hurtling momentum of punk with the righteousness of old-timey hymns, the Oils have arrived at a potent music that uplifts as it agitates".

Track listing

Personnel

Midnight Oil

– lead vocals * Bones Hillman – bass, vocals * Rob Hirst – drums, vocals *

– guitars, keyboards, vocals *

– guitars

Guest musicians

* Malcolm Burn – guitars, organ, bass *

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, includin ...

– vocals *

Buddy Miller Steven Paul "Buddy" Miller (born September 6, 1952) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist and producer, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee. Miller is married to and has recorded with singer-songwriter Julie Miller ...

– guitars * Daryl Johnson – Djembe * Ethan Allan – piano

Charts

Certifications

References

External links

Midnight Oil
{{DEFAULTSORT:Breathe (Midnight Oil Album) 1996 albums Sprint Music albums Midnight Oil albums Albums produced by Malcolm Burn