Rob Hirst, the drummer and founding member of Australian rock band Midnight Oil, has died at the age of 70.
Hirst had been battling stage three pancreatic cancer since his diagnosis in 2023. The band confirmed his death on Tuesday afternoon, according to the Guardian.
After fighting heroically for almost three years, Rob is now free of pain – ‘a glimmer of tiny light in the wilderness’,” the band posted to social media. “He died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones. The family asks that anyone wanting to honour Rob donate to Pankind, Pancreatic Cancer Australia or Support Act.”
In 2025, Hirst spoke openly about his support for voluntary assisted dying, a process he was eligible for under the law in New South Wales.
“Why should you have to die in terrible, drawn-out pain?” he told the Australian. “When you’ve had this amazing life – a life like I’ve had – why should end-of-life be so horrific when there’s an alternative?”
Rob Hirst was an Australian musician best known as the drummer and a founding member of the iconic rock band Midnight Oil. Born in New South Wales in 1955, Hirst received his first drum kit at age 12 after doctors discovered a benign tumor in his right leg and he underwent surgery. Music became a major focus in his life soon after.
Hirst helped form Midnight Oil in the mid 1970s, laying the rhythmic foundation for a group that would become one of the country’s most influential and politically outspoken acts.
As Midnight Oil’s drummer, Hirst was known for his powerful, driving style, which became a defining part of the band’s sound. His work can be heard on some of Australia’s most celebrated albums, including Diesel and Dust, Blue Sky Mining, and Earth and Sun and Moon. Songs like “Beds Are Burning,” “The Dead Heart,” and “Blue Sky Mine” helped propel the band to international success while addressing issues such as Indigenous rights, environmental protection, and social justice.
Beyond his role behind the drum kit, Hirst was also a songwriter and creative contributor, playing a key part in shaping the band’s identity and message. Midnight Oil earned numerous awards over their career and were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame, cementing their legacy in Australian music history.
Over nearly 50 years, Midnight Oil released 13 studio albums. Hirst remained with the band until they went on a prolonged hiatus in 2002, when lead singer Peter Garrett left to pursue a career in federal politics. The band later reunited and resumed touring in 2017, according to The Guardian.
Hirst was also involved in several other music projects outside of Midnight Oil, including Ghostwriters, Backsliders, the Angry Tradesmen and the Break.
During another Midnight Oil break in the 1990s, Hirst teamed up with guitarist Andrew Dickson and Hoodoo Gurus bassist Rick Grossman to form the Ghostwriters. The group went on to release four albums. Hirst was also a member of the Backsliders, a blues band led by vocalist Dom Turner. He and Turner later formed the Angry Tradesmen, a project that mixed drum and bass with experimental post-punk sounds.
He also collaborated closely with his Midnight Oil bandmates Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey in the surf rock band the Break. The group featured Violent Femmes bassist Brian Ritchie and Hunters & Collectors trumpeter Jack Howard, and released two albums in 2010 and 2013.
Hirst is survived by his wife, Leslie Holland, and their two daughters, Alexandra and Gabriella. He is also survived by his eldest daughter, Jay O’Shea, a musician. O’Shea was given up for adoption after her birth, when Hirst was 17 and her mother was 15. Father and daughter reunited in 2010.
