On March 14, Jamie xx and the Avalanches will DJ at No Coal Zone, an Australian concert benefitting charities fighting the climate crisis. All proceeds from the event, held at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion, will support the charities ClientEarth and Immersive Climate Education. Also on the bill are a Midnight Juggernauts DJ set, Heaps Gay and Friends, Ptwiggs, DeepFaith, and a screening of Jonathan Zawada and Mark Pritchard’s “The Four Worlds.”
Jamie xx says in a statement: “I’ve spent a lot of time in Australia over the past decade and each time I come I’m inspired to make music. I’m always blown away by its awe-inspiring nature, the unrivalled friendliness of its people and the quality of its Doofs. The loss it’s suffered has been a blow to people all around the world, so it felt only right to come back this year and help raise money through this party.
“The work ClientEarth are doing to stop the building of future coal fired power stations will hugely cut the planet’s carbon emissions and will help to slow the devastating effects of global warming. I’m proud to support them and hope this party can help them in their incredible work. I already offset my own carbon emissions from flying and will certainly be doing so for this gig.”
The Avalanches’ Tony Diblasi adds: “The world can’t stand by and go about business as usual, while the planet suffers. Practices like coal power, that we now know are so harmful to the environment, have to be stopped and replaced with green alternatives. We have the means to make this possible right now! We must act to try and reverse the effects of climate change before it’s too late for our home, planet earth.”
Various artists have addressed the difficulties and contradictions of fighting climate change from within the music industry. Last year, Massive Attack launched a major study into the carbon emissions of a touring band, with plans to publish the results.
Read “How Experimental Musicians Are Soundtracking the End of the World” on the Pitch.