Since putting their hands up to represent Australia at Eurovision 2015, Melbourne viking metal band Barbariön have had their hopes dashed by the appointment of Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian as our country’s first Eurovision contestant.
Barbariön have now penned an open letter to Australia’s Eurovision broadcaster, SBS, saying the organisation has missed the point of Eurovision and “have sold out, big time”. What’s more, they’ve released a song they’ve written especially for Eurovision 2015, and it’s pretty amazing.
In their letter to SBS, posted to Facebook, Barbariön say:
Dear SBS,
Us Australians love an underdog. We love watching the little guy punch above his weight. We love the story of the battler. With so many excellent local acts working tirelessly around Australia to entertain the average punter week in, week out, it seemed only appropriate you support them and give them an opportunity to show the world what Australian music really is!
You have always been the voice of the least represented in our society. You have always been the epicenter of our cultural and artistic diversity, and now when granted the golden opportunity to promote our capable local music scene you have sold out, big time!
It didn’t have to be Barbariön. It could have been any one of a hundred local acts, from the hundreds of genres. Someone the nation could rally around and be inspired by. Someone a little off ya know, a dag, take a bit of risk mate.
You’re sending a beige-coloured Volvo full of Subway rolls into a world full of high camp theatrics and bonkers mayhem. The bloke’s gonna get destroyed.
You’ve completely missed the point… AAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
Barbariön also confirmed that they did submit an official entry to be considered for Eurovision, in the form of a song they apparently wrote last weekend. “We tried to capture the cheese of Eurovision, the great things about Australia, and the might of Barbariön all within 3 minutes,” the band say.
The track, titled Rock, Down Under (below), is a catchy combination of Australiana, viking metal and the national anthem. “We have golden soil, wealth for toil, for one and all to share. Our land abounds in nature’s gifts, of beauty rich and rare,” goes the song’s bridge, followed by a very, very metal guitar solo.
View Barbariön’s full SBS letter and hear Rock, Down Under, below.
Slideshow: 13 Acts Australia Should Have Sent To Eurovision (But Didn’t)
Check out ALL of this week’s new music right here!
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision
-
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #1
Tkay Maidza - Why she should: She's emblematic of rising Australian talent and would help put an end to the world's clichéd views of Australian art and culture. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #2
Why she won't: Not cliché enough. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #3
Kirin J. Callinan - Why he should: Apart from the fact that he has a killer voice, Kirin J. Callinan's shows are known for being abrasive, surreal and often chaotic, pushing the limits wherever possible. Given the opportunity, Callinan can show the Europeans they're not the only ones with built in quirk. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #4
Why he won't: OK perhaps he's too quirky, even for Eurovision. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #5
Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu - Why he should: We have a captive audience on the world stage, a perfect platform to share the beautiful voice and music of a treasured Indigenous Australian. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #6
Why he won’t: Not enough sequins. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #7
TISM - Why they should: The people have spoken, give them what they want. -
Tism
Why they won’t: Presently, they're broken up. (You might be able to change that though…) -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #9
Nick Cave - Why he should: No one can command a theatrical stage like our man Nick and in terms of European fans he's got them. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #10
Why he won't: Too Brechtian for Eurovision. Still there's always the cameo option, if Kylie gets it. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #11
B1 and/or B2 - Why they should: They're national treasures goddammit and with those cuts to the ABC they're going to need some international exposure. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #12
Why they won't: If the Dustin The Turkey experience taught us anything, it's that the Eurovision is not kind to puppets. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #13
Empire of the Sun - The Australia electro pop kings know how to put together a visual feast of a stage show. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #14
Why they won't: It's likely they won't stick to Eurovision's maximunm of 6 people on stage rule. Plus no-one can find Nick Littlemore. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #15
The Red Paintings - Why they should: Experimental art rock is their game and the Geelong act know how to work a costume department and a crowd, known for getting the audience up on stage to paint on human canvases during their shows. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #16
Why they won't: Eurovision's not really big on the whole "audience participation" thing. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #17
Hiatus Kaiyote - Why they should: They're a Grammy-nominated Australian future-soul band with a huge international following. Their music borrows ingredients from far-reaching places across the world and throws them together to create a distinctive soul-infused sound, like no other. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #18
Why they won't: Hiatus Kaiyote's future soul stylings might just be too out of this world, even for Eurovision. And there's no way they'll be able to stick to that 3 minute song time limit. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #19
Tripod - Why they should: They’re the perfect musical representation of our typically dry humour, and the idea of three laid back middle-aged smart arses singing about the Girl In The Comic Book Shop amongst the often deadly serious Euros speaks to our penchant for disrupting the status quo. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #20
Why they won’t: Eurovision might be populated by a bunch of dags, but it’s just not the same if you’re aware of how daggy you actually are. Sorry, guys. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #21
Courtney Barnett - Why she should: If you're after the quintessential Australian voice, Courtney Barnett has it and it's wonderful. She's a modern Australian storyteller, stringing together narratives with signature deadpan puns. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #22
Why she won't: Given it's our first year competing, maybe we should ease up on the Aussie puns. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #23
LOL -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #24
Ne Obliviscaris - Why they should: This Melbourne outfit are one of our most promising metal exports. Their dark, dramatic visage and cinematic brand of orchestral thrash proves that Aussies can metal with the best that Europe has to offer. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #25
Why they won’t: Mainstream Australia might shrivel into their couches and turn to dust when they discover Aussie heavy metal bands with this much flair actually exist.
