-
Previously on the Novympia channel:
-
You're freaking me out.
-
- We're women in STEM.
- We're not women in STEM,
-
we don't even know what it means!
-
And coming up:
-
It's a good hook.
-
(stifled burp)
-
(Nova) Oh.
-
I find you very rude.
-
(laughter)
-
The Novympia channel is made possible
by our gorgeous patrons,
-
who get access to
the most unappealing crap
-
you'll find anywhere
on the whole internet.
-
Cue the snafu!
-
Ah, g'day.
-
Yes, hello, bloody hell, yes.
-
Welcome to another
Novympia Eurovision reaction video.
-
My name is Nova.
-
Yeah, and I'm Olympia.
-
- Today we are dressed like chicks.
- Yeah.
-
Sometimes that happens 'round here.
-
- Sometimes. Sorry 'bout it.
- Mm, meant to tell you about that.
-
Today we are reacting
to Australia's entry for Eurovision 2024.
-
"Oh my god!"
-
Why are they even in it,
they're not even in Europe (laughs)
-
Joking, I'm joking.
-
I would just like to say that
Olympia is actually not Australian.
-
"So you're a liar.
Not only are you fake, you're a liar.
-
There you go. Ba-boom."
-
- I'm not Australian, no.
- That is a lie.
-
Ah, yes, no I am.
-
And also, how lovely
to react to my home nation today.
-
She's a liar.
-
Yes.
-
And a fraudster.
-
Also, just very very quickly,
-
because I know good goddamn well
there will be comments,
-
Australia, yes they're not in Europe.
-
They were invited to take part
in Eurovision in 2015
-
as a bit of a milestone celebration
-
'cause they'd broadcast Eurovision
for years and years.
-
And then they were like,
-
well we're already in it,
we might as well stay in it.
-
There are several countries in Eurovision
not in Europe, but they are in the EBU.
-
The requirement is that you are a member
of the European Broadcasting Union,
-
and Australia now are.
-
So they're in it,
and I love that they're in it,
-
and we're not gonna talk
about it any more.
-
Now, who is representing Australia
for 2024, Nova?
-
Are they called Electric Fields?
-
So, Electric Fields are a duo.
-
It's electronic music,
-
and I know that the one artist
is called Zaachariaha.
-
I can't remember
the name of the other one.
-
What I do know is that
Electric Fields participated
-
in Australia's national final,
which they haven't had now
-
for a couple of years,
-
but they did have one
called Australia Decides.
-
- And they entered into...
- It was real good.
-
I want to say it was 2019
with a song called "2000 And Whatever".
-
So we are aware of Electric Fields,
-
and in particular,
the vocalist Zaachariaha,
-
who is an Indigenous artist,
nonbinary artist,
-
has a killer voice.
-
The charisma that exudes
when they're onstage
-
A really infectious stage presence.
-
And the vocal is insane.
-
So, we have heard the song
they're submitting this year.
-
We have, I'm also glad
that we're not doing a blind reaction.
-
I know a lot of you guys
prefer a blind reaction,
-
but sometimes I think it is best
for us to listen to a song a few times,
-
do a little bit of research,
and just sit with it.
-
Because my initial reaction to this
probably wouldn't have been
-
as positive or as strong
as the feelings I have for it now.
-
Yes, and some of the songs
we have reacted to blindly,
-
some we've milled over for a while,
-
so throughout the whole playlist
of reaction videos for this year,
-
there's a bit of a mixed bag in there.
-
But we thought
"2000 And Whatever" was sick,
-
I think that would've been
an excellent entry for Australia.
-
Let's watch this one if you're ready to.
-
Yeah.
-
And we'll talk about how we feel
like this is gonna go for them.
-
So the song is called "One Milkali",
which translates to "one blood".
-
♪ ("One Milkali" by Electric Fields) ♪
I will say, straight off the bat,
-
that this is a "music video",
if you can call it that.
-
This is a lyric video.
-
- So interestingly,
- Let's be real.
-
the Eurovision channel
called it "official video".
-
On their channel,
it's called a lyric video.
-
Is it? Okay, interesting.
-
Hang on, let's just pause it.
-
I've said this before, though,
-
Eurovision has a way of defining
how it uploads its videos,
-
either as "Official Music Video"
or "National Final Performance".
-
They're very binary like that,
-
they don't come up
with anything in between.
-
So they've called this
"Official Music Video"
-
It's not a music video!
It literally isn't.
-
They're just sitting there...
it's a lyric video.
-
Okay, okay.
-
So this doesn't give away
anything, does it?
-
Okay.
-
Okay so we've got--
-
This is the bit where I feel like
it starts to get going.
-
There's literally a digeridoo in this,
which, I'm obsessed with that,
-
I love that element.
-
So it's very easy listening.
-
(both singing) Milkali la, milkali.
-
When I first saw this,
I was a bit disappointed,
-
Because again, we're provided
with this visual which looks
-
incredibly low-budget and very simple,
-
and I was a bit disappointed with that.
-
I also didn't initially react very well
to the song, but now I think it's a vibe.
-
Yeah, I'm not in love with like,
a message song.
-
They tend to be sometimes
very kind of like, I don't know,
-
feed the world, or save the Earth,
or we're all one voice, or whatever.
-
They tend to be sometimes,
a little bit like, an eyeroll.
-
So the idea is like, we are one blood,
we are one kind of like, human,
-
and therefore,
we should celebrate our differences
-
rather than be divisive about it.
-
So, it's a very straightforward message.
-
I don't think they tend
to do very well at Eurovision though,
-
I feel like that's something
that people are gonna resist about it.
-
I don't like the lyrics.
-
Some of the lyrics are a little...
perhaps a bit clunky.
-
I don't even know if it's clunky,
-
I just... maybe it's just me
being a miserable sod,
-
but it's kind of a bit too happy for me,
and I want a bit more of an edge to it.
-
And maybe the edge is that
this is a queer couple
-
and that's kind of lost on us,
being queer.
-
I don't know if they are a couple.
-
They just went in for a kiss.
-
So? I kiss Char all the time,
what's your point?
-
(laughs)
-
The thing is, okay-
-
The thing that disappoints me-
or, it's not even disappointing,
-
but knowing the performance that
Zaachariaha gives consistently onstage,
-
and the vocal,
-
it's difficult to know exactly
quite how impressive
-
and how much of a show this is gonna be,
just based on the studio recording.
-
It's not very much to go off, is it?
-
I think a lot of people
have written this off,
-
but would be foolish to.
-
Because I think this is going to be-
I mean, the production on this is lovely.
-
It's not, like,
the most fresh-sounding thing.
-
There are a few elements
that make it a bit dated in my opinion.
-
It's very retro, I would say.
-
It sounds a little bit... I don't know,
there's a few kind of like house elements,
-
or things that are a bit...
not necessarily too fresh.
-
I hate that that was the way
the song was introduced.
-
You'd rather nothing?
-
I would really have preferred
a live performance,
-
and I find it odd that
they couldn't have scrambled together
-
to put a live performance together.
-
Even if it was then
dubbed with the studio cut,
-
like, I think that would've been
more pleasing to look at.
-
I think this automatically
makes people go like, no budget, er...
-
It does feel a bit weird.
-
I don't know.
-
Perhaps they're just biding their time
and when it's done live,
-
it is gonna be a show.
-
If you go and watch
"2000 And Whatever"-
-
I mean, I can't undersell
how impressive Zaachariaha's vocal is.
-
I much preferred that song, I have to say.
-
And their style of performing
is just very, very impressive,
-
and it's like a party starting
kind of like, I don't know.
-
It just turns everything into like,
an arena, almost, feeling.
-
'cause it is just like, very impactful.
-
I like the point of view,
I like that these are queer artists,
-
Zaachariaha's a nonbinary artist,
I like the Indigenous elements to this,
-
the digeridoo is sick,
the intention is strong,
-
and the performance is strong.
-
We've got some
Indigenous language as well.
-
I love that, especially from Australia.
-
I don't believe we've had that
from Australia before.
-
Correct me if I'm wrong.
-
I'm not sure.
-
So I love everything about that.
-
I just wonder if the message angle
about it is a little...
-
some of the lyrics, yeah,
they are a little bit trite.
-
Again, it might just be me being
super cynical and being miserable,
-
but I do almost do a bit
of an eyeroll at some of this.
-
Just because I feel like
it's so positive,
-
and it's so happy and feel-good.
-
And that's fantastic,
-
and a lot of people need
and want this kind of music,
-
but for me, I would just like
a bit of an edge somewhere.
-
I feel like I'm almost getting that
in the production.
-
Some of the the production
has elements that I'm like,
-
ooh, that's a nice little twist,
-
but ultimately,
it's just a bit too feel-good.
-
It almost borders on cliché to me,
and that's where I personally resist it.
-
It's- I think this is one
of the bigger question marks
-
of the season, in the sense that
we really just don't know
-
how this is gonna play out onstage.
-
The other thing is, in terms of what
we've been given with this studio cut,
-
It's nice, I mean,
we thought it was lovely,
-
we will listen to it,
-
but is it going to translate to the stage
-
the way that we want it to
and hope that it will?
-
It's a question mark.
-
The video's not really giving
anything either.
-
I've seen a lot of comparisons
to Belgium last year with Gustaph.
-
I actually really responded well to that
-
- I feel like people described that
- I hated that song (laughs)
-
as a surprise qualify.
-
I was not surprised to see that qualify.
-
I liked the song,
-
and it was staged
and performed really well.
-
But that to me was more of a dance track.
-
It was- I had that kind of access to it,
that it was a dance track.
-
- This, you can dance to it.
- It's more mellow.
-
But yes, it's a bit more mid-tempo.
-
It's more mellow, I don't think
it's gonna lean that dancey.
-
If this had a faster tempo,
maybe that would draw me in,
-
I don't know, I can only speak
-
on my own personal opinions
and feelings with this.
-
It's just there's something about this
-
that doesn't quite resonate
with me completely.
-
Yes, I think that it has
every respectable quality to it
-
where it should qualify,
-
and might well qualify
based on the performance alone,
-
which I'm guessing - a lot of this
is obviously guesswork.
-
But is it actually going to?
-
It's hard to say at this point.
Don't know. Just don't know.
-
Who is it up against?
-
Um- (strained mumbling)
-
So, I don't know.
-
It is kind of mid-tempo,
it is kind of mellow.
-
It is going up against Finland's,
which is obviously very like
-
(low gasp)
-
(scream)
-
Um, it's going up against Slovenia
and Portugal.
-
Ah, there's a quality to them that... ugh.
-
I don't think there's anything,
directly comparable to this.
-
It's in the second half
of the first ceremony, a nice slot, but-
-
Will people pick up the phone for this?
-
It really is dependent
on the live performance.
-
It's so dependent on the live.
-
Which again, I've said all along,
is probably gonna be sensational and--
-
I also think, though,
that a good live performance
-
is not gonna be good enough,
it has to be staged well.
-
Staging has become so integral
to Eurovision, especially this year
-
where the standard is so high.
-
I think a lot of great acts
and great performances
-
are going to be set apart
by how they're staged.
-
Yeah, it's very very hard to know.
-
I don't think I'd put this
particularly high,
-
it's sort of very comfortably
in the middle of the pack for me,
-
which I suspect will change
once I see a live performance of it.
-
It's such a question mark, I don't know.
-
I have ranked this fairly low.
-
I've got this 30th.
-
(Olympia) That is low.
-
And that's not to say I don't like it,
-
but I don't think I would choose
to put this on.
-
Again, that's just a me thing.
I think this is a good song.
-
There's a lot to like about it,
-
and I'm happy that we're seeing
artists like this.
-
But, I don't know,
I prefer "2000 And Whatever".
-
Yeah, it's not a skip,
I think that's the thing.
-
It's not necessarily a skip.
-
It's not a skip, no.
-
Um, I've got it 26th,
but I don't know, I might have to...
-
Maybe it'll be slightly higher...
-
(Nova) And we've said before
that our rankings will change
-
as we see rehearsal footage,
as we see pre-party footage
-
as we get a better idea
as to how these artists
-
are bringing these songs to Malmö.
-
At the moment,
everything's hypothetical,
-
we're just going off potential.
-
It always is.
-
I think there's maybe like,
five or so left for us to do,
-
and we have already gone past the point
where it is now so difficult to know
-
what's gonna qualify,
even with songs yet to...
-
or, in our timeline
when we're doing this now,
-
I think there's only one left
to be revealed.
-
- Armenia might be the last one.
- Yes.
-
But Armenia, better fucking hope
it's a banger, because (laughs)
-
It's so hard, like,
-
we're starting to look
at our prediction for qualification,
-
and it is absolutely stacked.
-
I actually think the second semifinal
might be more difficult to predict
-
than the first.
-
But yeah, it's an absolute sort of
mindfuck currently.
-
Those videos that we're gonna do
will be available
-
only exclusively on Patreon.
-
Nova, isn't that right?
-
Yes. Yes, yes, yes.
-
We've also got the Discord over there,
there's my podcast, all that good stuff.
-
The address for that will be arriving
onscreen just now.
-
(vocalising to the tune
of "One Milkali" by Electric Fields)
-
♪ "Whatcha gonna do with all that ass?" ♪
-
It's a good hook.
-
(stifled burp)
-
(Nova) Oh.
-
I'm s- I'd like to apologise.
-
Right.
-
Can't confirm which end that came out of.
-
"My dr- my dress was probably just tight."
-
I also wanna say that before people ask us
where these videos are,
-
we are now towards the end
of reviewing the Eurovision entries,
-
and we have decided we are not covering
a few countries for various reasons.
-
A lot of people have asked,
"where's Luxembourg?"
-
We have touched on that
in the last review,
-
and answered in the comments before.
-
There are things surrounding
the Luxembourg entry
-
that we don't feel comfortable
with covering it.
-
We've tried not to go
into too much detail,
-
'cause a lot of it is speculation,
and doesn't have hard evidence.
-
But we don't feel comfortable
with that entry.
-
Something's not right there.
-
We also don't like the song,
so it's been a very easy decision.
-
We're not touching that.
-
We're not gonna cover Israel,
for obvious reasons.
-
We're not gonna cover Azerbaijan,
for obvious reasons.
-
We've more recently decided
we're not going to be reacting to Iceland.
-
That song we do not rate.
-
Nothing against Hera personally
whatsoever,
-
- not a bad word to say about the woman.
- That whole situation is so dumb.
-
But we do not like that song,
I think that was a ridiculous song.
-
We believe that that became selected
-
through really, really suspicious
nefarious means.
-
Don't like it. Won't be covering it.
-
Not doing it.
-
So just to put that out there,
won't be covering those entries.
-
Uh, but there's a couple left to do,
we will be doing Sweden,
-
we will be doing Georgia,
we will be doing Armenia, I believe.
-
There might be-
oh, and Portugal.
-
Portugal, yeah.
-
That might be it.
-
- Stick around, subscribe--
- Greece.
-
Oh and Greece, of course,
how did we forget?
-
Stick around, feel free to subscribe
if you are new here and you haven't.
-
Just, you know, click it.
-
You can if you like,
I'm not gonna force you to.
-
(laughs)
-
Won't show up at your house or anything.
-
- I will.
- "Oh my god."
-
And we also have a Twitch,
join us for game night.
-
Why not?
-
(singing) Game night.
-
Oh, I did a new song in the last one,
and I can't remember what it is now.
-
(snapping fingers)
Join us over on Twitch,
-
(singing) we're playing games.
-
I don't think it was that.
-
I should represent the UK or Australia
with "Join us and we'll play some games".
-
I don't think that would get
any points, darlin'.
-
Sorry.
-
♪ ("Legendary Creature"
by Novympia begins) ♪
-
(Nova) And a 'Anyone for Jarrah?'
to our newest patrons, Nai and Coraline.
-
What would you sing to represent the UK?
-
On the spot, now. What's the song?
-
(singing) I'm here, singing my song.
-
Oh, you gotta be fucking kidding me.
-
(singing) Join the Patrón,
we'll do a shot of Patrón.
-
♪ ("Legendary Creature" by Novympia) ♪
Captions Requested
