They came close to representing Australia at Eurovision in 2019 with their song ‘2000 and Whatever’. Now, five years later, Electric Fields are back and are ready to take on Malmö with their song ‘One Milkali (One Blood)’!
Read on to learn all about Electric Fields, their career so far and their journey to Eurovision.
Who are Electric Fields?
Electric Fields consists of Zaachariaha Fielding and Michael Ross.
Zaachariaha was born to artist Robert Fielding and Kaye Lowah. When he was eight, his family moved to Mimili which is part of the APY Lands, a sparsely-populated local government area for Aboriginal people in Australia. At around the same age, he performed Elvis‘s ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ in a school assembly and knew from then on he wanted to perform. He moved to Adelaide as a teenager and after graduating from high school he studied Indigenous Australian music and started producing his own work at the Centre for Aboriginal Studies in Music at the University of Adelaide. In 2014, as part of the duo ZK, Zaachariaha participated in The Voice where he reached the finals.
Michael Ross is a singer, songwriter, pianist and producer from Adelaide. He was signed with Keytone Records for many years, performing under the name Mikki Ross. He supported established artists such as Australia’s Eurovision 2019 representative Kate Miller-Heidke in 2008 and 2011, and well-known musician Amanda Palmer in 2010. He twice auditioned for The X Factor Australia, first in 2011 with Tracy Chapman‘s ‘Talkin Bout a Revolution’ and again in 2013 with Phil Collins‘s ‘You Can’t Hurry Love’.
Career as Electric Fields
Zaachariaha and Michael met in 2012 when they were contributing to the works of other musicians. Three years later, Zaachariaha got in touch with Michael and asked if they could begin making music together. Speaking to DNA Magazine, the pair said “When we wrote music together, a deep energy emerged and we found ourselves bursting with euphoria. That’s when we decided to join forces and send our music out as a duo.”
In 2016, the band released their debut EP ‘Inma’ (which derives its name from the cultural ceremony of Aṉangu women), which was met with critical acclaim. They have won several awards for their music, including Best New Talent at the National Indigenous Music Awards in 2017.
Spanning a range of genres, Electric Fields combine elements of pop, soul and electronica, with the Sydney Morning Herald describing their music as “Daft Punk meets Nina Simone in the Deep Forest”. The duo also fuse in Zaachariaha’s Aboriginal culture, singing in Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara as well as English. This will mark the first time the languages of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara people have been featured in a Eurovision song.
Additionally, both Zaachariaha and Michael are open about their identities as queer artists, describing themselves as “two feminine brothers”. Zaachariaha calls Michael his Tjutja (older brother)and Michael calls Zaachariaha his Mala (younger sibling). Speaking to DNA Magazine, the pair explained that “we embrace our femininity because it’s a part of us and it makes us stronger […] Running and throwing “like a girl” was always an insult and that’s total horse shit. Girls and woman are total bosses and we love that part of us.”
Eurovision – Australia Decides 2019
In December 2018, Electric Fields were announced as one of the ten acts participating in the national final Eurovision – Australia Decides. The pair hoped to be able to represent Australia in 2019 with their song ‘2000 and Whatever’, which they told Australian music publication Off the Leash was written to “create a party song for New Year’s Eve that brought the past and future into the present. Some positive energy for the current generation, as each year flicks over in what is arguably a very short life.”
‘2000 and Whatever’ placed second with both jurors and televoters, losing out to ‘Zero Gravity’ by Kate Miller-Heidke. However, their Eurovision 2019 journey was not at an end, as the pair were invited to announce Australia’s results at the contest in May. In October 2020, they also collaborated with Norway‘s 2019 representatives KEiiNO on the song ‘Would I Lie’.
‘One Milkali (One Blood)’ and the Road to Eurovision
Electric Fields will finally get their chance to represent Australia at Eurovision 2024, having been internally selected by broadcaster SBS. This marks the second time Australia have internally selected their act, having ceased using a national final format in 2022.
‘One Milkali (One Blood)’ features the pop, soul and electronica elements the band is known and loved for and also features prominent use of the didgeridoo (a wind instrument developed by the indigenous people of Australia) in its chorus.
Speaking of their participation in this year’s contest, Australia’s creative director for Malmö Paul Clarke said:
Since hearing their brilliant song ‘2000 And Whatever’, we have always had our eye on Electric Fields for Eurovision. They came close to winning ‘Eurovision – Australia Decides’ back then, but they are far stronger a few years down the track. Electric Fields will bring something never seen before on the Eurovision stage. They will be deadly in Malmö!
Paul Clarke on Electric Fields, Eurovision.tv
The duo are scheduled to perform in the second half of the first semi-final on Tuesday 7th May. This semi features a number of fan favourites, including Croatia, Lithuania and Ukraine so it will be interesting to see how Australia will fare in such a competitive semi. Regardless, we will certainly be wishing Electric Fields the best of luck in May!
You can follow Electric Fields on social media!
Instagram – @electricfields_music
Twitter – ElectricFmusic
Facebook – Electric Fields Music
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