Voyager is the Australian Eurovision Song Contest representative after years of rallying for the role.
Australia's early days were supported by the majority with a warm welcome, especially given their characteristic entries and Lee Lin Chin, the glossy presenter responsible for the allocation of Australia's points, who became somewhat of an audience favourite as the years went by.
They almost stole the contest for themselves in their second attempt, with Dami Im just missing out on a potential Syndey 2017. Australia is an infant in the wider Eurovision scope but they've already bagged themselves unforgettable performers, commentators and even a national selection process.
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Australia Decides pits hopefuls against each other which is not unfamiliar to Voyager, their 2023 representative. Their electrically charged rock-synth sound is a stand out in the Liverpool contest with them boasting an incredible backlog of bangers proving they're going to dominate.
Although highly successful in their own right, they entered Australia Decides in 2022 but just fell short of the prize. This year, SBS decided to keep things in the family with an internal selection to decide who will be its representative. Obviously, Voyager bagged the role but they were quizzed on what they would bring to the contest before they were told the job was theirs.
Alex Canion, Voyager's bass and vocalist, told the ECHO: "We'd heard there was potentially going to be another Australia decides so we decided to focus on the album but also create a song specifically for Eurovision and maybe enter it if it comes around. We thought, 'Maybe we will, maybe we won't. Let's cross that bridge when we get to it.'
"We entered [Promise] into the selection process and got a call from SBS asking us about staging which we all thought was weird. They asked 'So how do you see this being staged and performed' and we said this and that and they said 'Well great because you've got the chance to do it because you're going to Eurovision'."
Alex and the others were ecstatic with the news, confirming there and then they were thrilled to take part. He added: "It's this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so anything that we could do to get back in the conversation was something that we were really excited about. We've got a new album ready to come out, our eighth album that we're really excited about, but we kind of put that on hold for a little while to pursue this Eurovision dream."
Voyager campaigned for the role since 2015, causing a stir on social media, among fans and in the industry as a whole. Their participation in Eurovision is a long time coming and despite their best efforts to book the role year by year, they still can't quite believe it's finally happening.
They enter the Thunderdome as already successful and established artists, not only a household name in Australia but all over the world. It's an impressive feat upon itself to have a career spanning the time Voyager has enjoyed, let alone release an eighth album to continued fanfare, but adding Eurovision into the mix feels like a cherry on top.
Alex said: "We're so privileged to be able to keep doing what we're doing and not a day goes by we're not thankful for all of the love and support our fans show us."
The Liverpool contest is by no means an easy sweep but the band is confident they have what it takes to make it to the top. Asked if they were ready to face this year's lineup, Alex added: "Hell yeah. Australia Decides was almost like a training ground. We're really heavily invested in the acts this year but we're all happy there's really high-quality music this year - we're very proud."
Eurovision in Liverpool marks a pivotal moment for Australia with the final days of their contract coming to an end. While the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is still to make an announcement regarding the country's future in the contest, Alex is certain they're not going anywhere.
He said: "There's quite a lot of pressure on us isn't there? It feels like Europe like Australia and Eurovision fans as a whole are okay with us being in the competition. It still kind of feels weird that people are still coming to terms with this thing that creates incredible music. With Dami Im coming second I definitely see us hanging in there a little bit longer. "
With every good Eurovision entry comes a wave of criticism from fans who either can't see past their favourite, don't feel like a song speaks to them, or simply like to be contrary. Alex said: "When the video dropped there were heaps of comments that were really negative. At first, you're like, 'Oh my God, this is horrible,' but the immediate... whatever... is forgotten about when you see all comments supporting you."
Addressing specific criticism Promise is "messy", Alex said: "It's anything but messy and every section of the song is in there for a particular reason. We actually removed stuff as well which for a band like us to do is rare because you normally just throw everything in there.
"And when you look at some songs from our back catalogue, Promise is just by no means complicated or messy at all." Any good rock band worth their salt is capable of putting on a showstopping, electric performance which Voyager promise will indeed be in place for Liverpool.
Alex added: "I can't divulge too much because it's got to be a surprise but it's going to be as Voyageur as possible. Anyone that's seen us on our live shows knows that we really have a lot of fun out there. We feed off the crowd, we want them to be involved with what we're doing and basically just feel the joy in entertainment and music.
"All I will say is to just say strap yourself in and expect something awesome."
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