Sunday 23 May 2010

Delayed thoughts on Eurovision

(All video links in this post are to rehearsal videos,so if you want to remain in suspense until the big day,don't look!)

I'm still undecided on who I want to win,there are actually tons of songs that I like this year,with no one in particular standing out.Harel's song has really grown on me now I've seen the rehearsals- his voice is faultless,and it's such a simple performance that it deserves to do well.Also,you can't ignore the fact that,visually,he is perfection itself,and his backing singers aren't too far off either :) Still loving Denmark's song too,though the recorded version is much better than the live version.Feminnem are amazing for Croatia,watching the rehearsal gave me goosebumps the other day.Though they have got a bit of a stage performance going on,it doesn't detract from their brilliant voices and a song which is powerful and has great lyrics.Estonia are also wonderful (love Robin's Renars-esque dancing) and I can't wait to hear what Malcolm Lincoln's new album sounds like.And then there's these guys...



That's my new desktop picture,it never fails to make me smile.Inculto,bless them,have done so much work to promote themselves all over Europe (see their youtube channel for details) and their song is great in so many ways that it will be a shame if they don't qualify.Same for Switzerland,whose stage setup and backing singers are possibly the best in the competition.Michael's voice is very sexy indeed,which I think should always count for something in Eurovision :)

I hope an Azeri win isn't a foregone conclusion.Though I'm glad Safura has done away with the horrible nasal voice thing,the song is still dull,with an annoying,predictable chorus.And the whole steps thing is reminiscent of Dima's ladder from 08.It's pointless and just makes everything look awkward.Drip Drop probably is in the best 15 songs this year,and I normally support Azerbaijan,which I still do really- I'd love to see the contest taken to Central Asia in the near future.But just not this year.There are too many other,better songs in the competition.

As for the Big Four,I think this is the strongest set of songs they've had as a collective for a few years.Spain's performance is surely the cutest this year (I especially love the rag doll),and Daniel has a belter of a voice.Germany are of course still second favourites to win (wonder when the last time was that that happened?!)I still can't see it happening myself,but I love the song,and Lena is adorable.I wasn't sure how well the backing singers would work,but I've concluded they're very good.Poor old Jessy Matador seems to have had a bit of a hard time so far,what with all the negative criticism back in France where the consensus seemed to be that he wasn't right for Eurovision.Au contraire,I think he's just what Eurovision needs."Typically French" the song might not be,but after stuffy old Patricia Kaas last year,I think they made the right decision to lighten up a bit,but not be as quirky as previous years.I hope it does well,and I hope it follows say,Didrik or Harel in the running order,just for maximum effect.

Then of course there's us. We were supposed to do an interview with Josh for Sounds of Europe a few weeks ago,but due to his schedule changing blah blah blah,it didn't quite come about,and he just did a telephone interview with another show that his friend presents.This is probably just as well as we'd slagged off the song several times on the show before.I love Josh to bits,he seems like a really nice guy from all the interviews I've seen/heard,but the song is a bit pants.Especially the new version.But I was very impressed with the rehearsals,the Ani Lorak style white box things were a bit unexpected,but a million times better than what I was imagining.It won't set Europe on fire (that's Romania's job,hahahahahahahaha... :/) but I hope it won't do as badly as the bookies predict.Josh has got the granny vote safe already,surely?

4 comments:

Laura (EuropeCrazy) said...

Great review as ever!

I don't want Azerbaijan to win it this year as I still don't see what all the fuss is about. If they don't win then it's wide open!

After a week in Bratislava watching MTV Germany, Germany has become a real favourite of mine - and even ESC-hating faithful travelling companion says he will be cheering on Lena on Saturday.

As for France, it may not be a 'typical' entry for them but I think it's very reflective of a lot of the zouk-type summer hits which always do well in the French charts every summer so I'm surprised at the negative reaction over there.

Poor Josh - I really feel sorry for him, being landed with that third rate rubbish. At least the staging of the song is less tacky than in the British final, so that's something I suppose.

I think Didrik Tangent-Thingy will do very, very well....but I can't say the same for that boring song representing Sweden.

And finally, Inculto totally rule!!!

Raquelita said...

I can't help but think if Inculto were on a bit later,they would have got through.I'll be interested to see the voting results,I bet we gave them points.I decided Michael probably needed my vote more than them in the end,I bet he got a total of about 5 votes from the UK...

I'm not convinced about Didrik Silly-Tangles doing that well anymore.I do like the song but the performance does nothing for me,and his voice can be a bit flat sometimes.But whatever,I'm just supporting anyone who's in with even a tiny chance of beating Azerbaijan.I just can't find one thing about that song that would make me vote for it.

Dominik Hennig said...

I am from Germany and will vote for Didrik AND for Harel! My points to Norway and Israel!

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