Making Your Mind Up 2007 - The Announcement!

Today, the six potential artists in line for 17th March's Making Your Mind Up were announced, and these are the six singers and songs that are in the running. Of course, the comments on the songs cannot be overly long because the BBC insist on only putting 30 second snippets on their website. Why, who knows.

Flying The Flag For You - Scooch
Scooch are a washed up boy/girl band from the early 00s who had a top five hit that I remember being quite bad. They've opted for an airline theme for their entry (it worked for Sestre) and they play upon their gimmick of the "3 minute Eurovision flight". The song is a typically cheesy affair with extra stilton.

(Don't It Make You) Happy - Liz McLarnon
Liz was part of Atomic Kitten (they can make you whole again) and she is friends with Jenny 'Precious' Frost! She's a good singer but this song, even in a 30 second snippet, is very much a rip off of Son Of A Preacher Man. But is this a bad thing?!

They Don't Make'm Like They Used To - Justin Hawkins & Beverlei Brown
Yes, that Justin Hawkins and some lady who can't spell Beverley properly. I had a lot of promise for this song but it doesn't seem to do very much in the 30 second snippet. But then YOU CAN'T TELL IN 30 SECONDS BBC!!! Idiots.

I Can - Brian Harvey
He ran himself over but he's back! This song is an RnB ballad written by Connor Reeves, a good fellow who had a few hits back in the late 90s. Sounds nice enough and Brian has a great voice. Mmm.

I'll Take My Heart - Cyndi
It says on the BBC website that this song is in the same style as 'I Will Always Love You'. If what they mean by this is that it's a ballad, they are correct. It's sort of gospelly, it goes nicely but it doesn't strike me as a killer Eurovision ballad. But UK ballads do always do well. So this could be an interesting one if picked.

Big Bro Thang - Big Brovaz
Big Brovaz are an urban RnB group and I tell you what, this song isn't bad. As in it passes as credible hip-hop, not that pap that Poland are sending. Ghetto-y, good bassline and catchy little chorus. Also it's very UK! Unlike when Javine went Turkish but, alas, we all thought it would be for the best...

So what to make of all this? Well yet again, another load of washed up names BUT vitally they're all good performers. Justin Hawkins and Beverlei Brown could be one to watch but their song does sound a bit weak to me. But it is hard to say after 30 second snippets what's good and what's not... I have however heard the Big Brovaz song all the way through and it's not all bad y'know.

Yeah, let's pick the Brovaz. It'll be like Love City Groove never happened.

And to the BBC - the six songs don't sound too bad. We've not got a winner I don't think, but we might get a good result. Interesting that we're the last country to pick our entry AFTER the draw takes place especially with that new you can pick where you go system (well, it's not quite that simple). Why they can't put the full songs on their website is an annoying mystery though...

So roll on 17th March when we'll find out who follows in Daz's footsteps! And anyway, back to business, Greece pick tonight...

Who K?

Tomorrow, the finalists will be announced for Making Your Mind Up, the UK's annual trawl through the barrel of D-List celebrity stardom in order to find our Eurovision entry. It is always common for rumours to run rife on message boards, and who can blame people for speculating? After all Katie Price rather memorably took part in 2005 but lost. Ironically, it wasn't her that got her lals out. It was Javine, and she won. So maybe there's a lesson there.

Anyway, back to the point. Rumours are running wild even more so than ever. It's likely that there'll be six participants (but I must stress that this could be incorrect, cos the BBC like keeping you on your toes) and these are the names amongst whom people seem to believe will definitely be in the running...

Liz McLarnon (ex-Atomic Kitten, friend of Jenny Frost who was part of Precious)
Brian Harvey (ex-East 17 who, curiously, is remembered for running himself over 2 yrs ago)
The Puppini Sisters (cute little threesome of ladies singing in 1940s style)
Big Brovaz (popular UK R'n'B group about four yrs ago but are making a fighting comeback)

It's an interesting selection of names, but I wouldn't mind seeing them confirmed tomorrow - all acts are good performers. Let's not forget than Tony Christie and Emma Bunton hav also not been ruled out.

The outbreak of gossip was not helped today by one Eurovision website saying that the name of one act that will be confirmed for Making Your Mind Up has a connection with a child's toy. Who could this be? Here are some options...

Michael Ball... despite the fact he famously said he'd rather stick pins in his eyes than do ESC again.

Sandie Shaw... won with Puppet On A String. This would be her 40th anniversary of her win, she's recently said she's been cured of her hatred for ESC and she's just recorded a new version of her Eurovision winner. Could this be her comeback?

Neil Morrissey... voiced Bob The Builder. He's got a nice voice.

The Wombles... Eurovision interval act 1974. Could they be back as the real thing?!?!?!?

Dolly Parton... this is just getting silly now.


Anyway, there's been so much speculation that it's probably best to stop and wait until tomorrow when we'll finally know who's in contention to follow St. Daz in Helsinki.

What we do know is that Natasha Kaplinsky has been overthrown as presenter of MYMU by the lady who's springing up at the BRITs, Oscars, Comic Relief and now Eurovision too, Fearne Cotton. And all cos she did that 'hard rock' fist thing when she gave out the votes last year.

Announcement tomorrow! Expect outcy, there'll be some...

An Absolute Load Of Bull-garia

Well. Oh my word. I had the pleasure of hearing the Bulgarian entry for the first time over the weekend and, goodness me, what a mesmerising listen. It is worth its very own blog entry.

I have never heard such noise in my life. There’s wailing, drums, club rhythms… it is just bizarre. There is no tune – it is merely three minutes of horrendous sounds coming out of some lady’s mouth. Too many drums, too much Eastern wailing and over the top of dance music?

It is a melting pot of shite.

It’s called “Voda” which translates as “Water” which, you would think, would mean the song was a nice, calming, serene number. Wrong. It is interpreted by one Stoyan Yankulov who stands around banging drums, and Elitsa Todorova who makes disturbing sounds that clash horribly with the backing track, and she also has a go at the old drum beating. Seriously, this entry is SO bad, it is almost funny.

Noise. That is the only word for it. It is just noise. And if it qualifies I shall eat my hat.

Worryingly, it has seemed to have caused a rather positive stir on Eurovision messageboards. Expect it to chart high this week in the polls! But it’s a truly awful song. Wow. It’s that bad.

A Busy Weekend (again)...

There’s been plenty going on this weekend! I best fill you in…

In a relatively quiet national final from FYR MACEDONIA, the unanimous winner – in that she scored all the points possible – was Karolina Goceva, FYROM’s 2002 entrant. She returns five years on with “Mojet Svet”, a good song with lots of typical Eastern rhythms. It’s a nice listen, not overly memorable but I think it was amongst the better songs picked over the weekend. Annoyingly it’s in the 7/4 time signature that Tose Proseki used on “Life” is 2004 so it makes listening to it a bit awkward. Otherwise though not a bad effort. And as FYROM have qualified from every semi-final so far, I’d expect this one to go through to the final!

SPAIN’s very long and rather confusing selection process took place on Saturday with 25 performances! 5 singers, 5 songs, all possible combinations performed! What a marathon! At the end of it all, it was decided that the Boyband hunks, Nash, will go to Helsinki singing “I Love You Mi Vida”, typical boy band fodder. But, hey, they’re a decent boy band and they pull it off. It’s got a memorable hook to it this song AND it’s written by that pesky Swede Thomas G:Son, who has also written the Norwegian entry. He gets everywhere. But he knows how to write a good Eurovision song obviously. Not ground breaking stuff from Spain, but the boyband appeal may get them a few more marks than they have done of late.

Well, the Cypriot entry’s in French so why not have the LATVIAN entry in Italian?! They’re sending a group of male tenors and basses going by the name of bonoparti.lv and they’ll be singing the rather operatic “Questa Notte”. Sadly it’s a bit of a wet weekend in Wales. 2 years ago, the UK final had a great Il-Divo-esque song called “Brand New Day” in it, and it was MUCH better than “Questa Notte”. It’s such a great idea for an act, but the song just doesn’t cut it. It might qualify from the semi merely because the mums love a tenor, but the song is really not all that memorable. Bit of a letdown really. It’s nice but… it’s only nice.

So we like all the songs here. But still... will a standout song be chosen this year? Is there one on the horizon? Hopes still on Georgia... :-)

Comme Ci, Comme Ca...

Last night, Cypriot superstar, 39-year-old Evridiki performed her 2007 Eurovision entry for the first time. Following on from 11th placings in 1992 and 1994, she's back with Comme Ci, Comme Ca. And firstly may I say... what an appropriate title!

It's neither here nor there, it's not good but not bad, it's so-so... it is indeed comme ci comme ca.

Firstly it's all in French - a shrewd move from the Cypriots, but will it pay off? It seems a little odd to me. The song is another sort of 90s club-dance song a little bit like Hooked On You from the Norweigan National Final and also like the Swiss entry Vampires Are Alive - but it's less good. I don't know it just lacks something. For me, I'm missing a hook. I just can't seem to find this song's strengths. Also I watched this lady perform it on YouTube and she's rather distracting when she performs this as if she's demented! I don't remember her being quite show manic in the 90s. She's obviously aged well.

So yeah, the Cypriot entry, very comme ci comme ca. Will it qualify from the semi-final? Well if Evridiki finishes 11th for the third successive time then not only will it be unfortunate that she's failed to hit the Top 10 AGAIN, it means she won't qualify. It'll pick up votes from Greece and perhaps France and other countries but I'm not sure this is a certain qualifier. But don't write it off!

To The Dancefloor!

The Swiss and Belgian entries have been revealed midweek with interesting results...

It was revealed some time ago that DJ Bobo would be doing his stuff for the Swiss this year and he later announced that his song would have Balkan influences. It now seems that Bobo was lying because his entry "Vampires Are Alive" - yes, that is the title! - owes more to Ayia Napa than Bosnia & Herzegovina. It's a cheesy club dance tune that mixes his voice with some other bird's and, actually... it's not so bad! It's not a winner, and by no means a definite qualifier, but it's a bit different, cheesy tune with a good hook to it and with a good live performance this could become a competitor!

The weekly poll to find out fans' favourite Eurovision songs of the season so far hit its second week this week and Switzerland managed to gain a rather credible 5th place out of 15 songs! The poll was won for the second week by Belarus, with Iceland finishing runner up. Iceland!!! It's a terrible drog that Icelandic song!!! My favourite Norway has climbed up to 7th this week (whoop!) whilst my second favourite, Malta, came third bottom! Once again, I'm straying away from the collective fans favourites.

One country that revelaed their entry one day too late to be entered into this week's poll was Belgium. They will be represented by The Krazy Mess Groovers and their song "Love Power". Whisk yourself back to the 70s dancefloor and you're pretty much there! It's another cheesy 70s disco number, the sort of song you'd find on a 70s compilation CD that might fall out of your Sunday paper. Saying that, it's kind of groovy (they are Groovers, though) and I like that sort of stuff. So even though it is a bit limp, I think it's rather jolly all the same!

Next country to reveal is Cyprus, and in a year which is shaping up to be one of many just "average" songs, there's a lot of hope that Cyprus might come up with the biz. My hopes are still pinned on Georgia though - but more info on them in the coming week!

Loco To Todo... and more news!

So yeah, Locomondo had to change their name in a sort of 'Liberty X' type situation and so their new name is... Todomondo! I'm guessing this is purely in tribute to the 1990 Italian Eurovision winner Toto Cutugno. It kind of makes sense cos when Toto infamously presented the show in '91 he insisted on announcing the votes in many languages, and Locomondo - sorry - Todomondo's song is also about saying "I Love You" in as many languages as possible. I suspect a conspiracy.

In other news, the BBC have said that - and it pains me to say this - Daz Sampson will NOT be representing the UK this year (boo!). The BBC said it would be too soon for him to return! Let's hope this thinking rules out Javine's comback. On a slightly bigger note, the Beeb also announced that Mozza will not have anything to do with UK ESC this year either. All that build up for nothing... looks like Tony Christie and Emma Bunton it could be!

Austria have announced that a man called Eric will sing for them in Helsinki. Apparantly he did well on their version of Pop Idol. It worked for Jessica Garlick.

Belgium will be represented by a band called The Krazy Mess Groovers. Apprantly they're "krazy". Their song Love Power will be debuted this weekend and is expected to be a jazzy/disco fusion type song. Sounds intriguing... it could be good!

Likewise, this weekend sees the debuting of the Cypriot song, the announcement of the Hungarian entry, the national finals of Bulgaria, Latvia, Spain, Armenia, Montenegro and we'll also find out the first semi-final qualifier as FYR Macedonia pick their entry!!!! LOL!!!!

So it's a busy old weekend with a potential EIGHT songs being confirmed this weekend. Crikey...

Rock On In Scandinavia

Last night, Iceland and Finland chose their Eurovision entries for 2007. I've been following Iceland quite closely and there were a few decent songs in last night's final. However, as seems to be the trend this year, the underdog won, namely...

"Eg Les I Lofa Thinum" - Eirikur Hauksson

This song is a fairly bland number sung by old gravelly vocalist Eirikur who represented Iceland on their first attempt 21 years ago. He's a scary looking fellow and this isn't going to help matters that this song is instantly forgettable and rather out of touch with modern Eurovision flare. I don't think this is going to qualify at all and this is my second worst so far.

In Finland, the host country, they are still adamant that rock is king. Therefore, they will be sending this heavy rock song:

"Leave Me Alone" - Hanna Pakarinen

Hanna is a rock chick but unlike Gracia in 2005 she is a good performer and belts out this one with much conviction. It's received a lot of criticism from the fans and, even though it's not going to do the double for the Finns, I think this could still get a decent result. It's about halfway down my list at the moment. Good production, good sound to this and a great performer. Not a bad song either!

So a mixed bag from last night! Yet we've heard a third of the songs and still nothing stands out as winner yet... is it going to be a close affair this year? Or are the triumphant songs still yet to come? Let's hope for the latter. In the meantime, Norway's Ven A Bailar Conmigo still leads the pack for me!

Rock On In Scandinavia

Last night, Iceland and Finland chose their Eurovision entries for 2007. I've been following Iceland quite closely and there were a few decent songs in last night's final. However, as seems to be the trend this year, the underdog won, namely...

"Eg Les I Lofa Thinum" - Eirikur Hauksson

This song is a fairly bland number sung by old gravelly vocalist Eirikur who represented Iceland on their first attempt 21 years ago. He's a scary looking fellow and this isn't going to help matters that this song is instantly forgettable and rather out of touch with modern Eurovision flare. I don't think this is going to qualify at all and this is my second worst so far.

In Finland, the host country, they are still adamant that rock is king. Therefore, they will be sending this heavy rock song:

"Leave Me Alone" - Hanna Pakarinen

Hanna is a rock chick but unlike Gracia in 2005 she is a good performer and belts out this one with much conviction. It's received a lot of criticism from the fans and, even though it's not going to do the double for the Finns, I think this could still get a decent result. It's about halfway down my list at the moment. Good production, good sound to this and a great performer. Not a bad song either!

So a mixed bag from last night! Yet we've heard a third of the songs and still nothing stands out as winner yet... is it going to be a close affair this year? Or are the triumphant songs still yet to come? Let's hope for the latter. In the meantime, Norway's Ven A Bailar Conmigo still leads the pack for me!

They Can't Stop The Irish

Last night, Ireland chose their entry to this year's Eurovision Song Contest. After selecting the folk band Dervish to represent them a couple of months ago, it's not surprise that the song chosen is a very traditional Irish affair! The name of the song that will represent Ireland is:

"They Can't Stop The Spring" - Dervish

"They Can't Stop The Spring" is a lilting, Irish ballad with tin whistle, bodhran, violin, accordion - the whole works in fact! It's a very beautiful tune indeed, and the female vocalist Cathy Jordan sings it very well in a traditional style. One wonders whether it's too traditional to do well, but with the success of Eastern music in Eurovision of late, can traditional Irish music perhaps conquer all in May?

Ireland gain direct qualification for the Grand Final and so, along with Romania, we now have our second direct finalist. Two very different songs both set in tradition. A lovely choice though Ireland, very different and hopefully it'll get the points it deserves!

Luck of the Draw

Just when you thought the EBU couldn't mess anymore with the way Eurovision works (the semi-final, the way that ALL countries vote, the way the votes now appear on screen etc etc), they've only gone and messed up the way the draw works too.

Next month, the draw for running order will take place for both semi-final and grand final. This year though, the first five countries drawn for the semi-final and the first three countries drawn for the grand final will get 'wildcard' status, i.e. they'll get to choose whereabouts in the draw they'll actually go.

This is the most ridiculous and stupid thing the EBU have done to Eurovision EVER.

Fans have already spotted many potential difficulties such as what if the one of the first three "countries" drawn for the Grand Final is an Automatic Semi-Final qualifier. Will they get to decide where they go in the draw as late as 11th May? It's also unfair as the first three countries drawn out for the grand final will most probably pick positions near the end of the running, so that the semi-finalists will nearly all get early draws. Which would be fine if they were drawn out that way, but this is giving countries some advantages over others and it just isn't fair.

And many fans are indeed right that all this "tweaking" is overlooking the real problem of neighbourly or political voting which needs to be looked at immediately. Never mind all this faffing about with the draw which, if anyone from the EBU is reading this, is totally unfair and is a ridiculous idea. I really wish that Svante and his team stop messing around with Eurovision because it's getting to a point where nothing is fair anymore. Very sad indeed.

Some random tit-bits

There've been some interesting pieces of info flying around recently. Just thought I'd fill you in on some of them...

- The BBC have said that they'll announce exactly what's going to happend "around February 28th". This is very frustrating as this is most easily the latest that any broadcaster has revealed their plans. Apart from in 1956 when one country picked its entry too late. Guess who it was? Yeah, the BBC. God bless them.

- Billie Piper will NOT be representing the UK this year. A list was published this afternoon (a hoax, according to the Beeb) contatining the following names - Emma Bunton, Katrina Leskanich, Steven Scott-Lee, Ace of Base, Charlotte Church, Son Of Dork, Chico, Tina Cousins, Morrissey and 4Tune. The BBC called this list of names 'hilarious'.

- The Andorran entrants Anonymous have said that their song will "make the walls dance". If this is true of any Andorran song then it probably deserves some sort of rich reward.

- Romanian entrants Locomondo may have to change their name because some Greek group also possess it. Wonder what they'll call themselves?

- There's a song in the Armenian national final called "My Story" which is also the name of the favourite to win the Georgian final. I doubt the Armenian "My Story" is quite as legendary as the Georgian song of the same name, as that particular song is fantastic but bonkers.

- The hosts of this year's Eurovision Song Contest have been announced as Janna and Mikko who look like a lovely young couple. They haven't got much to live up to following last year's Maria "amazing" Menounos and Sakis "69 69 69" Rouvas.

- DJ Bobo, the Swiss entrant, has said that his song will be a pumping disco tune with Balkan influence. If he is right about this, he could pull off a fantastic Swiss result. This is, however, the man who had a hit with the rather un-Balkan "Chihuahua" so I won't get excited just yet.

- "Work Your Magic" from Belarus is the first official fan favourite of 2007 following an annual poll that takes place amongst fans every year. Not a bad choice. Norway came 7th out of 11. Boo hiss.

Edsilia Picks Dutch Entry!

Last night, the 2007 Dutch Eurovision entry was chosen. It had been announced some weeks ago that former participant Edsilia Rombley (4th in 1998) would take the responsibility of dragging the Netherlands out of the semis and into the grand final. In a rather bizarre nation final, Edsilia performed three songs and then SHE, not anybody else, chose which song she was going to have as her Eurovision entry. Ooh, the power.

Anyway, not wanting to upset the crowd in the studio, she chose the song that went down the best, and so the 2007 Netherlands entry is called…

“NOOIT MEER ZONDER JOU” – Edisila Rombley

It’s an upbeat song that starts slow (yep, one of those deceiving ones) and then breaks into a big chorus. But… it just doesn’t seem to be as big as it should, or indeed could be. I think there’s a big song waiting to get out here but, at the moment, its arrangement is not giving it enough power. It’s also already been likened to “One Day In Your Life” by Anastacia and, although the tune is different, the chord progressions are identical. “One Day In Your Life” though is one extremely powerful song! Edsilia should take some hints here.

So yeah, the Dutch entry as it stands is NOT BAD, and most certainly better than “Amambanda”, their entry last year, which was one of the worst Dutch songs ever. If they want to get out of the semis though, they need to rework the song because they won’t qualify if they don’t. And I fear that Netherlands are just one step away from pulling out of Eurovision if they don’t get the result they want this year. They haven’t finished in the Top 10 since 1999. Which is fair enough in some cases (2001, 2004, 2005), but not in others (Glennis Grace WAS ROBBED).

So good luck to the Netherlands – great performer. Just rework the song!!!

Come on, Liubi, do the Locmondo...

Romania’s national final was of course thrown into a lot of trouble, with three songs disqualified for breaking EBU rules. As a protest, the writers of the song “Crazy” went and withdrew their entry, which is a shame because it was the best song of the selection! Therefore, my hopes were pinned on “No Podre Vivir” by Marcel Pavel, or “Time” by Ionut Unugureanu. Did either of them win? No. This did though…

“LIUBI, LIUBI, I LOVE YOU” – Locomondo

After two years of Romanian songs being dance orientated, they will this year send a sort of Eastern European gypsy folk number in a similar style to Poland 2005. This result for me was the most interesting of last night. Romania’s good result last year means they automatically qualify for this year’s final, and so Locomondo are the first act that we know are definitely in the Saturday final. But how will the voters of Europe take this song? I’m very undecided! It’s got a bit of a novelty value to it, which could help it bring in a few votes. Eastern Europe will love it! I don’t think it’s too bad at all, but it’s not a particularly conventional song. A good performance could pull it off, but it’s not perhaps to everybody’s taste.

This song has got me really undecided! It’s about halfway down my ranking list, which can now be turned into a top ten, as we know have TEN songs picked! And here’s my current order for the moment…

1 NORWAY – “Ven A Bailar Conmigo”
2 MALTA – “Vertigo”
3 BELARUS – “Work Your Magic”

4 ESTONIA – “Partners In Crime”

5 ROMANIA – “Liubi, Liubi, I Love You”
6 DENMARK – “Drama Queen”
7 MOLDOVA – “Fight”

8 POLAND – “Time To Party”
9 SLOVENIA – “Cvet Z Juga”

10 ALBANIA – “Balada E Gurit”

So as you can see, I have a definite top three at the moment, with Norway leading the way. More entries to be chosen tonight though… it’s non-stop fun!

Latinorway

Oh, the Norwegian Grand Final! How it throws up some surprises! After the first part of the voting, the eight songs were whittled down to these four…

“CHICKEN RODEO” – Dusty Cowshit
“ROCKET RIDE” – Jannicke Abrahamsen
“WANNABE” – Crash
“VEN A BAILAR CONMIGO” – Guri Schanke

Yep, Infinity’s big club effort was eliminated, along with the mum pop of “Love On The Dancefloor”, the guitar riffs of “Maybe”, and (contrary to the bookies thoughts), the cheesy Eurovision pop of “Vil Du Ha Svar”. Of the four left, it seemed like “Chicken Rodeo” or “Wannabe” could win. But no. They finished 4th and 3rd respectively. Unlike Denmark, Norway didn’t make the wildcard entry their winner – that rules out “Rocket Ride”. Which means that Norway’s 2007 Eurovision Entry will be…

“VEN A BAILAR CONMIGO” – Guri Schanke

Good choice, Norway.

Even though this song is already loathed by many Eurovision fans, I think it’s fantastic! Especially to see the underdog come through too! “Ven A Bailar Conmigo” is a chirpy, upbeat, latino, flamenco song with a really, REALLY, memorable chorus. Musically, I don’t think this is going to be the best song of Eurovision 2007, but come May I think this could be a very dangerous song. I think it will qualify from the semi-final, and with a late draw and strong performance I really think this could challenge for the title! I could be showing some bias cos it really is my favourite song so far this year, but it’s so irresistible.
Maybe Dusty Cowshit lost out in the end, but well done Guri! I think you can do it!

Tran-tastic!

Yesterday three more entries were picked for Eurovision, with surprises everywhere, not least in Denmark! In an amazing twist that a national final has never seen before, a song that was originally eliminated from the competition actually won a “second chance” round wildcard and went on to win the whole national final! That song in question is…

“DRAMA QUEEN” – DQ

Yep, despite being initially eliminated from the first Danish semi-final, it was lucky enough to be given a second chance by Danish voters, and then went on to scoop the prize of representing Denmark yesterday evening. My ultimate favourite, the sublime “Sa Naer Som Nu” by Stig Rossen finished 3rd, whilst the soul number “Say You Love Me” by James Sampson finished just 4 points behind the winner to finish 2nd. Me & My’s “Two Are Stronger Than One” may have been a big favourite, but it finished way down in 6th place.

So what’s “Drama Queen” like then for a Eurovision entry? Well DQ is a transvestite performer, of which the Eurovision Song Contest has seen surprisingly little of before! Both Norway and Sweden have tried to send drag acts in recent years but both have failed. Slovenia’s 2002 entrants, Sestre, were indeed a drag act but their song was rather drab. Despite that, they still finished 13th. This could be a good sign for DQ, as his/her song “Drama Queen” is a camp, glitzy big show-number, and has all the potential to get a lot of votes at Eurovision! I don’t think it’s a particularly brilliant song, but I should think it could pick votes up easily with a bit of a novelty vote. Denmark have to qualify from the semi final, i.e. finish in the Top 10 out of 28 countries, and although there’s a long way to go, it could be one to watch for qualification.

Alas, I’m rather disappointed that Stig Rossen didn’t win – I was hoping it would actually bring the ‘song’ element back to the Eurovision Song Contest. But “Drama Queen” should do well and DQ should give quite a show. An interesting decision from Denmark indeed!

Nor-way of Nor-wing who the winner is here!

NOR-WAY OF NOR-WING THE WINNER HERE…

I always like the Norwegian national final, no idea why but there’s always a good selection of songs! Their final is called the Melodi Grand Prix, the MGP, which is the same name as Denmark’s final, also held on Saturday night – confusion will reign!

Anyway, last year Norway finished only 14th despite being represented by the brilliant “Alvedansen”, so they’ll be looking for a song to help them clamber out of the semi-finals and believe me, there’s a good possibility that there’s a song here that could do that!

The MGP works as follows – after the 8 songs are initially performed, the top 4 songs chosen by televoting and jury qualify to a “superfinal” where the voting is reopened and the winner announced. But the eight songs tonight are so different and strong, I’m not sure who’ll be in the “superfinal” let alone the winner! Here’s the songs in contention…



1 “HOOKED ON YOU” – Infinity
This song is reminiscent of hard early 90s dance music, “Hooked On You” being a catchy piece of retro pop sung by two people who appear to be the mum and dad of 2 Unlimited. There’s something about the age of these two people that disturbs me a little, not least the fact that the song is played out more like ‘Barbie Girl’ – he’s got a very gruff voice indeed! It’s a good fun song though, and is one to watch.


2 “VIL DU HA SVAR” – Jenny Jenssen
This is the most dated piece of Schlager pop you could possibly ever hear! “Vil Du Ha Svar” is cheesy, bouncy, poppy, and straight from Eurovision of the 1980s. It’s a very cute little song, but I fear that it’s perhaps a little too old-fashioned. If it wins, it may do well in Helsinki, but it’s perhaps a little too unfashionable to challenge for the title.


3 “MAYBE” – Trine Rein feat. Andreas Ljones
This is a slowed down, groovy song with a relentless guitar riff, also played on the violin which is a lovely touch! It’s got a great chorus on it, very strong and memorable but the song sounds very like something else! It starts a bit like “Miss Independent” by Kelly Clarkson, but it’s a bit rockier, a bit heavier. It’s groovy, I kind of like it, but I fear it’s not going to set the world alight.


4 “CHICKEN RODEO” – Dusty Cowshit
Well what can you say here? “Chicken Rodeo” is a country yokel masterpiece sung by of country folk armed with banjos, ukuleles and other country instruments. It’s a really catchy little song, and will doubtless win the novelty vote. This could well be the Norwegian entry by the end of Saturday and it would be thoroughly deserved. Great song!


5 “LOVE ON THE DANCEFLOOR” – Torhild Sivertsen & Funky Family
Imagine your Mum gets up at a party and starts singing some awful retro funk tune. Bingo. “Love On The Dancefloor” is a nauseating piece of Mum-pop, not helped by the fact that the “mature” Torhild is backed by a group called the ‘Funky Family’. Hmm. I’m really not a fan of this song, I don’t think this would be right for Norway at all.


6 “ROCKET RIDE” – Jannicke Abrahamsen
This is a great fun song! It sounds sort of intergalactic, and it’s got a bit of an outer-space theme to it, not least the gold and black outfits! It’s a very camp, fun, pop song that, on the video, seemed to stir the audience right up! It’s a bit Abba-like actually! I’m not sure if the chorus is quite strong enough to carry it to win this MGP, but it certainly adds a lot of fun to it!


7 “WANNABE” – Crash
Well I don’t think one national final in Europe will pass without *some* sort of guitar based song, and this is Norway’s attempt. “Wannabe” isn’t bad at all with its catchy melody driving through in the chorus. It’s more of a Busted song than perhaps a Lordi song, but it’s a great piece of pop and if Norway do want to go for guitars, then this is the very obvious winner. Not bad at all.


8 “VEN A BAILAR CONMIGO” – Guri Schanke
Arguably one of the catchiest songs of the NF season is the highly Un-Norwegian titled “Ven A Bailar Conmigo”. This is more like a Spanish entry than a Norwegian song, but who cares if genres get mixed up across Europe?! This is a really great song actually, rather clichéd, but it’s rather fun and, as I say, very catchy indeed. Very likeable!


Here’s my top eight:

1 “CHICKEN RODEO” – Dusty Cowshit
2 “VEN A BAILAR CONMIGO” – Guri Schanke
3 “HOOKED ON YOU” – Infinity
4 “VIL DU HA SVAR” – Jenny Jenssen
5 “ROCKET RIDE” – Jannicke Abrahamsen
6 “MAYBE” – Trine Rein ft. Andreas Ljones
7 “WANNABE” – Crash
8 “LOVE ON THE DANCEFLOOR” – Torhild Sivertsen & Funky Family


I must say though that apart from “Love On The Dancefloor”, I quite like all of these songs! I don’t think my personal ranking order represents my thinking of how successful they would do at Eurovision – I think “Wannabe” would do rather well. It’s a very open competition tonight, it could go anywhere. But, for me, any of the top four would be a great choice for me.
But you can’t say no to the rodeo!

Romania Pick Their Entry Tomorrow - No Fancy Headline Pun, Couldn't Think Of One

Romania have had a superb couple of years in Eurovision, and they will hope to keep this record up in 2007. After a 3rd place in 2005, and 4th place last year, they’re on to be one of the most successful Eurovision nations this decade. Of course, due to last year’s fully deserved result for the highly popular “Tornero”, they automatically gain qualification to the Grand Final.

Their two semi-finals have been controversy-leaden however, with only nine of the twelve originally selected songs for the final going through. Three songs, including Rednex’s were withdrawn because they had all been performed in public before 1 October 2006, a violation of one of the EBU’s rules. Slapped wrists all round for removing three quite strong songs!

Anyway, these are the nine songs that we believe are going to be in contention tomorrow night!

1. “DULCE-AMARUIE” – Nico
This is a sort of modern ballad that, you know, goes. But it doesn’t really “go” very far particularly. Nico seems to have a very nice voice, and it does inkeep with that rather contemporary feel that Romania have been sending to the contest of late. Gentle chorus, lacking in ‘oomph’ though generally I would say. Don’t think this is the winner.


2. “DECI 20” – Trupa Veche
Not quite sure how this one made the Romanian final, but there you go! It’s a very nothing song, female vocal pop-rock song, but I’m not sure about her voice. It sounds a bit shaky on the recording, so not sure if she would pull this one off live. It’s really not a particularly great song, but nicely contrasts with the next song…


3. “CRAZY” – Morandi and Wassabi
This is a rather slick modern song with a nice retro feel to it, and it somehow gets away with not sounding too dated as well! Really catchy chorus and it’s a very well written upbeat song that would surely pull in some votes at Eurovision. Not easy to perform a dance track, but it was done rather well at the Romanian semi-finals, and this is most certainly one to watch.


4. “NO PODER VIVIR” – Marcel Pavel
Baldy Marcel represented Romania in 2002 with the rather operatic “Tell Me Why”. This year he returns with a sort of flamenco dance track with a great chorus! It sounds a bit more Maltese or Spanish than Romanian, but let’s not hold that against him because it’s not actually a bad song. It would probably do quite well at the main contest in Helskini I would think and he’s a fab performer too. Really good solid song this, could be one to watch out for!


5. “WHERE WERE YOU” – Desperado And Tony Poptamas
This song is sung by a man who appears to go by the name of Tony Hippopotamus, but that aside… this is like a song from the Icelandic semi-finals. It’s rather dull, MOR male pop-rock song. It sounds to me like a Michael Bolton B-Side of the early 90s. I mean it’s all very nice, and I’m sure this could pull in the ‘mum’ vote, but there are so many strong melodies in this final, I fear this one will get lost amongst them.


6. “NU POT SA UI” – Tibi Scobiola
This is a good little song, a male ballad (but not of pop-rock origin, thank goodness) that sees some very nice falsetto work from Tibi in the chorus. There’s a nice melody to it, but it’s a tad forgettable and there’s nothing really in this song to make it stand out. Although, as I’ve said already, that falsetto could work rather nicely in this if it can be pulled off.


7. “LIUBI, LIUBI, I LOVE YOU” – Locomondo
What can only be described as ska-brass here. This is a bit of a nonsense song with very odd lyrics, doing that very clever tactic of name-checking many places across Europe, which worked for Liam Reilly, but alas not for Nina Astrom. This can only be described as Eastern European gypsy music really and, after two big club anthems from Romania, this would be a rather severe change. The idea of the song is good, but they don’t really pull it off I don’t think.


8. “TIME” – Ionut Ungureanu
Whistling. Now there’s something a bit different in the introduction of “Time”, an odd song in a waltz time that breezes along very nicely and by the end of verse, the song turns into a rather classy, orchestrated instrumental break reminding me of perhaps a George Michael song! I’m worried that perhaps “Time” is a little too subtle for the Eurovision. It’s not a winner for me, but it’s a very mature, stylish song that deserves to do well.


9. “EUROPEAN – A BEAUTIFUL SIN” – Desperado and Tony Poptamas
Yes, somehow amongst all the Romanian kerfuffle, Tony Hippopotamus manages to get TWO songs in this final! This is a much better song than “Where Were You”, and despite the highly odd, and most probably controversial song title (are the EBU really going to allow the words European and Sin in the same title?) it goes along rather nicely. But it’s not going to win I don’t think because I just don’t know if Europe are going to unanimously vote for a song that’s reminiscent of something by Mike & The Mechanics.


So there’s a plethora of musical styles and genres to get your teeth into in this final, but what should win? For me, “Crazy” is the best song here, followed by “No Podre Vivir” and then “Time”, although as I say I’m not too sure if Europe will go for this sort of song. Good luck to those three though, one of them is the deserved winner! Shame about Rednex though.

Great Danes!

Denmark will tomorrow night pick their Eurovision entry in their annual MGP. Last year, they chose the utterly awful “Twist Of Love” as their entry which rightfully finished a pitiful 18th place (but undeservedly scored 1 point more than the Daz Sampson). After a win in 2000, runner up in 2001, and a joint ninth spot in 2005, can Denmark pick another song to give them a good result and get them out of the semis?

Here are the songs that the Danes are pinning their hopes on…


1. “COPENHAGEN AIRPORT” – Annette Heick
Following on from the 1984 Irish entry, “Terminal Three”, and the 2002 Slovenian drag act Sestre who dressed as hair hostesses, here comes another flight-based song. Annette arrives onstage in a buggy, gets out and reveals that she is wearing an air hostess uniform which is far too short for her! Cover up love! This song is a rather dated upbeat dance song, but Denmark do dated rather well. Just look at all of their entries from the 1980s. This could do well – watch out for it.


2. “TWO ARE STRONGER THAN ONE” – Me & My
Pop is not dead in Denmark. This is a great pop song with a really catchy hook sung by two women, presumably Me & My, who for some strange reason are dressed as superheroes, no doubt coming to save Denmark from their Eurovision perils. This is apparently the favourite to win, and it’s no surprise cos it’s a great cheesy pop song, not typically Schlager (take note Sweden), that has a great hook and is performed really well. This could well be in Helsinki in May!


3. “FLY” – Annika Askman
Not A bad song at all, in the sort of Delta Goodrem vain really. It’s nice to see a talented young lady at a piano anyway! It’s a bit fancy-free though, and probably wouldn’t shake any windows across Europe, but it’s quite a nice song. If only she could incorporate a buggy into her performance, then it could almost become an episode of Challenge Annika in which she has to amend Denmark’s bad result from last year! Oh, imagine!


4. “IT’S A BEAUTIFUL DAY” – Katrine Falkenberg
A very winsome song, the sort of thing you’d sing at a picnic on a summer’s day. Not sure about the ‘Hey, hey, hey/It’s a beautiful day’ lyric either. It’s a country song really, and I find it quite irritating and dull, but whether these two things are related I’m unsure about. Hmm, I don’t think so – this is twee with a capital ‘tw’. And I’ve just realised what it sounds like – ‘Top Of The World’ by the Carpenters! But in a really bad way!


5. “LISTEN TO LOVE” – Jacob Anderson
‘Listen to Love’ orders Jacob Anderson, the pesky guy, when looked at from the right angle, really resembles Gaz Top from How 2 and other great kids TV shows. This is a sort of slow rock song, but is better than anything similar entered by Iceland as it does actually sound fairly modern. This could be in with a chance, the bookies have it as one of the faves I believe, but there are much catchier things on offer.


6. “VI ELSKER BARE DANSKER PIGER” – Jorgen Olsen
Jorgen Olsen is a bit of a Danish hero after winning the 2000 Eurovision Song Contest with his brother and their excellent “Fly On The Wings Of Love”. He’s having a stab on his own though this year, with a rather old fashioned song that isn’t really as good as some of his previous efforts. He’s got a great voice and is really likeable, and as nice as this song is, I fear that without youth on his side (he’s 57) he’s not got the winning package with this one.


7. “MEANING OF LIFE” – Danni Elmo
This is a sort of 90s boy-band rock pop song which bounces along rather nicely, but again I don’t think stands out too much from the crowd. A lot of people seem to like it, but I don’t think it stands out from the crowd at all, possibly the weakest song in the selection. Boring and a bit of a nothing song, building up nicely into song eight I find…


8. “SA NAER SOM NU” – Stig Rossen
Well I don’t want to big this one up too much, but it is the best song I’ve heard from Eurovision 2007 so far. It begins as a bit of a cheesy Disney-ballad, but builds up into the most beautiful song. Stig is not in his first flush of youth (well, younger than Jorgen Olsen) but he is an experienced singer and it shows. Magnificent song, brilliant performer, if I were Danish I would be phoning in trillions of time for this one – superb!!!


9. “SAY YOU LOVE ME” – James Sampson
Any relation to Daz? No? Well this is quite obvious, cos whereas Daz’s forte is rapping, James’s forte is pumping out some SOUL! “Say You Love Me” is a lovely summery bit of 60s soul pop. Very bright, very bouncy, and he’s a sterling singer too! Really good, and very different from usual Eurovision throwaway fodder, this could stand a real chance at winning the MGP this year. Very good indeed!


10. “DRAMA QUEEN” – DQ
Considering what a camp event the Eurovision tends to be, it’s no wonder we don’t see more transvestites. Thank goodness for DQ! His/her song is a stereotypically glam and glitzy affair with a camp, catchy chorus that will probably whip the crowds up into a frenzy. It’s not one of the strongest songs in this selection, but it would do well at Eurovision ‘cause the televoters LOVE this sort of thing! Could be the dark horse…


As you can tell, I have one clear favourite of these ten songs. Stig Rossen would bring something rather different to the Modern Eurovision, and I believe that he would get votes because the song is SO good! However, I don’t think Me & My would shame the Danes either, their song is very good, and James Sampson’s soul-pop song would also bring something a little bit unexpected to Helsinki. Any of these three would suit me, but it has to be Stig Rossen for me!

Gerli Power

Last night, Slovenia, Poland, Estonia and Malta all chose their entries for Helsinki. In a mammoth Eurovision evening where THIRTEEN countries were holding national finals of some sort (they say that’s unlucky y’know), four entries were picked last night, and they were…


ESTONIA
“Partners In Crime” / Gerli Padar

Good choice I say here, it was my third favourite out of the ten potential Estonian entries. It’s a Pink-like rock number performed by the very able Gerli Padar, brother of Eurovision 2001 winner Tanel. Talk about keeping it in the family. She’ll be pleased cos if she doesn’t win these things she can get quite bitter (see the 2002 Sahlene-gate lower down the blog).


SLOVENIA
“Cvet Z Juga” / Alenka Gotar

Fourteen potential songs were shown in Slovenia, and this was the winner, a sort of opera meets pop type dance song which I’m not convinced about yet. Nice soprano voice, nice idea, but it lacks a certain something – it feels like it should have more “oomph” than it actually does! I don’t think this will be seeing Slovenia through to the grand final, although there seem to be mixed feelings about this one.


POLAND
“Time To Party” / The Jet Set

Well I was a big fan of Moleda at the Polish National Final, but it was the contemporary R&B sounds of “Time To Party” that won in the end. Like Estonia, this was my third favourite from Poland to qualify, so not bad at all. Still not convinced it’s going to qualify from the semi-final though.


MALTA
“Vertigo” / Olivia Lewis

Thank GOD that Olivia Lewis won! After 10 years of hurt, she will finally grace the Eurovision stage in May with a song that has the potential to qualify. Fingers crossed anyway, cos it’s a great flamenco belter that deserves a good result in Helsinki.


Elsewhere in Europe last night, nine countries held national finals including Norway and Iceland (updates later this week!), and Sweden where the Melodifestivalen kicked off in, apparently, predictable Schlager-style.

But after last night, we now have seven entries chosen, one sixth of the total songs, and one quarter of the semi-final! It would be silly if I didn’t do a ranking list, so this is how things stand with me so far…

1 MALTA – “Vertigo”
2 BELARUS – “Work Your Magic”
3 ESTONIA – “Partners In Crime”
4 MOLDOVA – “Fight”
5 POLAND – “Time To Party”
6 SLOVENIA – “Cvet Z Juga”
7 ALBANIA – “Balada E Gurit”

I don’t think we’ve heard the winner yet, and I’m only sure about one of these songs being a potential qualifier! Still, we’ve got 35 songs left to be chosen yet with, I believe, Denmark, Romania, Norway and Georgia all picking their entries next weekend! Roll on next week already I say!

Malteasers

Malta have a lot of pride to restore in 2007. After finishing 2nd in 2002, they did the same in 2005, with Chiara’s fabulous performance of “Angel” clocking up 192 points. Sadly, last year, they scored 191 points less with the fairly useless Fabrizio Feniello murdering “I Do”, which is a shame cos it could’ve done OK. Malta don’t finish at the bottom of the Eurovision table too often, so last year’s 24th placing was a bit of a shock – fingers were pointed, people were blamed and I believe that some people were even sacked. This is how seriously some countries take the Eurovision Song Contest.

This year, following a semi-final on Thursday which saw ten songs eliminated, six songs will compete for the chance to give Malta a decent result, and what a lovely mixed bag of songs they are. There’s something for everyone here, and here’s a lowdown of the potentials…


1 “WHENEVER” – Kevin Borg
Oh no, not The Borg! Yes, this is Kev Borg, who has a surprisingly feminine voice. But let’s not have that put you off the song, which is a slow piano-led ballad. It’s rather pleasant, has a nice tune, but it’s quite clichéd. I doubt that Malta will choose an American-style ballad, but stranger things have happened of course, this is the country that chose Lynn Chircop as a potential winner.


2 “SHE GIVES ME WINGS” – Klinsmann Coleiro
If McFly were Maltese… this begins very like the McFly hit “Obviously”, and actually it continues in a similar vain. In fact, the lead into the chorus is exactly the same. If you like McFly-type pop, perhaps opting for something along the lines of Son Of Dork, then this is for you. This would certainly score well from the UK if this won tonight.


3 “AS LONG AS YOU KNOW” – Scar
Oh more guitars here, the introduction is very like “Maria” by Blondie! It turns into a fairly nice piece of friendly guitar pop, inoffensive and lovely, but it doesn’t really do anything else, even though I’m a big fan of the rather great chorus. I doubt this stands much of a chance as being the winner tonight, but I wouldn’t complain if it was.


4 “VERTIGO” – Olivia Lewis
Olivia Lewis is the unluckiest person IN THE WORLD. She has been in Malta’s national final every year since 1997, and has finished 2nd in it for the past three years. Luckily for her, she enters this year’s Maltese selection as the favourite. “Vertigo” is a frantic, high-drama piece of music in a sort of Spanish American bull-fighting type genre that flows along dangerously in a highly unusual 6/8 time signature. It’s very much the favourite amongst fans to win tonight, partly because the song is very popular, and partly because everyone feels that it HAS to be Olivia Lewis’s turn to do her stuff for Malta. Oh, and “Vertigo” does involve good use of a fiddle too.


5 “ALL ABOUT A LIFE” – Pamela Bezzina
This is a rather pleasant piece of pop music, but after the dramatic heights of what’s just gone before, this is going to sound rather twee. In fact, this isn’t too bad a song, but it’s the sort of stuff that would have done well about 10 years ago, and perhaps not today. Pamela sounds like the third Mullan sister, except this song is much better than there song was. Very nice, but I don’t see this as a winner.


6 “STARLIGHT” – Trilogy
Well here’s different. This is another dramatic piece of music with a hint of classical music three very good vocalists, including a rather nice soprano, sing this dark Les Miserables type song. Of course, this is a nice idea and the end result is good, but I don’t think “Starlight” is anywhere near as instant enough as other songs in the Maltese national final. But it could win the “different” vote and still wouldn’t be a bad choice of entry – I think there’s better though.


So that’s the six songs, with my order of preference…

1 “VERTIGO” – Olivia Lewis
2 “AS LONG AS YOU KNOW” – Scar
3 “STARLIGHT” – Trilogy
4 “ALL ABOUT A LIFE” – Pamela Bezzina
5 “SHE GIVES ME WINGS” – Klinsmann Coleiro
6 “WHENEVER” – Kevin Borg

If there’s any justice, Olivia should win tonight. I don’t think any of these songs are potential Eurovision winners, but with Malta’s reputation taking a stumble last year, they’ll be looking for a good result. “Vertigo” could well provide it!

Twice In A Lifetime?

Tomorrow night, Estonia will hold Eurolaul 2007, the competition to select their Eurovision Song Contest entry 2007. Since their win in 2001, they’ve not had much luck, not even being in the grand final since 2003. To be fair, their entries haven’t been all that groundbreaking. But will this year be any different?

These are the ten potential acts that are hoping to take the reigns for Estonia this year:


1. “SO MUCH TO SAY” – KRISTJAN KASEARU & PARADISE CREW
Hmm, they’re kicking off with sort of 90s boy-band rock which is all very well and good, but it hasn’t got any “oomph”. Nice melody and all, but I fear it will not be for Kristjan and his Paradise Crew. Sorry, “Paradise Crew”??

2. “SUPREME NATURE” – DEVA DEVA DANCE
Weird song about nature and the sea sung by what appear to be some druids in cloaks. Thoroughly bizarre, reminiscent of a piece of Modern Drama. This is the country that did send Neiokoso though, so let’s not discount this. It’s not so bad and there is a nice gimmick concerning a butterfly too.

3. “VEIDI VEEL” – KOIT TOOME
Represented Estonia 9 years ago in Birmingham finishing 12th with a song that was much better than this song, which is very obviously too high for him to give it any power, which is a shame ‘cos the verse builds up rather well and the chorus has a nice melody. He builds us up then breaks our hearts…

4. “SUNFLOWERS” – LAURA POLDVERE
This is a song asking you to “learn the secrets of flowers”. Curious. It’s a bit of a nothing song really and doesn’t go very far, although there’s a bit of a Cher-robotic-voice in the middle. Laura was part of Estonia’s 2005 entrants Suntribe, which does nothing at all to help her cause for getting me to like this song.

5. “PARTNERS IN CRIME” – GERLI PADAR
Rock chick has never really worked at Eurovision before, but this song is not bad at all, it’s got a good chorus on it. Not only this, but Gerli’s a good performer and, looking at her style, a big fan of Pink. This is her third attempt to represent Estonia at Eurovision, and if she doesn’t win she’ll sure be bitching about it, as she openly did on a TV documentary in 2002 when her song was beaten by one that was about 10 times better. She really should have got over the fact that her song was RUBBISH. She’s improved with this one.

6. “BIRDS OF PEACE” – VANILLA NINJA
These Estonian “Birds” represented Switzerland two years ago in the Swiss attempt to get a good result. It worked, they finished 8th. Now, Bangles-like Vanilla Ninja return with another big rock song. Maybe they shouldn’t have bothered. It’s a bit of a plodder, a bit of a slow heavy rock ballad, but it could well win Eurolaul cos it’s got a good hook, and they’re bloody big in Estonia. Bigger than Gerli Padar’s ego, I hear.

7. “ONE YEAR FROM NOW” – LINDA
Oh, it’s like a wet weekend in Skeg, except with a dodgy karaoke singer. This woman’s voice is shakier that Marie Myriam’s finale hands! It’s a bit of a shame, cos the song wouldn’t be so bad if you couldn’t hear pushing for those high notes. I don’t think this one’s going to win.

8. “MY PLACE” – SOUL MILITIA
Soul Militia are the Artists Formerly Known As 2XL and won the 2001 Eurovision Song Contest for Estonia along with, ho-ho, Tanel Padar – Gerli’s brother! No wonder she’s such a bitter lady! For this song though, basically think N*Sync, and you’ve pretty much got it. It’s very filthy too. One of them says “you make me horny” at one point. Eurovision just won’t condone this rudeness. But maybe they should give it a chance cos it’s very “street” and “hip”. Crap dance routine though.

9. “IN GOOD AND BAD” – INES
As if we need more ex-Eurovision stars, here rolls in Ines, taker of 4th place in Stockholm 2000, and winner of Estonian Woman Of The Year 2000 also. And guess what? She used to go out with Tanel Padar, sidekick of Soul Militia and brother of Gerli! Estonia’s obviously a very small place.

Anyway I’m meant to be talking about the song here which is not bad at all. There’s a nice bit of piano in the pop/rock song a la Embrace or Coldplay and it’s not a bad effort at all. Not good as her 2000 entry, but this sort of breezy pop is a nice dose of medicine after all the Chicken Rodeo / James Bond soundalikes we’ve experience so far. Nice also that in the preview video that she appears to have borrowed some clothes off Nusa Derenda. A joke there for the fans.

10. “ROMEO AND JULIET” – HELE KORE & KRISTJAN KASEARU
Hang on, is this the same Kristjan Kasearu who did Song 1? Is that allowed?! Well it doesn’t matter cos this ain’t going to trouble the judges. Heavy on musical drama, as one Mr Wogan may say, but sadly lacking in nearly everything else. Boo hiss.


So what’s the best song? Er… well that’s tricky, as nothing stands out as being particularly special. But if I had to construct a top 10, 1 being great and 10 being not so great, then it would look a little like this…

1 IN GOOD AND BAD – Ines
2 SUPREME NATURE – Deva Deva Dance
3 PARTNERS IN CRIME – Gerli Padar
4 MY PLACE – Soul Militia
5 BIRDS OF PEACE – Vanilla Ninja
6 VEIDI VEEL – Koit Toome
7 SO MUCH TO SAY – Kristjan Kasearu & Paradise Crew
8 SUNFLOWERS – Laura Poldvere
9 ONE YEAR FROM NOW – Linda
10 ROMEO AND JULIET – Hele Kore & Kristjan Kasearu

So it’s good luck to Ines tomorrow, and also to Deva Deva Dance, there’s not enough eccentricity in the Eurovision Song Contest (this fact has not been proven however).

Poled Over

So Poland pick their entry this Saturday, with 10 songs in the running for the chance. Poland have had an irritating last few years at Eurovision. After achieving a 7th place in 2003, they only finished 17th the year after, and have been in the semi-final for the last two years finished eleventh on both occasions! Gargh! So hopefully, they’ll find a song that can get them out of the semi-finals and win them the contest for the first time.

Here are the songs in contention:


1. “OPEN YOUR MIND” – Ania Szarmarch
It’s funky, it’s hip, it’s contemporary – this wouldn’t sound out of place on US radio! Her voice is a bit odd though, and it’s not the catchiest of tunes in the world… however, if you’re looking for what one may call “street cred”, then this song could be for you! You don’t mind many songs like this in Eurovision pre-selections! Particularly in Iceland.


2. “EMILY” – Charizma
Now this sounds like more of the stuff that Iceland like, more’s the pity. It’s a rocky tune sung by a male, obviously, but it’s not bad at all, and the chorus is quite good. Reminds me a bit of Maroon 5 or Orson! But this is just not the sort of stuff that they go for in Eurovision usually. It’s perhaps not “stand-out” enough to win the Polish national final, but it’s a pretty good song all the same.


3. “ON MY MIND” – Button Hackers
This is a sort of lounge-funk based song (can’t believe I just described a potential Eurovision song as lounge-funk, but there you go). It’s got nice brass, tranquil twiddly bits and generally a nice vibe to it. Again, not your usual cup of Eurovision tea, but then again Lordi won the ESC didn’t they? Stranger things have happened… I’d chill out to this little tune!


4. “COME IN MY HEART” – Vino
Well this is very My Chemical Romance. It’s a dark gothic rock piece, but it’s gentle – I even heard a cello somewhere! It’s rather dull though and doesn’t go anywhere of particular interest. If you’re a fan of morbid guitar music, this is for you. Otherwise, I wouldn’t bother.


5. “NO SECOND CHANCE” –Moleda
Oh, it’s a lovely ballad! Now these are a rarity in modern Eurovision, but you only have to look at the 2005 results to see that they can still score exceedingly well. This is a male duo, two brothers I believe, singing a very nice song that I believe could score well at Eurovision. It reminds of 1990s Michael Jackson, and it’s very smooth, very soulful… yeah, I like this a lot, definitely my favourite so far!


6. “TIME TO PARTY” – The Jet Setters
R&B in Eurovision? The verses to this song are rather funky, very contemporary, sung by a female vocalist with some male rap thrown in for good measure. Reminds me of something by Nelly Furtado! The beat begins to swing in the chorus with a more 1940s sound. It’s a compelling mix, and is perhaps the dark horse in this competition. It’s very different, but it seems to work quite well. Perhaps they shouldn’t have rhymed ‘party’ with ‘party’ though.


7. “I LIKE IT LOUD” – Natasza Urbanska
This song’s first lyric is “Hey Mr DJ, have you got a record for me” – sounds familiar to me! Again, this is very contemporary, but I’m not finding it particularly brilliant I’m afraid. It’s sort of rocky and brassy, very inyerface, but I’d rather it got out of my face to be honest.


8. “REGROUP” – Hania Stach
This is a quirky little upbeat song with a cute little bassline and lots of little noises dispersing themselves throughout this track. There’s something odd about this, can’t put my finger on it though. It’s again very commercial summery pop, but it just lacks that hook that could make it just that little bit better.


9. “LOVE IN THE AIR” – Mikael Erlandsson
This guy has tried to represent Sweden before, but now he’s pinning his luck on the people of Poland. “Love Is In The Air” is a sort of 60s pop song in a modern style, lots of nice harmonies, and it’s a pretty perfect pop package – you can tell he’s had experience in Sweden’s Melodifestivalen, let’s put it that way! It even has a funky little piano break before the final choruses! A very enjoyable listen, reminded me of “Sing For Me” by Andreas Jonsson, third place in last year’s Melodifestivalen. Very good indeed.


10. “DON’T JUDGE ME” – Bikini
“Don’t Judge Me” is a pop/rock song with female vocals, sort of poppy Vanilla Ninja really. It’s not too bad, but it’s a bit shouty and is a tad forgettable. Also, calling your band Bikini, and then asking the public to not judge you seems rather a lot to ask.


So there’s my review. And don’t forget that, unlike many other Eurovision countries, this is the only show that Poland will have! 10 songs, 1 winner. And this is my ranking of the songs with 1 meaning ‘Lordi’, and 10 meaning ‘Arsenium’…

1 NO SECOND CHANCE – Moleda
2 LOVE IN THE AIR – Mikael Erlandsson
3 TIME TO PARTY – The Jet Setters
4 EMILY - Charizma
5 ON MY MIND – Button Hackers
6 OPEN YOUR MIND – Ania Szarmarch
7 REGROUP – Hania Stach
8 DON’T JUDGE ME – Bikini
9 I LIKE IT LOUD – Natasza Urbanska
10 COME IN MY HEART – Vino


I’d be happy with any of the top three to win, let’s just hope “rock” hasn’t got the better of the Poles and they pick Vino…