MOLDOVA

The Moldovan Final was held on February 28th at the TRM TV Studios in Chisinau, hosted by Olivia Furtuna & Sergiu Beznitchi. To select their entry, there were live webcast auditions as well as 2 semi-finals where the list of 24 was reduced to 16. The winner was chosen by televoting (50%) and an "expert" jury (50%) and was announced as "I want your love" sung by Eduard Romanyuta.

Way back in October, Moldova announced an open selection process for songs and held auditions for their top 50 selections at the beginning of January. This all said and done it seemed from the very outset that this was a foregone conclusion. This particular song was seemingly in place as a possible Ukrainian entry *if* the country decided to join this year but when this fact was confirmed the song was transferred to the Moldovan selection. Eduard came a close second with the jury but easily won the televote.

This feels like a boy band song from the 90s. This is not helped by the dancing and styling created on stage or by Eduard's rather dated looks. The tune in the verse is very similar to that of "A little bit" by Liberty X and the chorus is incredibly repetitive and earwormy. The thread of the song is the archetypal boy chancing girl number. I can imagine the song going down quite well in the hall, especially as an opener or as respite from all the slow numbers.

Eduard Romanyuta is no stranger to Eurovision preselections. He has competed in 4 previous Ukrainian shows each time being unsuccessful. He has quite an American twang to his voice and doesn't really have any of those Eastern European traits to his English singing voice. To his credit he is an all-round performer, not shirking the use of full on choreography with his singing. He spends most of the time interacting and being concerned with what is going on on the stage. He will need to take more time to interact with the cameras and getting the people involved and interested at home

I think the essence of the song and performance is not going to change. I think they style of performance, although dated, will stand out and one can say that there is nothing much like this in the contest already. A lot of work needs to be done on the choreography, staging and styling to make it less dated, more appealing to viewers but also more cohesive as a performance. As for the ending of the song - the reveal of the woman with a beard - it doesn't really sit well. I mean it's interesting that they have referred to this but it's not done in a positive way and might not sit well with Conchita who will be in the auditorium!

I am really torn on this one because in some ways it has a lot going for it but in other ways it feels old and dated. In a contest of mainly middle of the road and ballad styled songs this is a real breath of fresh air and something that really grabs your attention but this brings nothing new to the table. It's certainly not going to set the world of radio on fire or being something heard in the clubs so I feel this ultimately has limited appeal. Maybe it's links to Ukraine may get it a free make over (or make under in some points) but as is I don't think this is going to be a qualifier.

ARTIST - Eduard Romanyuta

SONG - I want your love

MUSIC - Erik Lewander, Hayley Aitken, Tom Andrews

LYRICS - Erik Lewander, Hayley Aitken, Tom Andrews