Semi-final wishlists

Now all the songs are known, the next thing we are awaiting is the semi final draw. We already know which half of which semi the songs are in as well as the voting split for the 6 already in the final but everything is up for grabs. This is not a prediction per se, more my idea of a perfect running order. I have also used ideas about props and prepping time to inform my decisions and I have also had to kind of guess where the 'commercial breaks' might be. So here's what I'd like to see

SEMI FINAL 1
Estonia Elina Nechayeva "La forza"
Belarus         Alekseev "Forever"
Azerbaijan Aisel "X My Heart"
Bulgaria        Equinox "Bones"
Czechia        Mikolas Josef "Lie to Me"
Lithuania      Ieva Zasimauskaitė "When We're Old"
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Belgium        Sennek "A Matter of Time"
Iceland         Ari Ólafsson "Our Choice"
Albania        Eugent Bushpepa "Mall"
Israel Netta "Toy"
Ireland Ryan O'Shaughnessy "Together"
Croatia Franka "Crazy"
Armenia       Sevak Khanagyan "Qami"
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Macedonia Eye Cue "Lost and Found"
Cyprus Eleni Foureira "Fuego"
Austria         Cesár Sampson "Nobody but You"
Greece Yianna Terzi "Oneiro mou"
Switzerland Zibbz "Stones"
Finland          Saara Aalto "Monsters"

I think having one of the favourites on first is a bold move but being such a unique song I think it sets a fabulous ambience to the night (and also put some of the ones afterwards to shame). The Czech song is the most obvious to put on first but considering the other songs in this half I don't think it fits. This semi also has very few non-english entries so I have tried to separate them out throughout the show, as well as keeping apart similarly tempoed songs and acts.

SEMI FINAL 2

Moldova            DoReDos "My Lucky Day"

Russia Yulia Samoylova "I Won't Break"

Netherlands Waylon "Outlaw in 'Em"
Serbia Sanja Ilić & Balkanika "Nova deca"

San Marino Jessika feat. Jenifer Brening "Who We Are" 

Denmark           Rasmussen "Higher Ground"

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Australia          Jessica Mauboy "We Got Love"

Romania          The Humans "Goodbye"

Norway          Alexander Rybak "That's How You Write a Song"

Hungary          AWS "Viszlát nyár"

Slovenia          Lea Sirk "Hvala, ne!"

Ukraine          Mélovin "Under the Ladder"

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Sweden         Benjamin Ingrosso "Dance You Off"

Latvia Laura Rizzotto "Funny Girl"

Poland Gromee feat. Lukas Meijer "Light Me Up"

Montenegro Vanja Radovanović "Inje"

Malta Christabelle "Taboo"

Georgia         Iriao "For You"

Moldova's uptempo number seems too obvious a choice of opener, but it is an eyectacing song so will demand attention. I could not resist having Alexander Rybak and AWS on after each other - that I gong to be one hell of a contrast -  but I wonder as to whose benefit it might be? Sweden start off the third part mainly due to their bulky staging although if the producers wanted to make it obvious how pro-Sweden they are, it'll be on last. That said, the Georgian lilting choral singing makes for a very peaceful, rousing and suitable full stop. Anything on after this is going to feel like an anti-climax In this semi, non english entries are more prevalent and have tried to split them up but is almost impossible in the second half.

Of course if some entries need more time for staging purposes they may 'demand' to be put on before or after a commercial break or first/last which may affect things. Maybe when the list comes in we can work out who this might be the case for or who the producers are favouring this year.

GEORGIA

The Georgian song was unveiled on March 13^th via the presentation of the official video clip. Back in December the folk-jazz fusion band Iriao had been internally selected and that their entry would be released at a later date. Their song is called “For you”

The accompanying video is very simple taking place in a large empty arena and the five members are stood in different parts of the space. Not very much happens in terms of stagecraft apart from the singers moving to and away from each other when the harmonies come and go. There are also interspersed clips of female dancers dressed in white and with white nets around them. This sort of reaffirms the pure, simple and fluid nature of the song and the performance of the group.

Although the song has an English title, it is entirely in Georgian and is a direct translation of the words "Sheni Gulistvis". There is no verse/chorus structure as such but there are short tunes that repeated throughout but with different lyrics. The song is metaphorically about love using the themes of weather – there are many references to snow and sun, The harmonies are very close and it has a choral, even church like feeling to it and this is juxtaposed with the small yet prominent mechanical beat behind the instrumentation. The build up is very clever and the lack of a proper structure makes it seem much longer than 3 minutes. Around the minute to go mark the song resets slightly and builds up again to a very uplifting finish.

This is a very uplifting song and by the end you cannot help but feel enlightened and filled up by the optimism of the song. I say this knowing nothing about the Georgian language (even before I looked up any translation) you just see and feel it in their singing and the tune. Although the song has no predictable formula parts of the tune are very memorable but I think this is where the song lacks appeal for Eurovision. If there was a little more repetition I feel the song would be seen as more ‘eurovision-y’, especially with the fact that it is not in English. The language sounds so beautiful, ethnic and full of feeling. As beautiful as it is, I have to wonder who this would appeal to and who would actually vote for this. As much as I would love to see this in the final I fear it won’t make it.

ARTIST –  Iriao

SONG – For you

MUSIC - Davit Malazonia

LYRICS - Irina Sanikidze

BULGARIA

The Bulgarian act and song were unveiled on March 12th via the official video release. Although there were constant updates about how the selection process was going, very little was known about the act or song until the reveal date. Going to Lisbon is the group Equinox with the song “Bones”

The video of the song is very minimal in terms of stagecraft and in fact is more of a lyric video than anything to do with performance style. The palate is dark and starry with blurred beams and some refraction of light through the crystals. Although you see the personnel on screen at no point do they actually sing and barely look through the camera lens. The five members are dressed in different ways but all in black. Maybe they are going for as minimal a performance style as possible!

The song begins with an interesting pulsing electro soundscape – it certainly pricks your ears up and take notice. The first verse begins and the vocal sounds very close and breathy, almost like an amplified whisper. More voices come in during the pre chorus before the very sparse chorus which has quite a warbled feel which might be tricky to recreate live. This is followed by the briefest of verses before the whole chorus starts up again however at  just the 2 minute mark this rendition  is going to continue, in one fashion or another, until the end of the song. This feels a little bit too long to be listening to the same thing. There is then a brief punctuation of singing at the end before finishing with the name of the song.

This is a very atmospheric song and the dark electro vibe in certainly interesting to the ear. But here begins the first issue – the singing sounds very very processed and synthesised and at times it feels like there are much more than 5 singers on the track. I also wonder that when all 5 sing together will it feel like they are blending or will it sound more like they are competing? Secondly, with 5 singers on stage - what scope is there for anything more visual? How can they incorporate a space theme if there are do led screens? I feel that in Bulgaria’s modern history in Eurovision is this very disappointing. It almost comes across as a bit highbrow and up itself. I think this will probably qualify although I think for once this isn’t in the running for a win.

ARTIST –  Equinox

SONG –  Bones

MUSIC - Borislav Milanov, Trey Campbell, Joacim Persson, Dag Lundberg

LYRICS - Borislav Milanov, Trey Campbell, Joacim Persson, Dag Lundberg

LITHUANIA

The Lithuanian Final was held at the Žalgirio Arena in Kaunas on March 11th, hosted by Mantas Stonkus & Ugne Skonsmanaite. Before the final there were 4 heats, 2 quarterfinals and 2 semi-finals. The eventual winner was chosen by televoting (50%) & an "expert" jury (50%). Winning, was "When we're old" sung by Ieva Zasimauskaite.

Ieva is dressed in a very simple floaty dress punctuated by a simple crystal necklace and similarly coloured flat shoes. Behind her the stage is black with small lights and thick yellow beams criss-crossing. Ieva is alone and is sat on the floor at the beginning of the song however the first of the song has so little light you barely know she is there at all. She stays there until the 2 minute mark when she gets up and walks around the stage. Now behind her is a large video wall featuring different scenes of couples of different ages, picking up on the theme of the song. At the very end she is joined on stage by a young man an they embrace at the end.

The song is a quiet ballad, and could almost be wrongly assumed to be something Ireland would send. We have a simple verse/chorus/verse/chorus set up ending with apart of the verse again at he end – but with a twist, The song seems to go by quite quickly but there is also a lot of empty space. The backing track of the whole song is very minimalistic with a basic piano throughout and some additional instruments during the final chorus. The tune of the verse is very simplistic and yyou remember this much more than the verse. During the final part Ieva reverts to her mother tongue which is a nice touch. There is a Lithuanian language version of this song but I doubt they will use this instead of the English.

Personally I find her voice quite annoying – I am generally not a fan on the small, hiccupping, almost yodelling, vocal style. The whispery way she sings the verses are fine but the rest of the song feels a bit put on. Also Ieva’s pronunciation of words like ‘old’ and ‘wrote’ are very odd. Overall the song and its sentiment are very nice but is lost in the execution. I also wonder with the backdrop issues in Lisbon how or if the use of the video can be realised. This effect seems to be a focal point and without out it this loses direction. A nice enough song but lacks enough charm for me but when it comes to qualification they may be in luck. They are in a semi with quite a few Baltic countries as well as Ireland and UK so the diaspora might get them through on the televote but jurors might see otherwise.

ARTIST –  Ieva Zasimauskaite

SONG – When we're old

MUSIC – Vytautas Bikus

LYRICS - Vytautas Bikus

RUSSIA

The Russian song was unveiled on March 11^th via its première during a news bulletin on Russian TV. Last year, Yuliya Samoylova had been chose to represent Russia with “Flame is burning”, but due to her blacklisting in the host country Ukraine, the entry was withdrawn. It was hinted that she would be back in 2018 and in January this was confirmed. Her song this year is called “I won’t break”

The colour scheme for the video is mainly white. The song intersperses footage of Yuliya between views of the moon, waves crashing and show capped mountains. Near the end of the song we see fiery volcanoes erupting. All the shots of Yuliya are from her shoulders up (Yuliya lost the function of her legs during childhood so usually sits in a wheelchair) even in the wide shot at the very end.

The song is much edgier and has more personality than last years cancelled attempt. This has a much louder and rockier sound, something that Yuliya is known for. The structure is pretty simple – we start with verse/chorus/verse/chorus. The chorus is very memorable with the repetition of the title and the use of the rhymes of emotion/ocean/motion. At the two minute mark there is a break from the pattern with the repetition of a very simple phrase which keeps repeating even though the last rendition of the chorus. The song ends with the repetition of the very first words of the song. During the choruses, the backing singers are very prominent.

This is afar better entry than last years attempt which was far too wet and saccharine and possibly wouldn’t have qualified or done very well. This though is far more interesting and although still has a connection to Yuliya and who she is, it is much more positive. The performance of this is much trickier to imagine and pin down. As I suggested she will need some singing support and I fear that her voice and diction could get tricky, especially if nerves kick in, but I feel that having 5 backing singers will leave her open to a lack of performance. I can almost imagine her with some interpretive dancers or acrobats to liven up the stage. They may also use a background screen or possibly use holograms or on screen editing. I would like to say this has a better chance of qualifying than last year being in semi2 but she is in the first half and could get overshadowed with a poor visual show.

ARTIST –  Yulia Samoylova

SONG – I won’t break

MUSIC - Leonid Gutkin, Netta Nimrodi, Arie Burshtein

LYRICS - Leonid Gutkin, Netta Nimrodi, Arie Burshtein

MACEDONIA

The Macedonian song was unveiled on March 11^th with the release of the official video. In February, the Macedonian broadcaster announced that the duo Eye Cue had been internally selected. Their song is called “Lost and found”

The video is in 2 parts both being just one long shot. During the first half, Marija, the lead singer, is in her dressing room when she is ushered about by some assistants and walks on the set when Bojan, the other member of Eye Cue and a drummer are already in situ. She performs the song to camera until the chorus. She then sits on a swing with ropes made of flowers and returns to thee stage. After this the screen flickers blue and we find Marija in a totally different outfit and hairdo. This time she walks into a photo shoot where Bojan is present, then pretends to be in bed before returning to performing to camera.

This song has a very quirky if not confusing structure. There are lots of bits and each bit seems disconnected to everything else. The first part of the chorus has a rock pop feel but the second half is more like a dance pop number whilst the verses have a slow, bassy reggae beat underneath and they seem to clash into each other rather than blending seamlessly. I sense that the duo’s normal style is more akin to the punchy stuff. Marija has quite the vibrato to her voice and I can imagine under pressure this could be a little too much. There are also a prominent number of backing vocalists on the track too which will need to be accounted for when factoring in the performance.

The easiest way to describe this is that this is a song that is less than the sum of its parts. The chorus is not bad but they are let down by a very fragmented song structure with a weak verse and a style that does not suit them. It feels like they have tried to combine too many things in order the suite too many people and have actually ended up pleasing nobody. At times the tune has a passing resemblance to “Feels like heaven” by Fiction Factory. The video also gives few clues as to how this might be performed on the night and I fear this might be a very static performance. In a semi with few Balkan buddies to get through this will struggle to qualify.

ARTIST –  Eye Cue

SONG – Lost and found

MUSIC - Bojan Trajkovski, Darko Dimitrov

LYRICS - Bojan Trajkovski

ISRAEL

The Israeli song was unveiled on March 11^th via the presentation of the official video clip However the show “HaKokhav HaBa” was used to choose their representative HaKokhav HaBa. There were 31 shows in total before the final and the winner was selected by juries (50%) and a mobile phone app (50%). This was won by Netta Barzilai and the song she will be singing in Lisbon is “Toy”

The accompanying video is very bright, colourful hyperactive and full of weird and wacky shots. Netta wears an abundance of different outfits which emphasises her personality as well as the defiant nature of the song. She is joined by some female dancers whose movements are also a little odd, out-of-the-ordinary, eye-catching but in keeping with the attitude of the song. In some shots she is stood alone and in others she is with her loop machine.

The track starts with what seems like senseless blabbering and nonsense. Of course what she is doing is applying vocal layers onto the looper for use later on during the song. It also pricks your ears up and you are instantly intrigued. We then go into a fairly straightforward verse which then leads into a more atmospheric pre-chorus which is then broken by the chicken noises – utterly bonkers but totally in context. This then leads into the chorus proper which has a driving beat and some really simplistic and catchy lyrics. The second verse begins in Hebrew but is very highly processed so it sounds like Norman Collier's old ‘broken microphone’ gag. This leads back into the pre-chorus/chorus. During the last 30 seconds Netta really lets rip and shows the power, strength and range in her voice. The ending could be a bit more bombastic but who knows what she could end up doing in the live shows…!

This is possibly one of the most avant garde songs we’ve had for a very long time in Eurovision, and for once, this is totally down the line  serious stuff – Netta is not doing this for the gags – this is her thing, her shtick. Also it must be added that Netta uses a vocal loop mix machine to create the tricks on the track. This is groundbreaking because this means she will be playing live on stage – something that has meant a Eurovision rule change. This is heavy technical stuff. Netta is also all about the live performance and even from this very well cut video you understand what her performance level is like. This is a very special performer and it will be very interesting to see if the regular audience at home take to her or now. On first listen I though this was awful but after some time to bed in this is a brilliant entry.

ARTIST –  Netta Barzilai

SONG – Toy

MUSIC - Doron Medalie, Stav Beger

LYRICS - Doron Medalie, Stav Beger

NORWAY

The Norwegian Final will be held on March 10th at the Spektrum in Oslo, hosted by Kåre Magnus Bergh & Silya Nymoen. There were 3 rounds of voting: one to select the top 4, another to select the top 2 and a final round to declare the victor. Going to Lisbon is 2009 Eurovision winner Alexander Rybak with “That’s how you write a song”

The staging for this song is very simple. Alexander starts on stage by himself and starts miming the instruments on the track. The outlines of these instruments are animated onto the tv screen so the float in and float away again. About a minute in he is then joined by 4 backing singers who then mimic the instrument playing from earlier on. With a minute to go he is reunited with his famous fiddle and continues the singing and dancing until the end. The background behind him looks like a blue Venetian blind effect with music notes floating on top.

Anybody wishing for “Fairytale part 2” will be seriously disappointed. As the song suggests this is a meta-song about the process of writing songs but also touches on the wider aspect of following dreams and progressing with any talent one might have. He starts sat on a stool for the first verse then stands up for the second. He is very active on stage interacting with the audience or dancing to the track. The chorus has a very catchy step one, step two approach which engages you straight away. After this we have a call and response scatting session which really seems to put the audience into a bit of a frenzy. After another chorus he then plays the violin and sings and dances at the same time. Right at the very end 2 fiddle players and two trumpeters come out at the very back. This puts the number of people on stage at 9, far more than is allowed at Eurovision

So, what it is absolutely no doubt is that this is a showman. Fairytale was brilliant song but this is something very, very different. He sings, he dances, he scats, he plays the fiddle – is there anything this man cannot do?!?!? But the question is – is this too much? When listening to the song alone, it feels very cheesy but the show that Alexander puts on is really something else. My fear is that this is just too much – just because you can do all those things doesn’t mean you should do all of them. I don’t hate this; I am somewhat disappointed by it but is growing on me. I feel like his name will get people watching in but will they be shocked by what they see?

ARTIST –  Alexander Rybak

SONG –  That's how you write a song

MUSIC - Alexander Rybak

LYRICS - Alexander Rybak

SWEDEN

The Swedish Final was held on March 10th at the Friends Arena in Solna, hosted by David Lindgren. Before the final there were 4 semi-finals and a second chance round for the runners up. 2018 The winner was chosen by televoting (50%) and 11 international juries (50%). The winning act was Benjamin Ingrosso with the song “Dance You Off”

Although this is a ‘stage’ performance it is micromanaged within an inch of its life for the cameras. A portion of the stage has been overlayed with a frame which goes behind and under the performer. This contains flashing strips of light which pulse to the music and creates different shapes, colours and themes throughout the song. Benjamin is dressed in black trousers and a black t-shirt with a jacket which he doesn’t really wear properly.

The song is a very Swedish production and has hints of Michael Jackson and Justin Timberlake is its look and feel. Throughout the song Benjamin does a quite intricate, although quite small, dance routine which fits with the style of music. The three minutes is quite understated and there really isn’t very much to the whole thing. The stage is barely lit as the first verse which lasts last than 20 seconds before we get into the chorus. At this point the frame comes to life and the lighting show begins. The chorus is quite lengthy, lasting almost 40 seconds for both parts. We then have another verse and chorus before a small instrumental, which doesn’t really go anywhere, followed by a last foray into the chorus. The backing track is very samey and doesn’t progress at all. There is no change in key or volume or beat and feels a little underwhelming. It must be said that the backing vocals on the track were suspiciously high during the chorus and you could barely hear him during those points.

Out of all of the songs in the Melodifestivalen final this was possibly the most polished visually and more radio friendly. We have seen and heard this kind of thing so many times and it is starting to feel a bit disingenuous and over confident and too predictable from a Swedish entry. This isn’t a stage show – this is a glorified music video. I personally like a song with shots of the crowd or at least some semblance that there is an audience in from of them. Also I have very suspicious of his live singing ability although I suspect he will have 5 backing singers off stage to ‘help’ him. My only question is – can this staging be transported to Lisbon? Does the stage in Lisbon have the capacity for such an idea? Can it be taken on and off within the postcard time limit? This song without its staging simply would not have won the show. Being in semi 2 this will probably qualify although I personally think it should not.

ARTIST –  Benjamin Ingrosso

SONG – Dance you off

MUSIC - Benjamin Ingrosso, MAG, Louis Schoorl, K Nita

LYRICS - Benjamin Ingrosso, MAG, Louis Schoorl, K Nita

IRELAND

The Irish song was unveiled on March 9^th via its première radio play on the Ray Darcy show on RTE Radio 1. Back in January the broadcaster announced that they had chosen Ryan O'Shaughnessy as their internally selected artist and that the song would be revealed in March. The song he is singing is “Together”

The video is a one-take shot detailing the journey of 2 men coming out of a place in Temple Bar, Dublin at night. They walk casually for the most part but during the chorus they start to dance using the street furniture and shop architecture to enable them to create different shapes and levels. It is subtly intricate, well produced and well made. It also fits very well with the mood and themes of the song. There is also a culture nod to the referendum in 2015 where the petition for same sex marriage was supported and approved. I could imagine such a dance routine being lifted to the stage but I feel they wIll need almost all of their personnel for the singing.

The song has a definite Ed Sheeran vibe to it but unlike the Englishman, Ryan seems to ride the wave between cheese and sincerity well.  The structure of the song is such that we actually get to hear 4 complete renditions of the chorus which shows some very clever song craft and I applaud the team for that. The song starts off like an acoustic guitar ballad and then there is a noticeable but slow beat that starts during the chorus. This then dies down again for the next verse then beefs up again for the chorus. Just before the 2 minute mark there is a bridge that goes into a gentle version of the chorus before having one final full on version. There is also a noticeable choir of backing singers on the track which gives it a more ensemble or group feel. Because of the repetition you get to know the song very quickly.

This is possibly the best thing they have sent for quite a few years – but this is such a low bar this isn’t really brilliant news. I think this is a decent enough radio friendly song and should get in some points. Although this has be drawn in the second half of semi 1 I feel this is going to struggle to be remembered at the end of the show. With a good stage show and a spot on vocal - anything can happen I guess. If this has been drawn in semi 2 I feel this would have had much more of a chance of getting to the final.

ARTIST –  Ryan O'Shaughnessy

SONG – Together

MUSIC - Laura Elizabeth Hughes, Candice Mark & Ryan O'Shaughnessy

LYRICS - Laura Elizabeth Hughes, Candice Mark & Ryan O'Shaughnessy

AUSTRIA

The Austrian song was unveiled on March 9^th on the radio station Hitradio Ö3 where the song had its premiere play then the music video was unveiled. Back in December ORT, the Austrian broadcaster, announced that Cesár Sampson had been internally selected to represent Austria at Eurovision but his song would not be revealed for several months. The song is called “Nobody but you”

The accompanying video is in almost all in black and white and is full of projections, optical illusions and shadows - there is also a lot of snow! There are also views (I assume) of Austria focusing on the architectural lines, statues and trams. He spends a lot of time in slow motion, usually running, The video is very clever and needs several watches to uncover the tricks involved. I quite like the use of overlayed projections and superimposed videos but I am not quite sure if this would take too much focus from Cesár and the song if done on the stage. There are backing singers and he will probably need all 5 he is allowed to recreate the power and oomph for the track.

The song has a kind of Rag’n’Bone Man/Aloe Blacc feel to it which puts it in the radio friendly pile. The song begins atmospherically, with an almost a cappela beginning which focuses your attention on his soulful voice. There is a slight uplift in the backing track as the first chorus starts up but doesn’t quite go full out. After this there is some gospel-tinged oh-ohing and the start of a progressive hand clap beat into the next verse. After the next chorus, mirrored in the use of colour in the video clip, the bridge into the final chorus is preceded by another gospel segment. This one seems much more outward and I could imagine him really singing to and interacting with the crowd at this stage.

The song is a grower. The first time I heard his I was really disappointed because I felt that the chorus was really weak compared to the driving verses but after a few listens it started becoming familiar quickly. If I had any real critique I would have loved to have heard more of the gospel stuff or had a bigger chunk after the second chorus. Cesár is not a newcomer to Eurovision he has provided backing vocals for the last 2 Bulgarian entries – both of which ended up top 4 – and the composers of these two entries is also behind Cesár’s solo song. If I had written this straight after the first listen it would have been a big fat no. Now, it’s very much a yes but this scares me very much.

ARTIST –  Cesár Sampson

SONG – Nobody but you

MUSIC - Boris Milanov, Sebastian Arman, Joacim Persson, Johan Alkenäs

LYRICS - Boris Milanov, Sebastian Arman, Joacim Persson, Johan Alkenäs

AUSTRALIA

The Australian song was unveiled on March 8^th via a music video on youtube. It was supposed to be revealed on the10th but due to leak of the song it was brought forward. Back in December the broadcaster announced that they had internally selected Jessica Mauboy, who was an interval act ESC n 2014, and the song would be made public in March. Her song is called “#We got love”

The performance of the song during the video is very simplistic. There are two main settings – inside a fame of multicoloured neon strip and laying down in a dimly lit pool in which you can see the water vibrating to the music. In both situations the background screen shows different colours scenes and situations. I could see the former of those ideas being used quite effectively. There are no other people in the video but I suggest she may need singers and/or dancers to help power the song along.

The song structure is pretty formulaic and very Eurovision. The first 2 minutes are filled with a verse/chorus/verse/chorus however the differences between the flow of these parts is so slight it might as well just be one long chorus. Just after the two minutes mark the backing becomes a bit more tribal and the beat finally intensifies before having one more rendition of the chorus, The song then ends with Jessica shouting “We got love” several times over the tune of the chorus.

This is not a bad song, but it could be much, much better. The song doesn’t really beef up enough or quick enough. The fact that the first 2 minutes is practically on the same level makes it quite boring and uninspiring very quickly, although they might be able to keep the attention visually. When remembering back to Jessica’s first foray on the Eurovision stage, the song she performed then “Sea of flags” is not a million miles way from this and for many fans this might be seen as a very safe choice. The team behind this song have been behind almost every sing Australian entry and it is getting a little predictable and samey. I want them to try something different, something that showcases something diverse about the Aussie music scene apart from this tiny slice of ‘down under’ musical pie. Luckily for them the second semi final is nowhere near as competitive as the first and I think they will probably get to the final and dive badly.

ARTIST –  Jessica Mauboy

SONG –  #We got love

MUSIC - Anthony Egizii, David Musumeci, Jessica Mauboy

LYRICS - Anthony Egizii, David Musumeci, Jessica Mauboy

CROATIA

The Croatian song was unveiled on March 6^th via the release of the official video on youtube. Last month, it was announced that Franka Batelić had been internally selected by HRT, the Croatian broadcaster, and that more details would be announced at a later date. Her song is called “Crazy”

The video has a very strong theme and although I don’t think it can moved as a whole to the Eurovision stage but in a reduced singing friendly form it could work. Franka is dressed in beigy/brown tones with nod to Grecian floaty dresses but with a warrior princess overtones. She is joined by a plethora of dancers who are dressed in a similar fashion and are used in quite a few different ways. There are also sand, underwater and glowing ball motifs too.

The song starts with a very odd horn/flute type noise which sounds quite folky and ethnic but the beat kicks in and takes it in a different direction. The song reminds me of Sam Brown’s “Stop” and “INXS’s “Never tear us apart” The first verse is very long and doesn’t have a lot of lyrics so feels even longer. The chorus is very short and again mostly has repetitions the title of the song. This is lone follower by a very annoying ear worm of the word ‘love’ but pronounce ‘lo-oh-oh-ove’ which is a very wasteful part of the 3 minutes. After the first verse/chorus rendition there is a very odd spoken word/rap part which sounds totally out of place in the song but also out of kilter with the style of music she is offering. Things like this never sound well, especially if their English is below par. After the second rendition there is then a quieter bridge before going into a final part chorus ending with another ‘lo-oh-oh-ove’’

The song is a bit wishy-washy for my taste and doesn’t really have that spark of pizzazz or that verve that makes it memorable. The parts of the song don’t really fit together and this lets down the main body of the song. I also think that this will probably sound awful live, in particular the rap part. It’s also found itself in a semi with only one other ex-Yugoslav country in it, so will not really benefit from the neighbourly voting. It’s a nice try but a no.

ARTIST –  Franka Batelić

SONG – Crazy

MUSIC - Branimir Mihaljević

LYRICS - Franka Batelić

BELGIUM

The Belgian song was unveiled on March 5^th via the release of the official video on youtube. The next day the song has its premiere on Belgian radio station MNM. Back in September, it was announced that Laura Groeseneken, under her stage name Sennek, had been internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster VRT and her song would be announced in March. The song she will be singing is “A matter of time”

The video takes place in a number of settings – a theatre, an empty swimming pool, staircases, fancy stated glass windows,  - and any of this, or none, could influence to the stage show. She is also wearing a number of different outfits any of which could be her stage costume. Most of the time she is looking away from the camera which is an interesting perspective and could possibly imagine her singing this in profile during the first verse.

The song is a very jazzy number with more than a nod to twenty-first century James Bond themes. It starts with a verse which is only backed by a few piano chords and this is then followed by another verse but this time the piano is joined by drumming. There is brief pre-chorus which is the lull before the chorus. The pace and pitch changes drastically and really catches your ear. In particular the repetition of the word ‘echoes’ is a very clever touch. The change back into the verse is a little clunky but it pretty hard to condense so much direction in 3 minutes. We have another verse, pre chorus and chorus before the song ends with the backing gently fading away like it is falling down a tunnel.

Overall this is a very classy, well-produced and well thought through entry. Obviously the proof will be in the live performances a as to how well she can actually deliver this and hopefully we will get some soon. This fits very well in the lineage of recent Belgian entries and long standing fans and watchers will not be disappointed by what Belgium deliver this year. The juries are going to absolutely lap this up but I am a little hesitant as to how encouraged televoters will be to sit up and vote for this. Although it is a great song, is it a song that compels you to vote for it. Although I would live for this to be up near the top at the end I have a feeling it will rumble just below where it deserves.

ARTIST –  Sennek

SONG – A matter of time

MUSIC - Laura Groeseneken, Alex Callier, Maxime Tribèche

LYRICS - Laura Groeseneken, Alex Callier, Maxime Tribèche

PORTUGAL

The Portuguese Final was held on March 4th at Pavilhão Multiusos in Guimarães, hosted by Filomena Cautela & Pedro Fernandes. Before the final there were 2 semi-finals where 6 qualified from each show. The winner waschosen by televoting (50%) & 7 regional juries (50%). Winning was Cláudia Pascoal with the song “O jardim” (The garden)

Cláudia stands in the middle of the stage in a long black dress this really punctuates her pink hair. Behind her on a chair facing backwards is her backing singer who just happens to be the writer of the song. She turns around part way through then turns back again. There is not much in the way of action and Cláudia sings the song very intensely and the emotion shows in her face and voice. The backdrop is blue and beneath her feet are the outlines of white petals and leaves.

This is quite a modern ethereal song, akin to something London Grammar might come out with. It starts with just piano backing. As the song progresses you suspect that an undercurrent, a beefed up beat will appear – but it never does. As the song progresses there is a very faint beat although it is more like a soft heart beat which fits with the words of the song. The lyrics are full of metaphors hinting at what the Portuguese call ‘saudade’ or longing, in this case being the thoughts and pain of those left behind when someone has died, all of which influences Cláudia’s emotional performance. You definitely feel a journey - a beginning, middle and end - when watching and listening.

The performance is very simple as is the song. The tune of the song is very memorable and repetitive but not in a bad way. It is much less orchestrated than Salvador’s entry last year and is much more insular in terms of meaning and performance. I think the language also sounds very pretty in the song. This is a great entry for the home crowd to support in my and also a great showcase of modern Portuguese singers and songwriters rather than the more traditional Fado. I think this will do well with the juries and will give a reasonable result for the home crowd.

ARTIST –  Cláudia Pascoal

SONG – O jardim (The garden)

MUSIC - Isaura

LYRICS - Isaura

AZERBAIJAN

The Azeri song was unveiled on March 4^th via a lyric video on youtube and song release on Spotify. Back in November the broadcaster announced that they had internally selected Aisel and the song would be made public in March. The song she will be singing is called “X my heart” (Cross my heart)

As there was no performance to the song, and only a lyric video (not even a full music video) we have very little to go on. All we can guess is that the lyrics allude to skies, stars and moons so maybe we can expect something dark and sparkly or maybe and emphasis on the letter X. I am guessing she will need quite a few backing singers to beef up the track and possibly some dancers who also do some singing. Azerbaijan are quite well known for their visual motifs so it will be interesting to see how they give this more traditional radio friendly pop song some clout.

Aisel has a jazzy, talky singing voice and is very easy to listen to and understand but I wonder how much of this is down to talent or production. The song follows a well trodden path and is also one of those songs that has an extensive bridge/pre-chorus that I find quite time consuming in Eurovision terms. In the lead up to the chorus the tune gets higher and if there is a point she will struggle it will be here. Her voice is also very level, which hints at the production values. If any of this I louder or quieter than other parts it might not work or sound great live.

I think it I fair to say that this is a bit of a mess. Don’t get me wrong I think that some of the parts of this entry work and make perfect sense but in this case the sum of those parts don’t gel together at all. Aisel’s voice seems a bit over-produced and if she can perform this assured on the night good for her but if not it is going to sound very messy. The lyrics in particular are very poor, some of the metaphors and descriptions don’t work and in some cases don’t even makes sense. I think that the backing track of the song is quite radio friendly but doesn’t particularly suit the words of the song (or vice versa). I personally find it quite baffling that this is entry the work of the ‘dream team’ of producer Philip Kirkorov, choreographer Ilias Kokotos, and composer Dimitris Kontopoulos. The question is how much can you polish a turd – I guess we will find out. Unfortunately this is probably going to qualify although it really, really shouldn’t.

ARTIST –  Aisel

SONG –  X my heart

MUSIC - Tim Bran

LYRICS - Dimitris Kontopoulos, Sandra Bjurman

ICELAND

The Icelandic Final was held on March 3rd at Laugardalshöll in Reykjavik, hosted by Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir & Jón Jónsson. Before the final there were 2 semi-finals with 3 songs qualifying from each. During the semis all songs were performed in Icelandic but in the final they could be sung in their language of choice. The eventual winner was chosen in 2 rounds of voting - a top 2 was chosen by a jury (50%) and televoting (50%). Then a winner was then chosen solely by televoting. Going to Lisbon is Ari Ólafsson singing “Our Choice”

Ari is on stage with his back to the audience where the backdrop is a kind of purple colour with lights wafting in the air. When he turns round you can see he has a band on stage with him who also do a fair bit of backing singing. When the first chorus starts the backdrop turns to a picture of sky but by the end it turns into a generic dark blue background. Ari is dressed quite snazzily in a tight fitting maroon suit and seems quite smiley throughout. He is a little awkward moving around and sometimes his moves don't quite go with what he is singing.

When the song starts Ari is singing quietly and very low but seems to have a fair bit of control. The first part of the song takes a very long time to get going and it is not until 60 seconds have passed that the song starts. We then have the chorus (proper) twice before going into a jazzy bridge where Ari shows how wide his range is by doing quite a nice falsetto note. There is one more chorus before a slowing down for the ending. The main issue I have with this song is that the lyrics are very stayed and the themes and words used are too soppy to be taken seriously. The tune of the song seems more akin to an ‘80’s charity record.

In the semi-final, this was sung as “Heim” (Home) and he seemed much more confident singing this, however I found his singing voice in the final much stronger I guess a switch back would solve the issues of the bad lyrics but would not be able to paper over the other cracks this song has. This such a poor choice – and in fact the whole Icelandic selection was full of very mediocre songs – but Ari is a good singer so maybe people voted for that when there was a Hobson’s Choice on songs? This is plodding, old fashioned and very, very boring. Yawn.

ARTIST –  Ari Ólafsson

SONG – Our Choice

MUSIC -  Þórunn Erna Clausen

LYRICS - Þórunn Erna Clausen

POLAND

The Polish Final was held on March 3rd at the TVP Headquarters in Warsaw. The winner was chosen by a 50/50 combination of televoting and jury. Winning the national final was Gromee feat. Lukas Meijer with “Light me up”

Lukas is centre stage with an electric guitar however he doesn’t play it all the time. Behind him is Gromee who is wearing a similar outfit to Lukas and is stood behind a kind of turntable/mixing desk/drum kit/keyboard setup. Also on stage is another male guitarist who does backing vocals and then 2 female backing vocalists. Behind them the colour palette is kind of dark blue/black and rotates between sparkly lights, pulsing circles as well as having the title of the song dotted around. There is no real choreography although Lukas does move a lot around the stage.

This is very much in the style of the radio friendly dance music that has been in the charts for the last few years. It has a very repetitive, if not anthemic, chorus and everyone on stage seems to be having a whale of a time. The verses are a little bit nondescript and the chorus is simplistic and very lengthy but the song really comes into its own in the little instrumental just after the chorus. I can imagine the crowd jumping up and down to this bit. Lukas and the backing singers blend quite well live although I find he is a little bit too distracted but I think this can be solved very easily.

This is a fairly standard Eurovision performance but I feel a few things could elevate it. Firstly, Lukas needs to have much more of an identity. He looks like an indie country rock guy but is singing an EDM track. If he styled himself a little but more like Alexander from Norway last year, who had a very similar style of song, it might feel a bit more accessible. He also needs to get rid of the guitar. Half the time he wasn’t really playing it and the other half it looked like it was just getting in the way of any action he wanted to do. I think the 2 backing singers do a grand job but I feel they could also encourage the crowd more with some actions or clapping to create a visual hook to the song. All in all, I think this is quite a good song and a radio-friendly up tempo number. Looking at the other countries voting in that semi I feel this should qualify with little trouble

ARTIST –  Gromee feat. Lukas Meijer

SONG – Light me up

MUSIC - Andrzej Gromala, Lukas Meijer

LYRICS - Mahan Moin, Christian Rabb

SAN MARINO

The San Marinese Final WAS held on March 3rd at the JOJ TV Studios in Bratislava, hosted by Nick Earles and Kristin Stein. Initially, there was An open call for singers who could apply by uploading a clip of them singing to the 1 in 360 website. This was then whittled down to a cast list of 10 who were designated 2 songs each. The singers performed an acoustic version of a song in each semi-final and after the 2nd semi-final the jury selected 1 song for each singer. In the final, the winner was chosen by a 50/50 jury/public vote – this portion was based on the amount of money received via the Global Rockstar crowdfunding platform. Going to Lisbon will be Jessika feat. Jenifer Brening with the song “Who we are”.

The staging of this song was very simple, mainly because the stage for the show was very simple. No real backdrop or lighting apart from a geometric lighting rig behind them and a simple raised box stage. Jessika is wearing a very flattering white low cut trouser suite whist Jenifer is in black jacket and skirt. Not very much happens on stage.

Jessika begins singing doing some quite neat and small bits of choreography through the first verse and chorus which doesn’t sound too far away from “Heroes”. It is at this point Jenifer moves in and does her neat bit of rap. It first it feels a little bit strange but in the whole flow of the song it works quite well. This then goes into another chorus before a short break and then the final chorus which is a little more freeform. By the end of the song you can tell that Jessika’s voice is a little tired and is really having to push to get the high notes.

This wasn’t really seen as a bit favourite beforehand and was a bit of a shock to win but I can see why this did well. The main body of the song is quite strong and Jessika performs it reasonably well. Jenifer’s rap punctuations keep the flow quite well and are just the right amount of length without taking over. The whole thing as a song works really well but the whole setting of the song is so far away from the stage at Eurovision. There is a lot of potential for this entry too and I guess it could be interesting to see what kind of stage show they can some up with or if anything can be done to revamp the song a little. Jessika is from Malta and Jenifer from Germany and the microstate is surrounded by Italy – all three countries are voting in their semi as this so I sure this will guarantee some points but possibly not enough to qualify.

ARTIST –  Jessika feat. Jenifer Brening

SONG –  Who we are

MUSIC - Mathias Strasser, Zoë Straub, Christof Straub, Lorenzo Salvatori

LYRICS - Mathias Strasser, Zoë Straub, Christof Straub, Stefan Moessle, Jenifer Brening

ESTONIA

The Estonian Final was be held on March 3rd at the Saku Suurhall in Tallinn, hosted by Ott Sepp & Meelis Kubo. Before the final there were 2 semi-finals reducing the field of 20 in half. The winner was chosen in two rounds of voting - a top 3 will be announced through by televoting (50%) and an "expert" jury (50%), but in the second round the winner was chosen solely by televoting . The winner was Elina Nechayeva with “La Forza” (The force)

The setup of the song is very simple yet utterly mesmerising. She is stood quite high up centre stage in a very very very long dress which covers the entire stage. This then becomes the canvas for a series of projection images – mostly abstract images, patterns or scenes rather than of actual things or people. Behind her, the screen show different coloured starry skies. Her upper chest, lower arms and hands are covered in glitter which is used to good effect on the close ups.

The song starts off quietly and gradually builds with the backing track. There is some camera trickery near the start to surround her with what looks like shooting stars. Elina’s voice really changes depending which notes she is singing which makes the whole piece very intriguing. In terms of structure you only get a verse-chorus-verse-chorus before the song ends on a very high note. I would not say any of the parts was too long but because of the speed of the song it needs this long to totally fulfil its journey. I would love to hear a longer version of this with possibly another verse-chorus or bridge-chorus to see where it could go next. The entirety of the song is in Italian which makes it difficult to understand but does make it feel more genuine in its field.

Opera, although possibly ore accurately Popera, is style not alien to Eurovision. As recent as 2015 the Italian entry featuring 3 young male operatic men came second. That said it has not been a particularly successful genre either. In its favour, this has a real simplicity in all angles. The visual aspect is very clear, her voice is very distinctive and legible and the build up in the instrumentalis memorable too. It is the only opera song we have this year. I think this will stand out a mile from everything else around mainly because of how well it is sung by Elina.

ARTIST –  Elina Nechayeva

SONG –  La Forza (The force)

MUSIC - Mihkel Mattisen, Timo Vendt, Ksenia Kuchukova, Elina Nechayeva

LYRICS - Mihkel Mattisen, Timo Vendt, Ksenia Kuchukova, Elina Nechayeva

FINLAND

The Finnish Final will be held on March 3rd at the Espoo Metro Areena in Espoo, hosted by Krista Siegfrids & Mikko Silvennoinen. Back in November, YLE announced they had internally selected Saara Aalto as the performer and there would be a national final to select her song. The winner was chosen by international juries & televoting. At Eurovision, Saara will be singing the song “Monsters”

At first Saara is dressed in a black cloak inside a fabric wrapped cage. Later on as the song develops her real stage outfit is revealed which is a multicoloured top with similarly pattered boots -parts of these glow in the dark. The stage is layered and has lot of steps and platforms that the performers go up and down. The lighting is full of beams and flashing neon strips. She is joined on stage by 2 female backing singers dressed in silver and 3 male dancers dressed as dark angels. There is a lot of moving and a lot of choreography

The song starts off quietly and slightly mysterious. When she starts the bridge, the 3 male dancers appear. They are dressed in a greyish colour and are all wearing similarly coloured wings. They rip off the cage's fabric and Saara exits before being joined on stage by her 2 backing singers. There is then a shorter verse and a full chorus before a short downbeat instrumental. Here the lighting dims and the fluorescent and neon strips on the outfits and set can be seen. The dancers also appear with flags but are soon got rid of. They then do another rendition of the chorus but the backing singers' mics are a little bit too loud and you can barely hear Saara doing her own thing and singing slightly differently to the tune. The ending is a little sudden but this could be made more effective with a better worked out show.

Vocally Saara was pretty much on point for this song which is always a good thing but overall I found the stage show a bit muddled and directionless. The video clip of the UMK songs had been available for a while before the live final and I think many were hoping to have a similar vibe on the stage, but it did not. I think the stage outfit could be simpler and still have the impact. I also think the backing track could be punchier and slightly more dramatic. The biggest thing she needs to do is make the stage show simpler- there is a lot of choreography and it is taking too much away from Saara’s natural charm. On the plus side she has the UK and Ireland voting in her semi so she will get some vote but I have a horrible feeling that this is the “Same Heart” of 2018 – a firm fan favourite that flops. 

ARTIST –  Saara Aalto

SONG – Monsters

MUSIC -  Saara Aalto, Joy Deb, Linnea Deb, Ki Fitzgerald

LYRICS - Saara Aalto, Joy Deb, Linnea Deb, Ki Fitzgerald

CYPRUS

The Cypriot entry was revealed on 2nd March via the premiere of the music video during a news broadcast which was then made available on youtube. Back in January, CyBC announced they had internally selected Eleni Foureira to represent them at Eurovision. The song she will perform is called “Fuego” (Fire)

As this is a music video it is limited in the clues it gives us for a possible stage performance. Most of the action happens inside a very grand looking house. There are lost of shots of staircases, corridors, banisters, candelabras and ends with a car going up in flames. There are some choreographed pieces during the song but it might not be possible to replicate them whilst singing. Eleni and her 4 backing dancers are dressed in a kind of 80s power style but most of the outfits are little more than swimsuits.

Despite the Spanish title, the song is wholly in English, apart from this one word. The song has that mid tempo Spanish vibe that seems to be very in at the moment. It starts quietly though the first verse then hits the chorus. This is nowhere near as strong as it should be and is full of oh-oh-ohing. This is also not helped by the fact the instrumental after the first chorus is initially downbeat and you lose the flow of the song almost immediately.  At the start of the song, and during the breaks between chorus and verse, the tune is a little more ethnic. There are also a lot of minimalist instrumentals during the song and it will be interesting to see how hey ‘fill’ these on stage. The tune of the verses is very similar to “If love was a crime”, in fact the structure of the song is quite similar but not quite as good.

Being a video clip, this gives us no insight to the scope or problems this faces when sung live. Personally I find the song very produced and very much for the radio and she will have to work very hard to make this look and sound good during Eurovision. I am not sure that the concept in the video would make for a good stage show. This song would not feel out of place on mainstream radio. Personally I find this quite generic and the fact that it could blend in which so many other songs means it just doesn’t quite catch my ear. And with Eurovision's recent penchant for choosing more ‘alternative’ songs over commercial successes this might not be the best of choices.

ARTIST –  Eleni Foureira

SONG – Fuego (Fire)

MUSIC - Alex Papaconstantinou, Geraldo Sandell, Viktor Svensson, Anderz Wrethov, Didrick

LYRICS - Alex Papaconstantinou, Geraldo Sandell, Viktor Svensson, Anderz Wrethov, Didrick

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NETHERLANDS

The Dutch song was unveiled on March 2nd during a week long appearance on the well known Dutch talk show “De Wereld Draait Door”. Back in November it was revealed that previous Eurovision entrant Waylon (formerly half of the Common Linnets) would be representing the low country. Every weekday from 23^rd February, he unveiled a song from his up coming album – and teased that one of them would be his Eurovision entry. The song he will be singing in Lisbon is “Outlaw in 'em”

During the song previews, Waylon was alone on stage. He is sat on a stool and vigorously playing the guitar. He has a studded black leather jacket with shortened sleeves showing off his extensive tattoos. He is singing into a thick set vertical microphone, not a million miles away from the Eurovision trophy design but on a mic stand, Vaguely behind him are video screens showing rocky, possibly American views. Whether any of this will be the case at Eurovision is hard to say at the point.

Although Eurovision is not averse to country songs, this definitely falls on the rocky side of that genre. There is a very distinctive, if not slightly dirty, guitar riff in the bed of the song with gets under your skin quite quickly. His voice sounds very Americanised and country with the twangs and hiccupping on certain syllables and note changes. The start of the verses has a tinge of “I am a man of constant sorrow” about it with an almost bluegrass hint about it. The chorus starts off with the name of the song, which is always a handy trick, but the rest of it is highly unintelligible because of the speed of delivery twinned with his style of delivery.

When it comes to the visual performance of the song I feel it will change a fair bit in Lisbon. For one he needs backing singers, but it might be decided to keep them off screen. He may also decide to add a whole band on stage to emphasise the country sensibilities of the song. He sings the song well enough but I think he really needs to watch the tone and style of his voice so that it doesn’t just become noise. Also it's quite an introverted performance and he may need to think about what can be done on stage, either by him or through other means, to really reach out to the hall and the viewers at home.

Waylon has history with Eurovision – not all good. Yes, being part of the Common Linnets saw him almost win the thing in 2014 but during that time he seemed to create an atmosphere that was difficult, standoffish and not really very friendly. As it was as soon as Eurovision ended, he left the band. Some of these memories will be very hard to paper over for some of the fans. It will be interesting to see which Waylon turns up in Lisbon and what he has learnt between 2014 and now.

ARTIST –  Waylon

SONG –  Outlaw in ‘em

MUSIC - Jim Beavers, Ilya Toshinskiy, Waylon

LYRICS - Jim Beavers, Ilya Toshinskiy, Waylon

ROMANIA

The Romanian Final was held at Sala Polivalenta in Bucharest on February 25th, hosted by Cezar Ouatu & Diana Dumitrescu. Before the final there were 5 semi-finals, with 3 songs qualifying from each. Heat qualifiers were chosen solely by a jury but during the final the winner was chosen by 100% televoting. The winning song was “Goodbye” performed by The Humans.

The band is spread out along the stage with the main singer, Cristina stood centre in a long black cloak. Behind her the rest of the band are dressed in white. Two of the band members are wearing masks and come towards her from behind. They rip off the cloak revealing a much shorter red beaded dress. The band members do very little apart from this initial movement. Cristina, however, moves around the stage quite freely, whipping her very lengthy hair as well as encouraging the audience to join in with the song. The background screen is fairly generic with different colours and beams of light although you can just make out the outline of a double helix – a tie-in to the band name in a subtle way.

This probably falls under the genre of “rock ballad” and does not feel too removed from Coldplay’s “Yellow” but with a strong female vocalist. The song starts quite gently and shows off Cristina’s very distinctive voice. After the wardrobe change she starts to let her voice soar and show that slightly harder rock edge to her vocal. The song itself is lacking in structure. There is a chorus but is kind of lost in between the disparate verses, differing tunes and lengthy instrumentals. Moreover, the ending of the song is very sudden and nothing in the stagecraft prepares you for the sudden conclusion either.

The performance looks very amateur but sounds really professional, which provides an immediate disconnect. The whole look of the piece needs tightening up, needs a stronger connection to the tv and stage audience and a bigger tie-in to the words of the song. Cristina is an excellent singer, her voice is strong and rich but it is totally wasted on this song. Also, compared to some of the other rock songs on offer this year, this entry feels a bit tame, soulless and almost boring. With so many styles and languages on offer this entry comes across and a bit safe. In terms of Eurovision, they are lucky to be in a semi with some nearby and /or friendly countries but right now I don’t think this is going to be enough and this could be their very first non-qualification since the introduction of the semi-finals.

ARTIST –  The Humans

SONG – Goodbye

MUSIC - Matei Alexandru, Alin Neagoe

LYRICS - Cristina Caramarcu