As the clip begins we see lots of shots of Tom himself and different level caption of the Eiffel Tower then we zoom in to see Tom on a lit platform under the tower itself. He is standing with a microphone stands although in some of the shots he holds the mic in his hands. There were lots of varied camera shots, but most of these seemed to be more intent on to showing off the Eiffel Tower, although there were a lot of side on shots and some lingering looks to camera but very few straight on looks down the camera.
The video clip, although filmed as live, wasn't him singing actually live so I can't really judge how well he can really sing the song. His voice is quite breathy and at times and on the first listen it wasn't always clear as to out which bits were in English and which bits were in French. The verses and choruses are rather short, lasting less than 30 seconds each so you can get through 2 verses and choruses well within 2 minutes. At the start there is barely any music, just light piano and some strings. As the second verse comes in there is a key change which beings in a slight beat as well as beefier backing. Just before the 2 minute mark there is a brief bridge and piano instrumental which winds everything up for the big finish. Here you can hear backing singers clearly taking over the chorus as Tom is more free form in timing and tune. By the end the song is highly orchestrated before going back to the quiet ending
Unfortunately this performance gives us few clues to what we might expect at Eurovision. The tempo of the song suggests it will be quite a subdued show and one where the song shines. Overall the presentation felt lacklustre despite the setting. There is a lot of gesturing to the camera and bending over which is never the best of angles. He will definitively need backing singers, although these could be out of sight. I can also imagine some contemporary dancers adding some motion and emotion to the song.
The reaction online following the song reveal was not good - but this is not to say it is a bad song or that he is a bad singer. It's a fine, straightforward entry but here lies the problem. Fine and straightforward DOES NOT win Eurovision. Looking at recent Eurovision trends, okay songs are the ones that are forgotten about, overshadowed, miss out on the votes and therefore get last place (HELLO MICHAEL RICE!) This is trying to corner the dramatic musical theatre angle yet there is little theatre (or music) to substantiate this and the whole thing comes across as quite old and dated, even by Eurovision standards. The song's plus points are that at least the majority of the song is in French, although the Minister of Culture has ready stated his unease with the song's English chorus. It's also a bit of a grower and after multiple listens it starts to grab you. But at Eurovision, especially with France being one of the big 6 finalists, you only get one shot and that might not be enough.
What's more is that the national final show "Destination Eurovision" was cancelled this year in order to implement an internal selection. That show had great characters, great songs and championed up and coming French talent. They have ditched this method in favour of selecting a song partly written by Swedes. G:son and Lundvik should know better than to release tripe like this to Eurovision and France Television should have a stronger backbone than to capitulate to the nearest in-favour songwriters who throw a Westlife b-side their way. However, word seems to be winging its way that 'other versions' of the song are in production including an acoustic version. If alternate remixes and interpretations are being considered, what exactly will be seen at Eurovision will have to be made and decided on pretty quickly. Maybe he's got an epic stage show that will wow us all. Who knows.
I'll say it again, he's not a bad singer and this is not a band song but bland never won anything. He'll get points for being eye candy and for pleasing the musical theatre jurors and nothing more. Schedule your toilet break now.
Artist - Tom Leeb
Song - The best in me
Composers - Peter Boström, Thomas G:son
Lyricists - Amir Haddad, Tom Leeb, John Lundvik, Léa Ivanne
(Videos of the presentations seem to have been pulled down from the internet, so I will leave you will an audio only version and a muted version of the visual presentation - out of my hands that one. Sorry!)
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