SWITZERLAND

The Swiss song and act was unveiled on March 4th with the release of the music video. Before the release, there were no clues as to who or what the entry might be. Going to Rotterdam is Gjon Muharremaj - professionally known as Gjon's Tears - with the song "Répondez-moi" (Answer me)

The video is filmed in black and white and seems to fit in with the low key instrumentation and emotional lyrics and tune of the song. For quite a chunk of the song we have shots of Gjon's head and shoulders, although for some of this he is being rained or snowed on! I could imagine quite a honed down show where the focus is tight on him then slowly gets bigger. When he is being more active you can see him walking or sitting in different rooms, walking past people doing different things such as reading, sleeping or arguing. Near the end he enters a white room where lots of people are frozen in tableau all doing rather random poses and dressed very individually.

The first verse is quite long but sets up the pattern and phrasing of the song. There is lots of repetition, near rhyme and voice modulations that keeps it familiar yet interesting at the same time. The chorus carries on this aural feel but this time with some oh-oh-oh ing and ends with some pretty impressive high notes. We then have the second verse which follows the pattern from before with another chorus. This time there is almost a false ending with a short lull before he starts the final rendition of the chorus but this time the backing singers take the lead whilst Gjon does more of the high notes. The song is very lightly orchestrated with only a pulsing beat present in the second half of the song. It is certainly a slow build but once you get past that you find that it builds nicely to a suitable and memorable finish.

Even in an apparent year of ballads, this one sticks out a mile - even more so when put in the context of its place in the semi final. First of all it is in French and I write there are only two other non-english songs in its semi final, which also looks rather female heavy. I think they need to emphasise the individual qualities of this song and hope that Gjon can pull of an epic vocal show. I don't expect to see any dancing or dancers but he will need a batch of backing singers. His voice in particular is very haunting and at times it almost doesn't feel like he is speaking French, that said the chorus has now taught me some wonderful French idioms which I might have to use somehow!
As much as I have time for this song, I know that the world of Eurovision can be quite a fickle one. Maybe the song is a lit too stylised and the story/message might also be lost on viewers without hints. Part of me feels that a similar fate to "Limits" could be on the cards for this song, even more so because the song is not in English. I think I might end up slightly heartbroken if this happens!

Artist - Gjon's Tears
Song - Répondez-moi (Answer me)
Composers - Xavier Michel, Gjon Muharremaj, Alizé Oswald, Jeroen Swinnen
Lyricists - Xavier Michel, Gjon Muharremaj, Alizé Oswald, Jeroen Swinnen

ISRAEL

The Israeli singer and song were chosen via two selection processes, Firstly, the Final of "HaKokhav Haba L'Eurovizion" was held on February 4th at the Keshet Studio in Neve Ilan, hosted by Asi Azar & Rotem Sela. The first round consisted of duels - the winner determined by judging panel (15%) and app voting (85%) plus a losers 'wildcard'. In the second round, the winner was chosen equally by the judging panel and jury and app voting.  The winner was Eden Alene. The Israeli song selection was held on March 3rd, hosted by Lucy Ayoub. Eden Alene sang all 4 songs and the winner was chosen by televoting (30%)  jury (65%) and judging panel (5%). Eden Alene's winning song was "Feker Libi" (My love)

Eden is wearing a white ensemble including boots trousers and a loose fitting jacket. She has 2 backing singers dressed in white and yellow and there male backing dancers also in yellow. There colours work well with the summery feeling the song gives you. Her hair is also in her signature braids which cascars over the top of her white jacket. Her styling makes her look relatable snd approachable and just like a normal girl on a normal street. I could see lots of girls finding her and this song engaging and a slew of votes going her way.

The backdrop of this is really unique and quite stunning. For the most part there is a kaleidoscope of different patterns, flowers, symbols and other afrocentric ideograms that rotate and flash on the screen. They are also drawn very carefully like they are slightly translucent and you can see light behind them.These are then also found on the video floor which makes above shots really interesting. During one part of the song the words are put up in words behind her in the different language that makes up the song.  Eden does some dancing herself but her male dancers partake in some commercial moves intertwined with some hip hop and African moves. The last part of the song is particularly eye catching as Edena and her dancers do an ensemble dance routine with great energy and enthusiasm.

The song begins with an mbira which can be found in the hands of one of her backing singers. Eden then starts singing a short intro which will be repeated later as the song outro. We then have verse 1 which then followed but eh chrus sequence. There is a short pre-chorus, before the chorus proper and then there is a multilingual ost chorus which transitions us from the modern chorus to the more afrobeat verse. We then had another, if not truncated, second verse where we have the chorus sequence again. Then we have some instrumental with Eden and her backing singers taking it in turns to replicate the introduction but this time to the end.

This is such a sunny fun and interesting track to bring to Eurovision. Although we are not averse to the odd African influence at Eurovision this is the debut of the Amharic language from Ethiopia - which is where her parents were born. During the verses and bridge part sthis does a great job of balancing all the different rhythms and languages. For me the downfall, however slight, is the chorus. I wish it kept a little more African-ness or had a more driving beat. Listening to the chorus out of context you might be misled into thinking what style of song this comes from. Hopefully this will be revamped in some way or at least we can hope that the delegation don't use the chorus on their voting recap. Eden is an amazing singer and performer and elevated every single song in the national final which bodes well for the shows in May.  I cannot wait to see what she can bring to the contest and I hope that her stage show changes little too.
Eden herself will appeal to lots of voters for many reasons  and I think they may we corner some support from the youth vote. This should qualify easily and I think with the right amount of luck this is going to go big at Eurovision and possibly be a hit in may places around the world..  As we know sometimes the biggest success stories of singing contest shows are not the winners!

Artist - Eden Alene
Song - Feker Libi (My love)
Composer - Doron Medalie, Idan Raichel
Lyricists - Doron Medalie, Idan Raichel

GEORGIA

The Georgian entry was released March 3rd  via the premier showing of the video clip for the during the morning show “New Day” of Georgian First Channel. The artist, however had already been chosen via the mechanism of Georgian Idol and the final of that was way back on December 31st. Their singer Tornike Kipiani will sing the song "Take me as I am"

Being a video reveal there not much to give me sense of their stage show but having gone through the Georgian Idol process we know that this style of song is what they do and that slightly unhinged rock style is why he won the show. The video is in back and white which gives the video quite a raw feel and it would not feel out of place to have this replicated. He's dressed very casually throughout and I don't expect him to change this at all. I think that his pure demeanour will stand out before a not has even been hit.

There are a couple of different settings during the video. Mainly the song is set in a recording studio where Tornike and his backing singers and musicians are recording their bits of song. You also see them chilling out between takes as well as seeing the people producing the track offering encouragement and twiddling the all important knobs. There are also extended section shot inside of a car where he is also singing the song. During the video there are lots of repeated shots such as Tornike singing with his mouth wide open and lots of close up guitar shots. Shots like the ultra slowed down plucking of a string would fit this perfectly as a backdrop perhaps.

The song has a very repetitive structure which might sound boring to some but be intriguing to others. After a jangly, warbling guitar not Tornike starts on verse 1. His voice is quite tempered and fragile and very deliberate in his pronunciation. Each line is very similar at the start but has a different ending which makes it rather easy to remember and get involved with. He goes straight into verse two which has a very similar format but this time her is really aggressively singing, some may say shouting, the words which is his signature style. Then follows the 'chorus' which brings in the backing singers. Even though their singing tones are different the blend of voices just works. What is also interesting is that the nationalities talked about in the verses then marry up with the languages in the chorus. We then have the second verse which again adds different nationalities to the first verse but is much shorter. Then follows another chorus with more languages! After the final "I love you" the music gets sucked away to a finish.

This is such an individual entry and it is so nice to see Georgia coming back to the weird side that we know so well. This is out and out the alternative/rock track of the year and it is pretty unlikely to be out done, so from that perspective this song has cornered that particular market. Of course there is a precedent for rock tracks at eurovision, in particular from Finland, Czech Republic and Hungary, and although not all of them have been successful, they certainly linger in the memory.
I think the fact that a contestant like Tornike went through this competition AND that the Georgian public took to him the way they did has to be applauded. I could have been quite easy to rein him back in a little and fit him into something a bit more commercial. However if I had one criticism it would be that I almost which they had pushed it even harder with more jarring changes in direction or maybe some switches of backing track. As much as I think this needs to qualify (and deserve to) I regrettably think it won't, probably more due to lack of support from juries than televoters. If you can vote for this in semi 2 (which we can in the UK) send this a teletove it's way and make Eurovision weird again!


Artist - Tornike Kipiani
Song - Take me as I am
Composers - Aleko Berdzenishvili, Tornike Kipiani
Lyricists - Aleko Berdzenishvili, Tornike Kipiani

SERBIA

The Serbian Final was held on March 1st at the RTS TV Studios in Belgrade, hosted by Dragana Kosjerina, Jovan Radomir, Kristina Radenkovic & Stefan Popovic. Before the final there were 2 semi-finals where 6 songs qualified from each. Voting was split between jury and SMS voting. The winning act was Hurricane with "Hasta la vista"

The three members of Hurricane (Sanja, Ivana and Ksenija) are dressed in similar white outfits with shards of mirror coming of their top half and part way down their legs. These outfits cold come across as quite tacky or even sleazy but possibly because they stay close together it works for as an ensemble piece rather than something provocative. They are also joined part way be 2 backing dancers who wear asymmetric back leotards which doesn't really have with the rest of what's going on.

The three girls embark on quite the full on show here however the girls have their time to shine, not only when singing but also dancing solo and as a group in the instrumental bits. Their backdrop is rather frantic switching between lots of different colours and motifs however, cleverly, during the chorus the emblem and name of the band appears behind them. In the latter half of the show the outline of other 'Hurricaners' can be seen on the screen joining in with the dance. Nearer the end multiple versions of the girls themselves can be seen on the backdrop organised like an infinite army joining in with the dancing.

The song starts with a brassy intro which reappears at points during the song. Verse one is lead by Ivana with the following pre-chorus sung by Sanja then they all join in the chorus. They all have bits in verse 2 while Sanja again has the pre chorus and all join together for the chorus. Just after the two minute point there is a small refrain before one last burst of the chorus which repeats its end lines for a bit longer. There are some extra voices in the background and I think backing singers (on stage or not) might be a worthwhile investment here.

This song definitely takes "fuego" as its bloodline and after a few wannabe tracks last year, this kind of thing is definitely lacking this year. As a result this stands out as being different but also something familiar to the Eurovision stage. The Serbian language does not sound out of kilter with the sound, plus the addition of the "Hasta la vista" phrase is a great hook no matter where you come from! Some might then say this is a no brainer for the final. I would suggest the girls look into getting more singers on board just to make that vocal really stand out, be fuller and keep the tune on point. I don't really get the 2 additional dancers, especially in their current form, and are probably not needed especially if they keep a similar backdrop.
Also, as it stands, this is the only non-english song in the top half of semi 2. They would be foolish to change the language as this currently makes them stand out so much.This is a great ensemble piece and if all of the parts come together this could be a stand out number. I really hope this can qualify, although I suspect this will be a mid table placing in the end.

Artist - Hurricane
Song - Hasta la vista
Composer - Nemanja Antonić
Lyricists - Kosana Stojić, Sanja Vučić

ROMANIA

The Romanian Final was held at Sala Sporturilor 'Romeo Iamandi' in Buzau on March 1st, hosted by Elena Gheorghe & Connect-R. At the start of February it was revealed that Roxen had been internally selected as singer but her song would be chosen in a national final. Roxen will sang all 5 songs and the winner was chosen via televoting and jury. In Rotterdam she will be singing "Alcohol You"

Roxen stands centre stage in front of a vast sweeping video screen. She is wearing a rather unusually cut dress which makes her look a bit like a mermaid. The bodice of the dress come underneath he chest and the op part is just darker than flesh coloured. The skirt is long and white and has a slit up on slid. From this you can also see she is wearing white boots. On the top part of the dress you can see beads and jewels on the fabric and these can also be seen on her forehead and under her eyes.

For the first part of the song Roxen is stood still and for a lot of the song she sings with her eyes closed.  The backdrop is mainly blue with slight lines and the formation of a kind of circle/globe is made After the first chorus she turns around and there is another Roxen on the screen. The two Roxens hold their hands out to try and reach each other at the end of the second verse but the backdrop implodes and starts of resemble a Northern Lights type sky and a big white glow in the middle sky. From here on in, the setting goes back to the blue that it was before and as the song ends the spotlights that were on her slowly dim out

The structure of this rather fragmented sounding ballad is in fact very formulaic with a long verse, pre chorus and chorus and then the sequence repeated again. The music is very atmospheric with lots of macrobeats and almost silence at different parts of the song. Her vocal style is rather curious and have quite a distinctive style but without coming across as unintelligible or rambling. In an odd way her performance style ties in with the rather melancholic nature of the lyrics.

This is a very stylised entry and I think this is an entry where you either hate it or love it. The song itself sounds like it could be a song by Lorde or Billie Eilish and could be seen as one of the more contemporary entries and could get quite the following. Personally this is not my style and the lack of flow and drive, and that sense of going on a journey just isn't there.
What annoys about this track is the use of such a bad pun, which is also badly delivered in the song, as the title (apparently the phrase alcohol you is a pun on 'I'll call you'). Unless this is explained before hind I think a lot of people are not going to get the hype. What I will say is that I think she has got a good singing voice and seem to have an understanding of self and the direction she wants to go in but I am unsure if this is the song to prove this at Eurovision. I expect this to reach the final but not a winner.

Artist - Roxen
Song - Alcohol you
Composers - Armaș Ionuț, Viky Red
Lyricists - Armaș Ionuț,  Breyan Isaac

GREECE

The Greek song was unveiled on March 1st with a special reveal show on ERT hosted by Michael Marinos. Back in January it was revealed that Greek-Dutch performer, and former Junior Eurovision participant, Stefania Liberakakis had been internally selected. and the song would be revealed at a later date. Her song is called "Superg!rl".

The music video charts Stefania as a secret 'superhuman' doing the normal things a girl of her age would -  going to school, having a dance class and going on a date. However she accidentally uses her superpowers at school and the whole place starts recording the event on their phones. The video ends with Stefania using her superpowers to rescue a cat from a tree. When written like that it doesn't sound very impressive although she does levitate at the end! Although there is little to suggest ideas for the stage show, there are few shots of her dancing.

There is little I can garner from the video regarding how well she can actually sing this song but overall the track is very produced and the blending she has with the backing singers is very noticable. I can't quite figure out how this is going to sound live  or how this might look on the stage. I guess there will be some kind of superpower theme as well as quite a bit of dancing.

The structure of this song is rather straightforward with two lots of verse/pre-chorus/chorus and finishing with a bridge and longer chorus. However what is noticeable about this song is that the pre-chorus is really the parts with the hooks. The verses are done in a lower register and part of me genuinely wonders if she can do this live, especially of there is any dance routine to go along with it. There is also a lot of 'space in the song with eh ethnic bassline in the background which actually sounds quite clunky at times and feels like it is there to give is some 'Greekness'.

Although this is trying to be a modern radio friendly ethno bop it ends up being absolutely none of those things. It's bitty, clunky lacking in ebb and flow. It just feels really flat and it doesn't go anywhere. The title also sounds overly young, almost like it would be more suited to the Junior contest. This is just not my style of music and, let's face it, this song is not geared towards televoters like me. Also I have too many questions about this song going forward to have confidence in its chances.
For me this is a non-qualifier mainly on the basis that this is a very basic pop song with little personality and pizzazz about it. Yes, the Greek diaspora might be able to pull a result out of this but the pull of other songs will be much greater. Looking in its semi final this song ends up looking rather derivative and plain. Maybe the producers will do me a favour and put this in a slot that might be conducive to a toilet/tea break *miaow*

Artist - Stefania Liberakakis
Song - Superg!rl
Composers - Arcade, Dimitris Kontopoulos, Sharon Vaughn
Lyricists - Arcade, Dimitris Kontopoulos, Sharon Vaughn

ICELAND

The Icelandic Final was held on February 29th at Laugardalshöll in Reykjavik, hosted by Björg Magnúsdóttir, Fannar Sveinsson & Benedikt Valsson. Before the final there were 2 semi-finals where the  list of  10 songs was reduced to 5. The winner was chosen in two rounds of voting - in the first round the top 2 were chosen by televoting and jury but then these results were carried forward to the second round where the winner was chosen by televoting only. The winner was Daði & Gagnamagnið with "Think about things"

Daði and band are dressed in their signature personalised tops with a pixelated version of their own face on it and matching green bottoms. These faces as and up as part of the backdrop too. Daði has two female backing singers on our right (one of them being his sister) and on his left 3 instrumentalists (one of which being his wife!) Their electronic instruments then become cubist saxophones during the instrumental.

The whole band not only spreads itself out nicely on stage but they do their fair bit of moving around. There is basically a song-long dance routine that goes from start to finish that the band wholeheartedly takes part in. This in itself gives different things for the camera to focus on; individuals, small groups or the whole band. As I stated earlier the three instrumentalists have electronic instruments which then turn into cubist saxophones during the instrumental break. Daði also makes use of a wind machine (which gets a round of applause itself). It is easy to imagine shots of the hall doing to dance routine too!

The song has an 80's synth feel which gives it a sense of fun from the outset. The song starts out very sparsely with no beat and Daði singing a very slow intro in a slightly tongue in cheek way with coy looks to camera and air grabs. here the instrumentation comes in, as does the beat. There is then a very clear verse/chorus sequence leading to the instrumental break. This gets us to half way through the song. We then have another verse/chorus followed by a short bridge which leads into the final rendition of the chorus before ending with a big brass finish and a group pose worthy of an instagram selfie.

This is such a happy, fresh and fun song with a memorable stage show. There is plenty to see and follow along with in this performance and whether you like the song or not it is certainly something that cannot be forgotten. It's a catchy song and the dance routine goes with it perfectly. In many ways the song and performance goes as one, as one doesn't feel quite right without the other. It's going to appeal to children, especially with the dance routine , bright lights and minecraft-esque clothing. lt is going o appeal to those who hark back to the days when songs has a dance routine (Brotherhood of man, Izhar Cohen, Bucks Fizz, Euphoria etc) This may also be its downfall with some maybe questioning if it is too 'jokey'. There is also the question of the ties RUV (the Icelandic broadcaster) have with Netfix who are the ones making a Eurovision film based in Iceland. There has been a lot of odd tweeting by random celebs about this song and a lot of people are starting to wonder if there is more than meets the eye.
Personally there is no such thing as bad publicity and anything that brings the contest to wider audience and gets them watching the contest proper is no bad thing. Plus it is a family friendly song with a great message. It is a well written song and Daði has an amazing voice. He's like the millennium's Rick Astley... but with a band.

Artist - Daði & Gagnamagnið
Song - Think about things
Composer - Daði Freyr Pétursson
Lyricist - Daði Freyr Pétursson

CROATIA

The Croatian Final was held on February 29th at the Marino Cvetkovic Sports Hall in Opatija, hosted by Zlata Mück Sušec, Doris Pincic Rogoznica, Duško Curlic & Mirko Fodor. The winner was decided by the votes of 5 regional "expert" juries and public televoting. The winning act was Damir Kedžo with the song "Divlji vjetre" (Wild wind)

Damir is stood centre stage with a microphone stand.  He is dressed rather underwhelmingly in black trousers. To our right but a bit further back are five female backing singers also dressed head to toe in black. The backdrop, which is more atmospheric and abstract than something implying the song's meaning, is also rather dark which means at times all you can see are floating heads (unless that is the effect they were hoping for!)

This is another ballad where very little happens Damir is rooted to the spot behind his stand for the first half of the song. Even when he handles the microphone he takes about three steps forward and stays there. The backing singers doesn't move because they are stuck behind their stands too. The whole thing looks very empty and awkward, especially when you then factor in the dark setting. Although there is some variation of camera shot for the viewers at home far too much of the camera time is fixated on Damir's head and shoulders.

Let's focus on the song. The ballad starts full on compared to many songs we've already seen. The first verse does wind around for a while. It almost feels like a short verse, bridge, short verse. Once into the chorus the drums really kick in as does the ultra harmonic ladies on backing. Interesting move to see that the title is the chain thank links between the verse ending and chorus starting. The next verse starts up but this time just the backing singers to start. This verse reveals itself to be a truncated version of the first verse and and is done in half the time. This brings us into another chorus that continues longer than normal with Damir repeating the last lines in an echoing way before his voice rises up for the big note before the last chorus. The song then ends with drum beats before just stopping.

This is a lovely song with a whiff of the good old fashioned Balkan ballad, something currently lacking from the line-up as I write. The Croatian language sounds really nice to the ear and fits well with the power and flow of the music. Damir's voice is clear, well controlled and sounds good on his own and in the mix with the backing singers. I guess here, at least for me, the main problem is the total lack of presentation. They could very easily pick this exact performance and plonk it straight onto the stage in Rotterdam but it is going to feel cold and empty and is not going to connect. If the Croatian delegation want to qualify they need the song or Damir (or both) to reach the audience, especially as almost all of them will not understand Croatian. On that note, yes they could by wiley and change the language in whole or in part but I think the language makes this one stand out more.
The more I have listened to this song, the more it has it has made an impression on me. Unfortunately for them, on first listen it makes barely any impression. It is quite a dated entry and needs some pizazz to make it stand out. As much I would love the song to qualify (and Damir is a solid confident singer) everything else doesn't deserve to. Great song, shame about the rest of it.

Artist - Damir Kedžo
Song - Divlji vjetre (Wild wind)
Composer - Ante Pecotić
Lyricist - Ante Pecotić

MOLDOVA

The Moldovan Final was held on February 29th at the TRM TV Studios in Chisinau. There were due to be 20 songs competing however Geta Burlacu withdrew on the day of the final. The winner, who won both the  televoting and jury polls, and returning to the Eurovision stage, is Natalia Gordienco with "Prison".

Natalia is wearing a mesh skirt and hop which gives her a floaty feel as she walks across the set. Her hair is rather bouffant and makes her look slightly victorian/ or older than her years. She also has a secret light planted in her hand which comes to effect during the chorus. The backdrop palette is red, black and white and shows geometric patterns, in particular on the diagonal, and light flashes. On stage there are four chairs which she walks around while she is singing. She is also joined part way by 4 backing singers, all wearing back and all quite badly lit throughout and they end up sitting on the seats and make a 'human prison' around Natalia that she then breaks out of.

Natalia starts at the back of the stage in wanters around the stage slowly round the back of the chairs, sometimes standing behind the backs and sometimes crouching down next to them. During the chorus she opens up her hand to reveal the beams of light shooting out from it. Annoyingly, the camera angles are rather odd for a TV watcher as there were long sections when all you could see was her shoulders and head and very little else. Natalia keeps full eye contact with the camera which is good work but negates any of the background or stage set up

The song on first listen sounded like a real mess. It was not particularly obvious what the flow of verses and choruses were because so much of it sounded so similar. We start off with verse one which like many of the ballads we are hearing from this year starts off quiet and subdued. There is then a pre-chorus which refreshes the tune and gets us ready for the powerful chorus. Now, the chorus and verse share the same tune and differ very slightly in the composition of lyrics. - hence the previous confusion. This is then followed by the refrain that includes the title of the song. This sequence is then repeated and during the chorus the backing singers come onto the stage from the front, which is a nice touch. After the chorus there is a brief interlude when the backing singers do some warbling and moving about before one last chorus this time with extra beats. Unfortunately the song finishes rather abruptly and unexpectedly and sort of chops of the end art of the phrase by shouting "prison" on top of it.

Although this is another ballad this one does have its plaus points. First of all Natalia's sounds really good and she shows off a lot of the different facets of her voice. Th song is also in a 6/8 time signature which give it good drive and means it can divide itself seamlessly between feeling fast and slow tempo. However I feel much could be done to make the visuals fresher and more modern. I don't quite know why the chairs are there or why the backing singers have to appear half way through or what the light out of her hand means. None of these stage ideas are new! through. Many others may wonder what the set up has to do with prison at all!
Considering the behemoth of a songwriting team behind this it feel quite lacklustre, almost like they have garnered ideas by listening back the first demo they made of "Scream" from last year. They have the time and expertise to make this look slick and rich rather than feeling lost like it does now. I suspect that with a new lick of paint and some nudges towards their neighbours in the former Soviet region this will get through - hopefully not in the place of something more original or authentic.


Artist - Natalia Gordienco
Song - Prison
Composers - Philipp Kirkorov, Dimitris Kontopoulos
Lyricists - Dimitris Kontopoulos, Sharon Vaughn

ESTONIA

The Estonian Final was held on February 29th at Saku Suurhall in Tallinn, hosted by Karl-Erik Taukar & Tõnis Niinemets. Before the final there were 2 semi-finals where 6 songs qualified from each. There were two rounds of voting. In the first round the top 3 was chosen by a mix of televoting and an international jury. In the second round the winner was chosen solely by televoting. Going to Rotterdam is Uvu Suviste with the song "What love is".

Uku is stood an a small raised circular platform and below him on the actual stage are numerous lit candles which cover most of the stage. Around and above him are long strips of white light which  To our left there is a bright sign reading 'LOVE' just in case you're not following the lyrics of the song. The song starts of almost pitchblack with only Uku visible the backdrop then turns into sky. For the rest of the song the backdrop is dark with different shafts of orangey light. Uku himself is dressed in a smart/casual fashion with a white shirt, white shoes with a light grey suit with shortened sleeves over the top.

There is not a lot to this performance, the fact that he is stuck in a sea of candles means it is near on impossible to move apart from what he can do on the spot. Uvu spends the time concentrating on the song, which is no bad thing, and emphasising points with some Westlife-esque armohraphy and emoting. There are a lot of swooping shots from side to side and from far away to near. Part of me wonders if his platform could be at the front of the stage and the candles behind so he at least feels less distanced from the audience.

The song starts straight away with no intro into verse 1 this is quietly produced and Uvu's voice sounds quite low here. The mood continues with the 'chorus' - I say that is it is the tune of the chorus but with different lyrics. This is followed by a chorus proper with full orchestration. The start of each chorus proper is a heavy drumbeat which indicates the change of direction. This ends with a small refrain which settles the song back down again. Verse two begins and you can hear a piano, drum and the backing singers quite prominently. After this we get three renditions of the chorus: one full out, one just a piano and one more full out. The song ends rather abruptly after this marathon run with him warbling the word 'Love'

This ballad is predictable and repetitive which in Eurovision terms is not a bad start but does menat it gets quite tiresome quickly. The chorus is very memorable because each line starts with the same pattern of notes AND the same words. The beat in the chorus keeps it driving on and makes it much more emphasis that the verses. The verses are awful. The tune is all over the place and the lyrics are sickly sweet, cheesy and over the top and that first rendition of the chorus is just plain unacceptable. If this song had different lyrics and a different stage set up I would be much more positive about this entry. The theme of the song isn't a problem I just feel there needs to be as much hook in the verses too. I don't like the partition between act and audience - even through the camera he looks too far away - and he genuinely looks awkward and stifled in this show.
As much as I have time for the chorus the song structure as a whole lets this down badly. Looking at the competition in its semi it is surrounded by more vibrant, up-to-date songs and more out-of-the-box acts. This is going to feel as dated as anything. Nice try Estonia but I don't think you'll be making the final this year.

Artist - Uku Suviste
Song - What love is
Composers - Uku Suviste, Sharon Vaughn
Lyricists - Uku Suviste, Sharon Vaughn