Semi-Final 2: Preview

So we may have already seen the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest *cough*Denmark*cough* but it doesn't mean we have seen all of the top songs of this contest. In reality I think that semi-final 2 actually offers a much broader range of music than semi-final 1, which mostly consisted of pop songs.
So what's on offer?

Latvia
Despite energetic performances, a good song and the mere fact that they are opening semi-final 2, Latvia should have a great entry on their hands. However despite this their entry lacks the luster that I was hoping for and this will have great difficulty qualifying. I guess PeR can take some heart from the fact that Zlata Ognevich was dancing to this today in the press centre during rehearsals.
My Grade: 3/10
Qualifier: No

San Marino
Though San Marino have sent Valentina last year this song could not have been more different. This is a mature, high brow song that should deliver for them. I really like this song, though I wish that it was one minute of ballad and two minutes of disco, but still this should just about qualify. The absence of Italy from voting in this semi-final is a problem for San Marino though.
My Grade: 8/10
Qualifier: Yes

FYR Macedonia
What can I say about this? I really like Lorenzo and his song. I don't like Esma popping in during it. Overall this is a non-qualifier and a complete mess. It also lacks a lot of neighbours in semi-final 2 and by extension it may find it hard to get points from non-Balkan countries.
My Grade: 3.5/10
Qualifier: No

Azerbaijan
I never really have liked Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest, except for their entry last year. However this year I think they have a great textbook entry though I am concerned that nerves may get to Farid on the night, it will have a great vocal and will sail into the final.
My Grade: 4.5/10
Qualifier: Yes

Finland
This is truly a fun song. I've loved this from when I heard it before the Finnish national final in February. Krista is able to deliver a competent and entertaining performance and I think this should make the final comfortably.
My Grade: 9/10
Qualifier: Yes

Malta
Tonight Gianluca will bring a lot of fun to the stage. However despite what some have said I don't see this as a potential winner. I do see it getting out of this semi-final though, to an average final position.
I really enjoy this song but by no means do I love it.
My Grade: 7/10
Qualifier: Yes

Bulgaria
Montenegro didn't do it. There's very few Bulgarian friends in this semi-final to pull this into the final. No matter what people say it is really hard to believe that this will come anywhere above last.
My Grade: 2.5/10
Qualifier: No

Iceland
I sadly have to say that I don't think Iceland will be able to make the final this year with this song. It is still a great song and could be a great qualifier. However it is highly unlikely that the majority of the qualifiers will come from the first half of the draw so I don't think it will qualify.
My Grade: 8/10
Qualifier: No

Greece
I really don't over like this song. Its fun but for me it is a bit shallow for what I would want to win the Eurovision. This style of song will always do well at the contest particularly when there is a distinct lack of jokish entries. Certainly a qualifier but hard to say where they will come after this.
My Grade: 4.5/10
Qualifier: Yes

Israel
This is arguably one of the best ballads in this year's contest and with a strong performance from Moran this should comfortably qualify.
My Grade: 7.5/10
Qualifier: Yes

Armenia
I really do not like this song. It's dull it's boring and I always skip it when I see it on my player. Having said that I could image that the juries may push this through based on the quality of the voices of the song.
My Grade: 1/10
Qualifier: No

Hungary
I always have had a soft spot for this song but I don't think that it will qualify based on the reports I have read from the rehearsals. ByeAlex simply is not making a strong enough effort to do well. I can't imagine this making it above 15th place.
My Grade: 5/10
Qualifier: No

Norway
Is there any reason why this song will not make it to the final? Margaret has delivered some very strong performances in the national final and in the rehearsals. This is a strong song and singer. I'm not a huge fan of this song and do not understand why it's so hyped up but it still will do well.
My Grade: 6/10
Qualifier: Yes

Albania
From Suus Albania completely changed the style of song they send to Eurovision this year. I was very surprised by this winning FiK and I think that this could do either fairly well or bomb at this year's contest. If it does qualify expect it to receive quite a lot of ex-Yugoslav countries. This is the only real rock song at this year's contest so that cannot be discounted.
My Grade: 4/10
Qualifier: Yes

Georgia
Clearly this is the most cheesy song I could image at Eurovision - and I love this. Song uses every little trick in the book and I just want to be drawn into it and sing it out loud. This is clearly in the final and a possible winner.
My Grade: 9.5/10
Qualifier: Yes

Switzerland
Switzerland lacks a lot of luster which I though that it would have when it came to Eurovision. It probably won't qualify unless the Salvation Army really gets involved.
My Grade: 5/10
Qualifier: No

Romania
No, just no. I don't like this song. This will do well but I can imagine it not qualifying. It should qualify but I think it could not too.
My Grade: 1.5/10
Qualifier: Yes

So my top 10 are:

12 points - Georgia

10 points - Finland

8 points - Iceland

7 points - San Marino

6 points - Israel

5 points - Malta

4 points - Norway

3 points - Switzerland

2 points - Hungary

1 point - Azerbaijan

So I think the following will qualify to the final:

1. San Marino

2. Azerbaijan

3. Finland

4. Malta

5. Greece

6. Israel

7. Norway

8. Albania

9. Georgia

10. Romania

The Hangover Weekend

Picture the scene: You wake up after a night out. It's the afternoon, you don't remember what happened last night. You look on Facebook.......there's pictures. Lots of pictures. You stare at your computer screen and think "Oh God!"

Well that's how I feel about this Eurovision weekend. Left, Right and Centre - what did Europe do this weekend? There have been some very suspect song selections by any accounts.

Serbia just about got it right but they had five very strong songs in their final; so they don't really deserve a clap for that. They sent Moje 3 to Eurovision with the song Ljubav Je Svuda - I really like the performance. You can watch the video here.

Estonia made the very strange choice of sending Birgit Oigemeel to Eurovision with the song Et Uus Saaks Alguse. I though there were some much better entries in this year's Eesti Laul, so there certainly has been some missed opportunities there. You can watch the winning song here.

Bulgaria have really lost the plot. After having the brains to send Elitsa Todorova & Stoyan Yankoulou back to Eurovision they made a very unsmart song selection of Kismet. It is like Water only not nearly as good. It really is not a strong song selection by any one's judgement and should continue to keep Bulgaria in the semi-finals. Listen to the song here.

Armenia had already chosen their singer so Gor Sujyan was already going to Eurovision. Now we know he will go with the song Lonely Planet, which in my opinion is a fairly poor song from Armenia, they are capable of much better. Listen to the song here.

Hungary choose ByeAlex and the song Kedvesem to represent them at Eurovision a surprising (but awful) choice and, well ByeAlex just says it all. Watch the performance here.

Other Song Choices

I haven't had the chance to really dig into some of the other songs that have been presented lately and am trying to catch up on them, however I really am impressed by Georgia's song Waterfall - well done Thomas G:sson.

JESC Reviews Part 2

We'd all like a little extra time to do something, and with end of semester exams knocking on the door I sure am one of those people. Anyhow somehow I shall get these finished with the joy of Junior Eurovision and the  rehearsals to look forward to. Anyhow time to look at a couple more songs (and hopefully not shredding them to death).

Georgia
FUNKIDS - Funky Lemonade
After the very successful Candy Music, Georgia appear to be trying a similar strategy this year. JESC is most unusual, as the winning country does not have to host the contest the defending champion appears to be more inclined to come back stronger. The song though does lack the impact of Candy Music, though the kids are cute, the song lacks a lot and gets a bit repetitive. Personally, it reminds me of the nineties
Verdict: Not a winner and not what we saw last year.
Grade: D

Ukraine
Anastasyia - Nebo
The strange staging is the first thing that stands out almost instantly at me. The song itself is difficult to like however maybe this is all just a weird package that when its all brought together will look great at JESC. Though the song picks up towards the end. The change to English is nice but still it is not quite what I was hoping for.
Verdict: Don't like it but stranger things have happened at JESC....
Grade E

Belgium
Fabian - Abracadabra 
Belgium has stuck to the formula and gotten a catchy song that lacks a knockout punch to send to JESC. I like this one and I think that Fabian has a lot more charisma than many other JESC contestants will offer. The song is a good listen on the first hearing though my interest in it began to fade in it after multiple listens. While it is to late to say it now the song could be changed somewhat to substanically improve it with only minor changes.
Verdict: In spite of its faults it's a good attempt from Belgium.
Grade: B-

Azerbaijan 
Omar and Suada - Girls and Boys
"Kids wrote this song". In your dreams, Azerbaijan, maybe a child was present in the room while this was drawn up, but seriously, pull the other one. However this is Azerbaijan's debut entry at JESC and it certain is going to be in serious competition to take the top spot and take yet another trophy to Azerbaijan. In compassion to the other songs that we have heard this definitely stands a head and shoulders about the others. It's catchy and has all the elements of a winner. However I would just question whether or not this is all just a little bit clinical, and it may not be in the best place in the running order.
Verdict: Strong song that will be in contention but not a definite winner.
Grade: A- 

Rehearsals: Day 4: Part 1

Today is the last major day of first rehearsals - tomorrow it moves over to seconds rehearsals which are usually don't tell us all that much extra, but anyhow today there are 10 songs taking to the stage, so we have to keep moving forward. First up was Slovenia

Slovenia - Rehearsal Video
Slovenia are definitely a strong contender but looking at this today all I can think of is Croatia and Feminmen who were considered a shoe in to the final. One stage the white is looking very effective, and the general tone of the song is coming across well. Apparently they are trying out a lot of different backgrounds in today's rehearsal. There are Molitva comparisons going on but I think that that might be overrating the song.

Croatia - Rehearsal Video
Croatia are very unfortunately just after Slovenia, the song is rather like Slovenia's but it does lack something. The performance is certainly interesting to watch, given all of the dancing with lots of moody lighting in the background. This is unfortunately not as accessible as Slovenia and could struggle. I'm also hoping that she intends to change her dress and that that one will not be worn at live show.

Sweden - Rehearsal Video
Sweden have been the most anticipated rehearsal. I didn't review Sweden but along with Denmark, Iceland and Italy it is among my favourites. The performance has not changed hugely since the national final but at the end the background does light up with snow. In the rehearsal video that I saw the was no actually snow falling but they do run that prop sometimes. Overall I think that this was an extremely solid rehearsal and this probably is the start of Sweden's march to victory. There has been a general movement against Sweden in the press center and this is very noteworthy as these factors do influence media a lot. Sometimes it is good to be here is Dublin away from all that.

Georgia - Rehearsal Video 
As I have previously discussed I feel that this is one of the weakest songs in this years contest. No doubt though that the performance will be able to lift it a little and today showed that Anri is a very strong performer.  There are a lot of props involved in this entry. There is also the addition of backing singers also helps this entry. The overall presentation is a bit camp and I am really unconvinced on this as a qualifier. Apparently he has a drum and some pyros as well.

Turkey - Rehearsal Video
This is going to go down a storm in Baku, obviously because of the close links between Azerbaijan and Turkey. For Can this really will help to get him to stand out just a little more. Can has decided to keep this performance in line with the ship theme. However the backdrop starts with a sea and lighthouse but then develops into something different which might just be a boring, personally I'd keep the lighthouse all the way through. Vocally this was fine, with no major hiccups, so at the moment it should bring Turkey back into the final after last year. Strangely this reminds me of a Greek entry more than a Turkish one but I don't know why that is.

Estonia - Rehearsal Video
Estonia have a very divisive entry, I think that it is a possible qualifier though. I think that based on today's rehearsal this is a real contender, vocally it was spot on and the backing singer really helps the song. The intense colour really adds to the song. This is not a definite qualifier in my books but it is getting  very close.

Slovakia - Rehearsal Video
I do like this entry but the performance is doing nothing for it. In short: Soften the band image, improve the harsh vocals [i.e. with Lemsip], lose the sunglasses and lose the hat. More eye contact with the camera is required. The song does seem to end very suddenly though which is a little concerning. Eldrine slipped into the final last year and ended up 9th which was a big surprise so there clearly is a market for this out there and these people do actually watch Eurovision.


Norway - Rehearsal Video
Eric Saade Mark II I mean em, Tooji, stepped up for rehearsals today. Visually and in terms of dance moves this is excellent and a very strong visual close to the end. Vocally though it is quite off the mark. I will be waiting for the second rehearsal before I cast aspirations over how this will do. I expect it to qualify but not with ease. Many are suggesting that this could be the surprise non-qualifier of this semi-final but I suspect that the combination of a great draw and the dance show will mean it will go down a storm with the female televoters.

Bosnia + Herzegovina - Rehearsal Video
As expected Maya Saar has delivered a fairly understated performance of her song. The most outstanding thing about this song is the very strange choice of backdrop. Looking at the large number of steady cams on stage this will definitely be an up close and personal performance. Vocally this was good, but that doesn't take from the dull song. While some in the press center are suggesting that this might be the first non-qualifier from Bosnia + Herzegovina. I'm unconvinced, I think it is going through but I'm very hesitant to say that. I'll wait and see what further rehearsals bring.

Lithuania - Rehearsal Video
As usual I cannot understand the logic behind using a blindfold. The performance starts similarly to the one in the national final. Vocally this was spot on, but I still am unconvinced by the song. I think the last 90 seconds work really well on stage. The last 90 seconds backdrop is really interesting, again with the dancing figures in the back ground. This would normally be a non-qualifier but coming at the end of a fairly dull [for the non-Eurovision public] semi-final this might slip through.

Is Your Song The Joke?

Georgia: The Review

I have to drag myself back to this song to judge it. This is not the worst song in the contest but it certainly would be if it wasn’t for the existence of a song which I will not mention for now *Cough…Cough….Montenegro…Cough*.

Georgia has recently experienced quite little interest in being represented in Eurovision. This is strange because according to the way I calculate bloc voting they won the USSR bloc vote in both 2010 and 2011. They also have had very good results since they first entered the contest. This year they received only 13 entries for Eurovision, leaving me to believe that they will most likely have an internal selection next year. 

This year’s song is the one that matters though and this year after a national final of nine songs Georgia decided to send the song I’m A Joker by Anri Jokhadze. This was a strange choice. It is rather different to many of the entries that we have seen from Georgia before this. The studio version of the song is not that bad however I think that when sung live it comes across as being a little messy. This could be polished up before it goes to Baku but I suspect it won’t be. Vocally, given that the song is mostly about shouting, it is fine but that’s all. Lyrically it is pretty poor – “I’m a Joker…I’m a smoker.”

While this may be the poorest entry so far from Georgia, it has some very successful songs to follow. However I imagine that the juries will shoot this down and it will not register enough impact on the televote to overturn the jury decision.

Verdict: This is Georgia’s worst entry so far and more than likely won’t qualify for the final. Personally I’m not mad about it.

Grade: E

Georgia Selects What Might Be A Song

Georgia has selected their Eurovision entry to make the short trip to Baku. Anki Jokhadze and his song (if you wish to call it that) I'm A Joker. My first reaction to this sing is that the public might give it enough votes to allow it to scrap into the top 10 in the semi-final. But the juries are going machine gun this down to the ground and this ought to call a halt to Georgia's unbroken qualification run.

We Haven't Had News For A While.

So a belated Happy Valentine's Day to you all. Another Valentine's Day alone for me and...and...*sobs quietly*... now Belarus seem to have lost the ability to pick a good Eurovision song.

• As I have previously mentioned Belarus today at the most annoying hour of 15:00-17:00CET they have not selected Litesound but instead choose Alyona Lanskaya with her rather uninteresting and unremarkable song All My Life. Best of luck to her - if she makes it through the semi's [that'll be the day]. However there are rumours the song may be changed.
• Russia have moved their national final to March 7 (the more midweek selections the better at this stage).
• Georgia will hold their National Final on February 19 [next Sunday] and have narrowed their selection from 13 songs all the way down to nine. 
• San Remo in Italy is progressing this week and the first show should be over that this stage. I don't follow it because I'M NOT SUPERHUMAN.
• Germany holds a final on Thurday and we will hear the song then too. 
• Saturday is a mega national final day with 7 semi-finals/ song presentations and selections. Will talk about that closer to the date.
• And finally two Canadian twins, Patrick and Chris have made an excellent video for Jedward's Waterline Song. Follow them on Twitter @cpVoros.

News Flash (Again)

Our usual news flash which involves bullet points, condensing the news into bite-sized chunks. Here we go....

• Rambo Amadeus will sing "Euro Neuro" at ESC for Montenegro.....that should give something to laugh about.
• If your looking to laugh at something now, Georiga only recieved 13 songs for their selection. Last year they had 50 and sent Elderine....imagine what crap they will send this year.
• Ireland will announce their candidates for Eurosong shortly (I expect by Monday) and the songs will be revealed on the Mooney Show on RTÉ Radio 1 on Thursday 9th February - More information as it comes.
• According to nicerodds.co.uk Denmark are the early favourites to win ESC 2012. 

Netherlands to host JESC 2012!!!!

It has been annonuced that Netherlands will host JESC 2012 next year in Amsterdam. This is a big step for Netherlands and shows their commitment to Eurovision both Junior and Senior. I am delighted for them and have big expectations for them. So we will see how that progresses.

Sticking with JESC the running order was done today and the running order is here: http://escxtra.com/articles/23131 Interestingly Georgia has got the best slot. 12th and today they launched a new video clip today with revamped music and that is the video of the day, I think this version is a bit stronger and could stand a great chance at JESC this year.

 Also just to mention the new Eurovision website ESC Buzz www.escbuzz.com. I believe this could be one of the greatest innovations for Eurovision fans in a few years. It is run by the highly innovative team at ESC Insight. Well Done.

And The Winner Of Eurovision 2012 Is.....?: Part 12

Georgia

Having come 9^th in the last two contests Georgia is certainly able to score votes even though they have not sent the most outstanding of songs. They have as good a chance of getting votes from the same pool as Azerbaijan, a win is possible. However Georgia does not appear to be actively trying to win the contest at the moment, which is their biggest disadvantage. They also may not stand out if Azerbaijan and Armenia have good songs. It also should be noted that Georgia won the USSR Block (Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuanua, Georgia, Belarus and Ukraine) for the last 2 years in spite of only coming 9^th/10^th.

Tbilisi 2013? Given that Armenia may not be in the next ESC due to the location and Azerbaijan may not have a winning song on show it is conceivable but they must up their game.

So I briefly return to my desk following some spectacular holidays in Kerry. However I am only here for the day and I will be back on either Wednesday or Thursday.

http://www.discoverireland.ie/

Moving on to some more serious business, Georgia picked their song for JESC 2011 a few days ago. Now, I have only just been shown this and OH MY GOD! This is Louis Walsh's Dream. This is so camp. The outfits are dire however  the song is by no means poor however it has a bit of shock factor. This will either sink or swim, there will be no mid table placings with this song. The bass beat the back must be as strong as possible however or else we will have a Getter Jaani on our hands. However I am not really that good at judging how a song will do at JESC. However I  would guess that Georgia have a strong song on their hands and with a good draw the could be in with a good chance, as we all know Georgia will not be short of friendly neighbours and vocally this is very strong the juries should lap this one up. 

So until later in the week when I will have a piece another on JESC, I wish you all good luck.