My Picks: Semifinal Two

One semifinal down, one more to go.

Watching the results of Semifinal One were highly disappointing for me, because the three songs that didn't make it through were my three favorites of that semifinal.

I suppose that's not unexpected; I'm looking at this as an American, and my tastes in music don't necessarily reflect the average Eurovision user, and I think my disappointment shows in the last post.

But onwards and upwards:

Here's my personal top ten of the second semifinal

1.  Ukraine  "Be My Guest"  Gaitana

OK Europe.  You didn't like Pernilla Karlsson (for good reason).  You didn't like Trackshittaz (also understandable).  You rejected Izabo (which confuses and depresses me).  But you had better not reject Gaitana.  I don't care if she comes out singing flat and her backup dancers fall all over each other.  She'd better get to the finals.  Denying her fabulousness is not acceptable.

2.  Sweden  "Euphoria"  Loreen

I know, this one is a no-brainer.  I think it's kind of generic, but if the performance is anything like it was in Melodifestivalen, this is a shoe-in.

3.  Macedonia  "Crno i belo"  Kaliopi

I like her voice, and she's got presence.  Need I say more?

4.  Norway  "Stay"  Tooji

He's got the performance down, and I have no doubt it's going to go through.

5.  Portugal  "Vida minha"  Filipa Sousa

On principle, I want Portugal to go through.  I love the fact they send a song that is distinctly Portuguese and that integrity would get my vote to go through.  Mind you, she's no Lucia Moniz, so Portugal's on the bubble at best, but I would still love to see this again on Saturday night.

6.  Serbia  "Nije ljubav stvar"  Željko Joksimović

I have to admit that this guy is a performer, and if he's as good as he was in the preview (Serbian language) clip, he's going to fly through the semifinal with flying colors, especially this semifinal.

7.  the Netherlands  "You and Me"  Joan Franka

I hate this song.  I hate the stupid Indian headdress.  But loads of people cream themselves over this song, so I'll put it in my top 10

8.  Estonia  "Kuula"  Ott Lepland

Cute boy soulfully singing = qualification.  Sadly, no zombies.

9.  Slovenia  "Verjamen"  Eva Boto

Of the three remainig Balkan ballads, Eva Boto has the strongest buzz of the three.

10.  Turkey  "Love Me Back"  Can Bonomo

This is purely on the diaspora vote, and instead of last year, they've got countries like Germany and the Netherlands where a large number of Turks live, so I expect a better result than last year.

The problem is with this semifinal a number of songs on this list can and will be easily replaced.  It all depends on the performance, and I'm looking forward to watching it tomorrow when I get home from work, hopefully being surprised by not taking a peek beforehand.