I was in New York City when this song was chosen as the Hungarian entry for Eurovision. I had it playing when I was taking a shower and was confused by what I was hearing. So when I finished getting ready, I sat down and gave full attention to the performance, figuring that I had missed something that was drowned out by the running water. I was still confused by what I was hearing.
Quite frankly, I still don't understand the Hungarian entry.
Joci Pápai "Origo"
I admire the fact that this song is uncompromising. While a lot of songs in this semifinal feel like mimeographs of songs playing on the radio, "Origo" is a fusion of Romani music and rap. Because it is so different, it will remain in people's minds and will make it to the final.
I have to admit that I am reserving my judgement on the Dutch entry until I actually see the live performance.
OG3NE has a Eurovision pedigree--having represented the Netherlands back in 2007 at Junior Eurovision and they've become one of the most successful musical acts in The Netherlands. So, it's not surprising that they would represent their country at Eurovision.
O'G3NE "Lights and Shadows"
Yes, it does feel like Winston Phillips has been reformed. But the harmonies. The harmonies are so infectious that you want to listen to them sing the phone book.
I suspect that this will come alive when performed live--even if the song is extremely dated. Until then, I have no real way to judge the song.
God bless you, Romania. You have sent the crazy song to Eurovision.
Ilinca ft. Alex Florea "Yodel It!"
Romanian rapping and yodeling. It's not good. You can't understand what they say. They look kind of stupid. Yeah, I kind of love it too.
There's not doubt that this is qualifying--it fills the "let's vote for the crappy song" quota that a lot of people crave when watching Eurovision. This will do a lot better than it should, but that's what makes Eurovision great.
Wow, the first part of semifinal two of this year's semifinal is a dog's breakfast of songs. Malta's entry is another one of those songs.
Claudia Faniello "Breathlessly"
Faniello has been trying to represent Malta at Eurovision since 2006, and after eleven years of trying she's flying the flag for Malta.
She's representing them with a dated power ballad that she will wind up oversinging and not make it to the final. There is nothing that screams "vote for me" with Malta's entry this year. It's a non-qualifier for sure.
The first few songs in the second semifinal this year have been made up of songs that really haven't made an impact.
Macedonia's song is another one of those forgettable songs.
Jana Burčeska "Dance Alone"
However, unlike the previous two songs, Macedonia's song actually has a chance to make an impact on stage. "Dance Alone" begs for flashy lights and sexy dancers.
If the team behind the Macedonian entry can come up with a visually interesting staging and Burčeska can stomp the stage properly, there is a chance that this could make it to the finals.
However, qualification isn't guaranteed. Macedonia doesn't have many friendly votes from other countries and this has to overcome the apathy from other countries to make the final. Everything has to be perfect in the semifinal for Macedonia to qualify, and I look forward to seeing how the chips fall with this song.
I am going to damn the Serbian entry with faint praise.
Tijana Bogićević "In Too Deep"
There's a part of the song that sounds like Katy Perry's song "Firework". Other than that, the song is forgettable.
Despite that, "In Too Deep" is likely to qualify for the finals. That comes down to shared musical tastes that Serbia has with a number of neighbors that are in this semifinal. Macedonia and Croatia are part of the shared musical community of the former Yugoslavia and Austria has a large ex-Yugoslav emigrant community. So, this song will likely make the final while other, more interesting songs will not qualify.
it's one of the things that makes me really enjoy Eurovision. It's not always just about the quality of the songs, but also about the cultural connections that countries have with each other.
The Jack Johnson sound that Trent is performing is pretty nice. Very radio friendly.
The problem is that this song is pretty nice and very radio friendly. There isn't anything that makes me think the song will translate well on the stage in Kyiv and that's a nail in the coffin for Austria's chances in making the final.
Austria doesn't have any musical allies at Eurovision, so to make it to Saturday night there has to be something special about the performance. Three minutes of perfectly pleasant pop isn't going to make people pick up the phone.
