Eurovision week is here! The song contest (the ESC) was established to foster peace and understanding through music. Has it ever been more needed? As we settle in for two semi-finals (Tuesday and Thursday) and the grand final (on Saturday) here are ten talking points.
- What’s this year’s chat?
The ESC is no stranger to political controversy and this year you can’t get away from the impact of the Israel-Gaza conflict. There’s substantial agitation to boycott this year’s contest due to Israel’s participation and many fans have felt Malmo’s scaled-back hosting is a considerable let-down on last year’s extravaganza in Liverpool, partly due to more of the production budget being spent on security. Israel’s song is a beautifully performed, emotional ballad, though the lyrics have been rewritten twice for falling foul of strict rules on non-political themes. Hard to know how the song goes down in the arena. Aside from that controversy, there’s a lot of talk of the influence of last year’s hugely popular runner-up – Finland’s Cha Cha Cha. You’ll see it’s not hard to draw some comparisons with this year’s favourite.
- So it’s super serious this year?
Not quite…Eurovision has become a massive deal over the last decade and has also moved away from identikit pop entries of the noughties, to largely cross-genre entries, often with a much stronger focus on the country’s language and music heritage. This year there’s a mixture of interesting, dark, rock & metal inspired tunes, alongside pop bops, zany performances, ballads and floor-fillers.
- What makes a Eurovision winner?
The ESC fan community follows the contest from national selections, getting deep into the back stories of the songs and performers. But when all’s said and done, most people watch the songs for the first time during the TV show. So you have only three minutes to grab the viewer’s attention, through a combination of catchy, memorable song, strong vocals and stand-out staging that works with the song.
- The 90s are back!
If you were a fan of early 90s dance culture, there’ll be lots to love in this year’s songs. The Netherlands ‘Europapa’ is pure techno, with added 2Unlimited, and Austria’s song ‘We Will Rave’ is similarly retro dance, while Finland’s artist is literally called Windows95 Man (this is the main zany entry this year).
- All rise for the King and Queen of Eurovision
Please be upstanding for the King of Eurovision, Johnny Logan, who will appear on stage this year as an interval act in the first semi-final. Until Loreen’s win last year, Johnny was the only artist to win the ESC twice (for Ireland in 1980 and 1987, with ‘Hold Me Now’ – one of my all-time favourites).
However, reigning supreme this year will be legendary Swedish Eurovision host Petra Mede. She’s presented twice before, including performing the second-most loved interval act (after Riverdance, obvs) ‘Love, Love, Peace, Peace’. Nobody does it better.
- Ok, so who are the favourites?
Two songs have been leading the pack. The early favourite was Croatia’s ‘Rim Tim Tagi Dim’, though Switzerland’s ‘The Code’ has been hot on its heels. Of these, Croatia likely has more general appeal. However, there’s huge love for the Netherlands ‘Europapa’, which although seemingly a bit of fun, has a heartfelt message at its core. Ukraine and Italy are also likely to be top contenders.
- The Bangers
Eurovision has become known for producing some absolute bangers. There are fewer than usual this year but, as ever, you can count on Sweden to bring a slickly-produced hit. Cyprus also sticks to its tried and tested formula, while Lithuania’s also popular. Honourable mention to Luxembourg, who’re back in the contest for the first time in over 30 years.
- The Quirky
Lots of quirky songs this year. Many of these are strong fan favourites, with interesting personal stories or issues behind the lyrics but mostly they’ll divide the crowd. Some will soar in the vote and some will spectacularly fail to qualify, as they’re just too marmite. In this group we’re looking at: Ireland, Portugal, Belgium, Norway, Greece, Armenia, Serbia, Slovenia and Estonia.
- The Meh
There’s several serviceable but forgettable songs, which IMHO are the group at risk of the dreaded NQ – not qualifying for the grand final. I’m looking at you Albania, Iceland, Australia, Denmark and Poland.
- The Big 5
The Big 5 get a free pass to the grand final but this year the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy will all perform in the semi-finals. How will they do? Well, France is sending another crooner, an approach that has worked well for them in recent years, while poor Germany looks set to continue its terrible run of form. Italy has a very strong contender – possible top five finisher – and Spain has a controversial (because of the title and content) song about female empowerment but I doubt it’ll trouble the left-hand side of the table. As for the UK, we have an experienced performer in Olly Alexander but unfortunately it’s a weak song ( I cannot get past the Steps-Tragedy electro-chimes) by Eurovision standards. On the upside, for the first time in forever the UK has invested in some decent staging and production, though the boxing-shower room-in space theme might not land with the voting public. I doubt the UK will make it into the top ten but you never know – that’s the fun of Eurovision.
See you in Zagreb next year?
Look Aboot Ye 