I use coarse language throughout this blogpost. I don't care though.
I don't usually get hooked on the campness of Eurovision, but this year was certainly different.
Living in Sweden has given me a new respect for it, these people are mad for it and for good reason too, their biggest export (ABBA) was made famous by Eurovision and they've always had a great track record when it comes to getting into the Finals. The last 5 years however Sweden hasn't done so well, according to Wikipedia their average placing has been 16th, for a country that prides itself on this kind of competition, that isn't too good is it? This year was their worst though, they didn't even make it to the Finals and I wasn't too surprised either, their song of choice was "This Is My Life" by Anna Bergandahl, a sort of half assed ballad by a half assed singer who only got to represent Sweden based on her fame (she placed 5th in Idol) and I believe alot of fans sympathised with her because she seemed so innocent. In the semi-final, she was very trembly and seemed extremely nervous, sorry to say it but, I don't want to watch that kind of thing on a fun show like Eurovision. This is a classic case of someone being told that they're very good when in actual fact they're very shit.
The "Big Four" are four countries that automatically get into the finals because of their financial contributions to European Broadcasting Company. It's all politics I suppose and this is the kind of thing that has been around since the beginning of Eurovision and I doubt will ever change.
The good stuff about Eurovision though is that it's shit, we know it's shit, yet we can't help but love it. This year in particular was very interesting for me personally, because for the very first time, I got to see what it was like to actually qualify to be a competitor. Back in England, I only ever watched the Final, but this year I got to see Sweden pick their act and watch them compete in the semis. I was extremely impressed by it all, the production and the effort that people put into it was amazing, so many acts to choose from just in the Swedish competition (Melodifestival) alone. The semis were great, my only problem with it was that there was too many ballads for my liking, Eurovision is all about fun and being able to enjoy yourself, I don't want to be hearing some chick or opera singer wailing about losing someone, or important issues like the environment. We see all that shit in the charts and in the news as it is, Eurovision is a good chance to break free from all the crap in the world and just enjoy yourself.
Best (in no particular order)
- Run Away by SunStroke Project & Olia Tira...(Moldova) There's really only 3 words that can describe their entry into the competition; Epic Sax Guy. I was there, sitting on the couch, chillin' like a motherfucker and suddenly theres a dude with a violin spinning on a spinning thing and a blonde guy with massive glasses, humping a saxophone. I think it's fair to say that they should have won.
- We Could Be The Same by MaNga...(Turkey) I hate this kind of music, always have, always will...however, you can't deny that they put on a fantastic show this year. MaNga are quite famous from where they come from, which is rare for Eurovision as usually most countries put relatively unknown acts in the mix, not Turkey though. The song was good, not your usual Eurovision, although it was a tad outdated. Nu-Metal has come and gone, the whole rap/rock thing was laid to rest along with Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. However, they did really well for themselves.
- OPA! by George Alkaios & Friends...(Greece) I have a good mate called Soto, I've known him for a number of years online, he's Greek and one day he told me all about how Greeks celebrate, for whatever occassion, they say "OPA!" So, when I heard this song in the semis I knew instantly that I was going to like it. When I heard the song however, I didn't like it, I FUCKING LOVED IT! It was how I imagined it to be and more, the dancing, the singing, the constant "OPA!"s...it was fun! Like I said, it's that kind of thing which makes Eurovision great entertainment. This was by far my favourite.
- Ovo je Balkan by Milan Stankovic...(Serbia) Ehhhhhhh ehhhhhhhhhh eh eh eh eh. That's the first thing you hear when the music starts and then the first thing you see is a blonde Serbian bloke who looked Chinese and was camp as fuck. I loved his performance, especially with the chicks in the background doing the robot. Once again, brilliant.
- Playing With Fire by Paula Selling & Ovi...(Romania) This was just weird, in a good way though. The guy was creepy, the girl looked like she needed to crap, especially when she reached that high note. The song was good, I could see it being a bit hit if they had the right ad campaign in England.
- Lost And Forgotten by Peter Nalitch & Friends...(Russia) I fucking loved this one, I didn't like it at the time too much, but afterwards I couldn't stop watching the live performance on YouTube. I even learned it on guitar and piano, it was THAT good. Technically it's actually a really tough song to play, well I had no trouble, but that's because I'm awesome. I'm kidding. Not really. The frontman is obviously a big part of why I loved this song, especially the 2nd verse when he is looking at a really bad drawing of a girl and then banters with the guitarist about it.
- My Heart Is Yours by Didrik Solli-Tangen...(Norway) Now, I know we shouldn't base Eurovision on talent, but when you're singing a song which is vocal based, then I expect you to be able to pull it off dilligently. This idiot, Didrik, fumbled all the way through his performance with a shoddy voice and zero personality. How Norway could vote to have this guy in the final, I'll never know, maybe it says more about them, than it does him.
- That Sounds Good To Me by Josh Dubovie...(UK) Heh, the title of this song is sort of ironic isn't it? I'm almost ashamed to call myself British after this terrible TERRIBLE mess. I don't understand the mentality of how people could actually vote for a guy who can't sing to save his life and has the personality of a dead fish on valium. The song was shit too. I refuse to comment further.
- Butterflies by 3 + 2 & Robert Wells...(Belarus) They shouldn't even be allowed to have their own country, if this is the kinda crap they choose for music, then how in the Hell are they able to wipe their own asses? Go fuck themselves, thrice. I'm joking, but seriously, thank fuck for Greece.
- Satellite by Lena...(Germany) I lost faith in Europe when they announced this crap as the winner. The likes of Lily Allen and Kate Nash annoy me to no extent, so when I heard this German girl...well you can't really call it singing but, when I heard her "sing" I felt like scratching myself with various scrubbers with chemicals on them. It wasn't too bad compared to alot of the other songs, but this is in my "worst" list because she won, so it's more of a dig at people who voted for her...HOW COULD YOU?! Lol. Each to their own and this is a fine example of that. Sidenote: When singing with a really bad accent, you should be very careful because at 2:10 of this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzOaU5H3P4c it sounds like she's saying "Love my anus straight and through"
In closing, I thought Eurovision was great, you HAVE to have bad acts, what else would there be to make fun of? And thank fuck it's EUROvision, because if a country like America tried to get in on this, we'd just have someone like Miley Cyrus screeching about experiences that she's never had in her life. I've ordered the CD online because I can't get enough of hearing it all, even the shit.
Anyway, that's enough for one blogpost.
'Till next time....
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