So. Team Ukraine won. Big style. Like the bookmakers had thought they would ever since March. I had expected them to end in a dignified second place but the support from the televote was deafening.
There is always some matter to discuss or just a song I want to share
Very welcome - I hope you'll like it here!
Sunday, May 15, 2022
ESC 2022: Ukraine did it again
So. Team Ukraine won. Big style. Like the bookmakers had thought they would ever since March. I had expected them to end in a dignified second place but the support from the televote was deafening.
Saturday, May 14, 2022
ESC 2022: Tobson takes a final guess
Maybe not AS open as a few of the songs that formerly seemed like contenders have lost their momentum or ended up in the shade. Some because of disappointing performance, some because the competition proved too hard, some because they got a bad spot in the running order.
ESC 2022: what the final looks like from here
The final lineup is completed and as every year it feels like everything went through a major earthquake. Everything looks different and everything you believed all through the season has been turned upside down.
Loads of the songs who looked like contenders still in the semi final have been put in the shade - some because of the new mix, some because of their spot in the running order - and some new favourites may have emerged.
Friday, May 13, 2022
ESC 2022, semi 2: what about the songs that left us?
Thursday, May 12, 2022
ESC 2022, semi 2: Tobson takes a guess
It is time to complete the Saturday lineup with the final ten songs and the question is always if predicting the second semi is easier than the first. Can you look at what worked on Tuesday night and make some waterproof conclusions on what works or not this specific year?
No. You can't. Sorry.
Thursday night has different jurors. Different viewers. And a completely new set of coicidences.
We have for instance no idea what songs advanced because the viewers loved them or the juries loved them and who just scraped by in a lucky accident because of a solid average.
Worth noticing is however that the mid-tempo songs didn't eat each other's points the way I would have thought and if there's anything the final is beginning to lack a bit, then it is tempo and beats. But the people voting tonight won't necessarily know that and even if they knew I'm not sure they'd care.
Eight acts will leave the show tonight and I think it will be the following:
ISRAEL
Loud and without a melody, pretty much what was Albania's downfall on Tuesday. Michael does what he can but no. The Israeli qualification streak ends here.
MALTA
Emma is well known in the host country and it is sad she won't make it to the final. But if Maltese tv felt the need to go shopping for an entry elsewhere, why did they settle for this very bleak ditty? Who would stand up and cheer for this?
NORTH MACEDONIA
Another good singer with very little to work with. The song is competent but never takes off and goes nowhere.
ROMANIA
Very much like Latvia, this has caught the attention and liking of many a Eurovision fan. It has a pretty nice instrumental thingy and a compellingly gay atmosphere but it never rises beyond being endearingly rubbish. This year's Slavko (or was that Albania?).
IRELAND
This is where I'd hope to be wrong. I'd love a piece of slightly trashy 80's pop in the final but Ireland rarely knows how to row this sort of boat into the harbour. Strong "Et Cetera" vibes here. The Austria of this semi final.
MONTENEGRO
I thought this would be a qualifier and with a solid performance it still has its chances - the juries are never averse to a strong voice - but I put my finger in the air and feel the time for the big updated comeback of the Balkan ballad isn't here yet.
GEORGIA
An early fave of mine that I still ugly dance to in my kitchen but it has grown off me ever so slightly and I doubt the visual choices of the band will convince the average voter. I'd love to be wrong but I don't think I will be.
ESTONIA
Look, I don't want to have to do this. If it was up to me I'd leave out impeccably produced but anonymous Azerbaijan or overly theatrical Australia. It could just as well be Finland missing the mark, leaning too much on routine instead of connecting with the audience. It could be Belgium sounding slightly too aggressive. Stefan is a great singer but Estonia going all "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" comes very much out of the blue. I think people will enjoy it but not vote for it enough.
This would mean my final ten qualifiers are: Finland, Serbia, Azerbaijan, San Marino, Australia, Cyprus, Poland, Belgium, Sweden and Czech republic. (Personally, I'd gladly swap Azerbaijan and Australia for Georgia and Ireland but I don't see that happening.)
You agree? You disagree? I'll spend the semi final on Twitter, feel free to join the conversation there.
Wednesday, May 11, 2022
ESC 2022, semi 1: what about the songs that left us?
The first semi came to an end and here we stand with ten finalists. I am pretty pleased with having predicted nine of them correctly and at one point I admit I let out a tiny happy yahoo during the revelation segment.
I had already resigned to the fact that we'd lose Lithuania - one of my big personal favourites this year, but one I feared was too demanding to hit home on a first listen. I'll focus more on the tremendous Monika Liu and the other finalists later in the week, but what went wrong for the seven songs that left us?
Albania and Latvia - the two first to take to the stage - both wanted a lot but were visually all over the place. Frenetic while lacking a certain focus at the same time, difficult to pick up on if you heard the for the first time. Probably no jury favourites and left to the mercy of the viewers.
Bulgaria and Denmark both tried to rock the house down but both were let down by very basic songs. The Bulgarian rock uncles were doing the same poses that Denmark made with more conviction but both entries were surprisingly un-heavy in the end.
Slovenia's lads were awfully sweet but never stood any sort of chance and the same goes for Croatia. I can't even put my finger on what didn't work for Croatia - there was a polished song in a polished performance by a likeable singer - but probably the whole thing got a bit anonymous. I would not be surprised if Croatia ended in 11th place again.
The one I got wrong was Austria and I was a bit surprised to see it go. Maybe Pia Maria is not the most precise vocalist we have ever heard but the whole thing had energy and joy - Lumix is possibly the happiest DJ I have ever seen - and a sense of 90's nostalgia I thought would overcome the cascade of sick notes.
I'm especially surprised to see Switzerland being the one taking the spot I thought was Austria's. I like the song but thought the performance was stiff and a bit awkward. I can only suppose the jurors saw qualities in Marius Bear while tanking Austria completely. But I don't want to take the happiness away from Switzerland that now qualified for the third consecutive edition. Well done.
More drama coming up on Thursday with ten new finalists to predict in what I find the weaker of the two semis this year.
Tuesday, May 10, 2022
ESC 2022, semi 1: Tobson takes a guess
So, here we are. Loads of rehearsals have lead up to the big moment when we are about to start losing some of this year's entries. Time for the first of two semi finals.
Following rehearsals - or rather following people's reactions to the rehearsals as I try to save myself some surprises for the live shows and avoid rehearsal footage - what unfortunately stands out this year is the very negative vibe surrounding the whole event this year.
It is fine to be vocal about things that don't work or when things don't live up the acceptable standards - boy, am I getting flashbacks to Baku or what - but there are different ways to voice your opinions. Until now it feels like Rai can't do anything right and that this goes down as the worst edition on record.
My big hope is that we will get served an okay semi final that is entertaining and engaging and fun to watch. Also I hope my prediction won't be completely disastrous.
Since there have been so many opinions flying about - many of which are VERY sure about how things are going to go - and I feel seriously confused by most of them, I am going to go with my gut feeling and also my initial emotion. Remember, to the crushing majority of the people voting these songs will be spanking new and will get judged on their three minute impression only.
So. In the first semi final we will unfortunately have to say goodbye to the following seven countries:
SLOVENIA
The lads are really doing their best and they look very sweet and feel very likeable but even though I enjoy this, I admit the song feels beige and overly complicated on a first listen. Simply too tame with no real hooks, this will probably fail to bring in serious points from any direction.
SWITZERLAND
Another one I personally enjoy but that I can't see collecting enough points to go through. Mainly because competition is fierce in among the emotional ballads in this semi. It's not possible that they all qualify and some of them will fall short. Switzerland is the easiest one to pick out of that lot.
CROATIA
A bit of a personal favourite with its gentle touch and light feel. Mia is very good but I don't know how Croatia keeps sending in these songs that lacks that final little something to make them qualify. I'll be sad seeing this one go.
DENMARK
Denmark has a way of sneaking into the final somehow ahead of songs that would deserve it better but can it really happen this time? This song comes across as trying to artificially connect two songs of different genres and end up being something I can't see anyone having as their favourite. Too constructed and not engaging enough. Surely?
LATVIA
It's a fun song that is dearly loved by many fans who love to shout that word the lead singer isn't allowed to pronounce, but for all the people seeing and hearing it for the first time I think it will appear to be your typical lightweight Latvian ditty that is nice for as long as it goes on and then too lightweight to be remembered once the phone lines open.
ALBANIA
This is possibly where my prediction turns horribly wrong but ever since I first heard this, my thought was that it's mainly a fun rhythm track without a lot of melody to support it. It's fun and danceable but not very easy to get a hold of on one listen. Ronela seems lovely so I wouldn't mind being wrong for her sake.
BULGARIA
The only rock lads in the semi could appeal to a rather large demographic that listen to radio stations where anemic standard formula rock is the largest staple but do these people vote? Flawless production but not an outstanding song. How far can you go with cool pyro, aren't those days long gone?
This is a very tight race where many songs are pretty similar and fighting for the same pool of points while the standard is generally high. If my prediction is right, our ten finalists will be: Lithuania, Ukraine, Netherlands, Moldova, Portugal, Austria, Iceland, Greece, Norway and Armenia.
Out of these ten, the one I worry for the most is my personal darling Monika Liu from Lithuania but I keep telling myself a good song and a strong personality must break through.
I'll spend the semi final tweeting away so feel free to give me your hottest takes.
Follow @TobsonHelsinkiSaturday, May 7, 2022
ESC 2022: Winning isn't easy
This image belongs to the EBU |
One week to go until the big final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin and I've been keeping an eye on what's going on over there. In a way.
Since I am not on location, I am avoiding rehearsal footage. I don't have to report for anyone, so I prefer getting surprised on the night. I don't want to know every camera angle in advance. So I already reviewed all participating songs based on their preview versions, you can read that here, here and here.
Instead I've been following people's reactions to the rehearsals on social media. That is always quite the ride but this year has been unusually intense and not necessarily in a good way. The general tone has been fairly negative and sometimes even hostile towards the EBU in general and host broadcaster Rai in particular.
Alright, having one large stage prop not work out like it was supposed to is of course a big miscalculation but I can't help but asking myself how all this vitriol might influence the EBU:s desire to keep rehearsals open at all in the future.
When it comes to the performances themselves, views have been as varied as always. If someone has given an energetic performance they have often been labelled a sure qualifier, if someone holds back or hesitates their chances are "gone".
Which makes me think of Blanche from Belgium who was more or less unanimously hailed as the fallen favourite bound to lose out in the semi and then finally ended 4th in the final. This is a guessing game and it's not easy getting it right.
Today's second rehearsal of the Big Five countries was also intense as most of them made quite an impression on most people watching. Will one of them win for a second year running?
I find myself thinking of Christer Björkman, a divisive figure in Eurovision World but nevertheless someone with a great deal of insight into this game. He once talked about the chances of winning two years in a row and he said it was as good as impossible. The competition these days is much more difficult and way more unpredictable compared to what it used to be.
The key thing - according to Christer Björkman - is how being good isn't enough. You need to be good on all levels but you also need a lot of luck. You can never know in advance what is That Thing that will work in any particular year. An impeccable entry and an impeccable performance will get you far but in order to go all the way, you need to be That Thing.
2022 has quite a few strong contenders and many songs have a lot of supporters that are convinced their favourite is the one that will win. However, only one team can win. I hope the others - the ones that will go far or maybe not even all that far - won't be too disappointed.
In a week from now, we will know what is That Thing in 2022 and I look forward to getting surprised.
If you want to talk Eurovision with me, I'll be hanging on Twitter as usual.
Sunday, May 1, 2022
Tobson speaks up: ESC 2022, the finalists
Thursday, April 28, 2022
Tobson speaks up: ESC 2022, semi 2
The Rasmus / Jezebel