December 19: Ines

For some years, Estonian tv didn't really get anything right when it came down to selecting an entry for Eurovision. The formerly so successful Baltic state suddenly found themselves doing really badly in the international finals.

In 2003, their seemingly fool-proof system of having international experts selecting the winner had backfired and lead to a dismal placing in Riga. After that, the Estonian public was allowed to chose by televoting for two years, but neither one of their winners made it to the big ESC final. It was time to bring the international experts back.

It could have been a good idea, had they themselves selected more relevant and up-to-date experts. Instead the bunch in question rejected Ines' big comeback in favour of a slick but anaemic schlager that would go on to crash and burn in Athens.

Personally, I can't remember making a longer face at any national final I have ever been to and I still wish for Estonia to send Ines to the big thing for a second attempt some day when the stars align.



Ines / Iseendale (Estonia NF 2006)

December 12: Guðrún Árný Karlsdóttir

The 2006 Icelandic final must go down as one of the strongest ever. Loads of really great songs and some really fine performances if I remember correctly.

I get why Silvia Night won. I like her madness and her offbeat presence and the humour not quite everyone in Athens managed to detect.

But still. Had it been about the song and the song alone, then this one should have won. This is the one that stayed with me for all these years, the one that just keeping getting better and better.

Exquisitely simply staged and beautifully sung. And a hook to die for.



Guðrún Árný Karlsdóttir / Andvaka (Iceland NF 2006)

Runner-up: Russia 2006

Russia really wanted to win and sent in an excellently written and impeccably produced little pop song, well sung by a hot young rising star.

The slow-motion drum loop alone is pure brilliance and worthy of victory all by itself, but not leaving anything to chance it was decided to build also an impressive visual image around the entry.

So we have ballerinas, millions of rose petals and - to top it off - a ghost emerging from a grand piano. That might sound a tiny bit over the top but somehow they managed not only to make it work but also to look elegant and tasteful.

You can say many things about the average Russian eurovision entry, but elegant and tasteful hasn't always been among their most typical traits.

Any other year this could have been a runaway winner but in Athens a bunch of monsters were standing in the way of victory and Dima Bilan would have to wait another two years before winning with a song far inferior to this one.

A deserved 2nd place?
Absolutely yes. Three minutes of perfection that I never grow tired of.



Dima Bilan - Never Let You Go (Russia 2006)

Belgium: is it Petra's turn?

Sanna Nielsen has tried and tried and maybe this is her time lucky in Sweden. In Belgium, there is a candidate who has tried fewer times but for a longer period of time.

Petra gave it her all and was often best in show. But did Flanders vote for her? Nope.



Petra - Ga door (Belgium NF 1993)

A nifty choreography and ice-cream hairdos? Nah, Belgium preferred to send off a quiet little ballad that not only ended last in Millstreet but also will remain associated with a dubious sense of fashion forever.



Petra - Diep in mijn huid (Belgium NF 1999)

So Petra went all sophisticated and offered a smooth and catchy little pop song with a tasteful change of language in the end. Belgium turned a blind eye to the whole package and sent off a stylish but unspectacular little lullaby instead.



La Sakhra - Wonderland (Belgium NF 2006)

I'm not even going to pay attention to Petra's attempt to bring some life to an outright hopeless entry in the 2000 Walloon final by choreographing and providing backing vocals to a song that obviously would not make many people happy. Six years later, she reinvented herself as La Sakhra and came really close to winning the whole thing. Unfortunately a certain Kate Ryan would stand in her way and go to Athens to defend the Belgian banner (with moderate success).

I was very happy to see Petra back in business this year. In the audition shows where hopeful singers performed old eurovision entries in order to secure a spot in the final, Petra blew the judges away and won her heat.

We haven't heard her song yet, but wouldn't it be nice to finally see this talented woman in a Eurovision final? Her own version of All Kinds Of Everything - suitably dealing with the ordeal of entering over and over without winning - is certainly worthy of a gold star in the margin.



Petra - All Kinds Of Everything

Absent friend: Turkey

When I was child and fell in love with this weird, wild and wonderful contest I quickly realised it was truly those weird and wild things that made the whole thing wonderful.

So how could I not love the Turkish entries? They didn't sound like anyone else, they didn't look like anyone else. Not even their flag looked like the others - so colourful, so stylish. They hardly ever scored any substantial amount of points, but that was less important.

Their whole joie de vivre attacked me and walked hand in hand with me through Euroland. How I loved the Turkish entries.



Seyyal Taner & Grup Lokomotif - Sarkim sevgi üstüne (Turkey 1987)

Ten years ago, Turkey took a radical turn and re-invented themselves in the ESC. Superstar Sertab Erener seduced the entire continent and the eternal loser blossomed into a success story. Cinderella got her prince and would never turn back again.



Sertab Erener - Everyway That I Can (Turkey 2003)

Since then most Turkish entries ended in the top ten, four of which even made the top four. Most impressive. Then suddenly - without a word of warning - Turkish tv decided to pull out of the competition, giving some really dodgy and sketchy excuses about the rules being unfair and them not wanting to be a part of this.

At first, I thought there was a hurt ego somewhere in the middle of this story. Turkey is a fast-growing economy that seeks financial and political influence in its region, and I thought maybe they would want to be treated like royalty also at the ESC. Why would they want to find themselves below the likes of France, Germany or Spain in this contest?

But then I spoke to some Turkish friends - good, intelligent and perceptive people - who suggested more sinister reasons for their country's absence.

Despite being a secular country, the current Turkish government has a mildly Islamist agenda. Knowing this, you can note that the country has not sent any female representative since 2009 despite that particular female gaining a good result.

My friends suspect that phasing out women was the first step, phasing out western cultural from the state television would be the next. I'm not saying this is the one and only truth, but this what my friends suggested and it got me thinking. If this is the case, we would probably have to wait quite a long time until we see another Turkish entry in this competition.

So in order to how my say in this matter, I decided to phase in a number of feisty and fabulous females made in Turkey. They rock. May they be back soon.



Ajda Pekkan - Petr'oil (Turkey 1980)



Klips ve Onlar - Halley (Turkey 1986)



Pan - Bana Bana (Turkey 1989)



Şebnem Paker - Dinle (Turkey 1997)



Pinar Ayhan & S.O.S - Yorgunum anla (Turkey 2000)



Sibel Tüzün - Süperstar (Turkey 2006)

PS! Just to be crystal clear - if anyone is in doubt - this is not a text against neither Turkey nor TRT. I hope for them to be back. And if anyone can add anything to this discussion - please leave a comment. DS.

Absent friend: Bosnia-Herzegovina

It has only been twenty years since they made their debut as an independent country, but yet Bosnia-Herzegovina feels like an old friend indeed. Possibly because of the incredible transformation they went through in front of our very eyes.

They started out as a war-torn country - a small miracle in itself that they managed to take part during the civil war - that impressed people by their sheer presence and perhaps gained the occasional sympathy vote.



Fazla - Sva bol svijeta (Bosnia-Herzegovina 1993)

Then peace came. The country had a change of flag and constitution and set out to re-invent themselves. After a few confused years where ambitious national finals ended in tactical (political) voting and not particularly user-friendly winners, Bosnian television started selecting most of their entries internally. A very good move, indeed.



Deen - In The Disco (Bosnia-Herzegovina 2004)

Suddenly, Bosnia-Herzegovina turned into one of the bravest pupils of the entire class. A chrysalis-to-butterfly that set new artistic standards and often challenged the idea of what the perfect eurovision entry should look and sound like.

Many of their entries were more like short pieces of conceptual art rather than typical pop songs, often conveying some sort of message at some level. The often quite reserved grand public let themselves be amused and Bosnia never missed a final since the implementation of the semi finals.



Laka - Pokušaj (Bosnia-Herzegovina 2008)

Then suddenly, like a flash of lightning out of a clear blue sky, there were news from Sarajevo that Bosnia would not take part in Malmö. So, what are the reasons for this?

Lack of money was the official reason. The Bosnian delegations have been travelling light lately with very few people apart from the participants, but curiously enough the local broadcaster declined several offers from various parties willing to sponsor the participation.

Lack of enthusiasm could be another factor. Rumours have it that Bosnian tv had to struggle finding acts that were willing to do the ESC and that would at the same time match the high artistic standards they had set for themselves. The withdrawal could be a warning shot for the local artists - unless they contribute there will be no participation.

Then again, I can't shake the political suspicion I've felt at the back of my head. The Bosnian withdraval was announced at the same time as Turkish one and explained with equally vague reasons. Is Bosnia absent to back up the Turkish absence? And will the Bosnians be back even if Turkey stays out?

This is just a thought. I have no evidence in this case. I'm just thinking out loud. If anyone knows better, please enlighten me. Feel free to discuss this matter in a comment.

Regardless, I hope there will be a change of tune in Sarajevo soon. I think Bosnia-Herzegovina should be winning and hosting instead of withdrawing. And that's my final word.



Hari Mata Hari - Lejla (Bosnia-Herzegovina 2006)

Iceland - I Love You

I know that I have admitted to not being a huge fan of the Icelandic entry this year. I must also confess that I have doubts as to whether it will pass on to the final or not.

But dear Iceland, don't let this tiny detail come between us.

Iceland has been one of my most constant sources of joy and happiness in the ESC ever since their debut back in 1986. I thought their first entry was a terrific little pop pearl, and I never quite grasped why it scored so badly.



Icy - Gleðibankinn (Iceland 1986)

Then - in 1990 - I really thought Iceland could win it. Stjórnin were so nice and so much fun and I thought their song to be a most delightful little schlager. A fourth place was not bad, but I was a tiny bit disappointed that it didn't do even better.



Stjórnin - Eitt lag enn (Iceland 1990)

And to mention just one more Icelandic gem - I know that the joke was not universally understood, but I thought Silvia Night was brilliant back in Athens. Loud, obnoxious, silly and irresistible.

How anyone could not see the joke and think Silvia to be a real person is beyond me. Possibly the joke got a bit out of hand before the semi final was over, but in general Iceland provided great entertainment.

Like they tend to do most years.



Silvia Night - Congratulations (Iceland 2006)

Bad Draw Day: Bosnia-Herzegovina 2006

So - the moral of today's stories is that the draw has been over-analysed (by people like myself) and that there really are no jinxed starting positions bound to ruin your chances.

And yet - there are at least two starting positions that really seem to wreck a song's chances since televoting was introduced.

Being drawn first in the final seems to do you no favours. Ask Azerbaijan's Safura or Finland's Paradise Oskar if they felt singing first enhanced their chances.

The other real shipwreck of a starting position is being the first song after the commercial break. It is not necessarily a position that will make you crash and burn, but it is like the short break ruins the focus of the viewers. Could it be that the break distracts just enough people for your song to lose its chances?

Hari Mati Hari felt like a strong contender for victory, like the song able to gather all possible ballad points in one basket. Its draw, right after the commercial break, changed the whole thing.

It was still bound to score well - it still holds the best Bosnian result to date - but it didn't feel like a potential winner anymore.

Sometimes the draw can make a huge difference, indeed.



Hari Mata Hari - Lejla (Bosnia-Herzegovina 2006)

Song Of The Day: Lithuania 2010

How about going a little bit crazy? Offer Europe some funk, some kazoo, some rather gorgeous legs? No?

Lithuania's best placing to date came with another humourous effort, a joking protest song, in 2006, so nobody can blame them for trying the concept again.

And in all fairness, InCulto had remembered to pack a far better song in their suitcase when leaving for Oslo than LT United had in Athens. And compared to the other bunch, who were unhappy about the fact nobody ever votes for Lithuania at eurovision, InCulto had a little bit of a message in their entry.

Lithuania and its brothers in the East feel like second class countries in Europe, and when they go west it is only to end up as second class citizens who clean other people's homes and then wash other people's dishes. And who's going to tell them they are wrong?

Right or wrong, the voters remain relatively unmoved and this anthem for anyone who ever felt a bit outside in the Europan family did not make it to the final.



InCulto - East European Funk (Lithuania 2010)

I think they should, though. It is a rare thing at Eurovision to come across humour songs that actually are a bit funny. And InCulto amuse me very much.

They already did back in 2006, when their entry "Welcome To Lithuania" ended second in the national final.



InCulto - Welcome To Lithuania (Lithuania 2006 national final)

Germany 2006: Vicky should be grateful

The 2006 Eurovision could have seen not just one but two previous winners battling it out for a second victory. Sweden gave Carola renewed confidence while Germany rejected Vicky Leandros in their national final.

Surely Vicky, who sang twice for Luxembourg and who is still a solid name within German showbiz, must have felt a bit deflated when defeated by hobby project Texas Lightning. But in retrospect, maybe she would be grateful rather than anything else.

First of all, her self-composed song may be clean-cut and robust but is, above all, fantastically dull. There is not a single element of surprise during these three minutes, and when the song is so undynamic in itself, Vicky's emotional delivery almost turns comical.

I am a big fan of Vicky and her singing style, so I am quite pleased that she never got to expose herself like this Europe-wide. Now she is left with her dignity in tact.

Also, while Carola's fifth place was not a fiasco it wasn't really a success either. Not a single country had her in their top spot, and no comeback winners have fared well ever since.

Charlotte Perrelli flopped in Belgrade, Niamh Kavanagh crashed and burned in the Oslo final and Dana International didn't even make it out of the semi finals in Düsseldorf. You will not be automatically loved by the audience just because you won the whole thing once.

Vicky Leandros should be very grateful, indeed.



Vicky Leandros - Don't Break My Heart (Germany 2006 national final)

Song Of The Day: Albania 2006

Most people who win talent shows like Pop Idol, X-Factor or similar do that thanks to their bubbly and intense personalities. Singing talent alone is not enough, most of them are extrovert and talkative, cheerful and upbeat.

Luiz Ejlli is a different kind of Pop Idol. He is a shy and gentle little flower of a performer. He has a strong voice but hardly dares to look into the camera.

Also his song is different from what you would normally associate with Pop Idols - a not too obvious folksong dressed up in a soft syntesizer outfit, complete with bagpipe and a backing male vocalist in a folksy gown.

After a couple of listenings, when you find the hidden handles in the chorus, this turns out to be a catchy little number which, admittedly, failed to qualify but that sounds dignified and sincere. Surely, the choice of Albanian as singing language probably helps to achieve the latter.

Even cautious Luiz throws himself enthusiastically into the mix, finally daring not only to face the camera but also to let out some powerful notes - powerful enough to surprise himself, by the look of it - right before the last chorus.

Not everyone's cup of tea, surely, but a tasty praline for the ones of us who get it.



Luiz Ejlli - Zjarr e ftohtë (Albania 2006)

Tobson's Winners: 2006 - 2010

During these five years, further modification was tried out by the EBU. After a nightmare of a semifinal in 2007 (with twenty-eight songs in the running), the qualification system was completely re-vamped in 2008.

Now, only the host country and the big four were guaranteed a place in the final - everyone else had to go through the two semi finals. This has resulted in way stronger final line-ups than before.

Not only stronger line-ups - it is in general much harder to predict the result this way. The final changes everything: the draw, the odds, the chances, the favourites. In short, the two semis contribute to way stronger television than before.

Also, the juries have been forgiven and are back in the game gradually since 2008, where they got to select the tenth finalist in each semi final. In 2009, they did that too but also had a fifty percent say in the final result. And from 2010, they have half the power already in the semi finals.

To tell you the truth, I am not convinced that this was a good move. It could have been, but I still see the same old countries voting extensively for neighbours and friends, the juries obviously joining the game rather than doing anything to prevent it. Also, as from 2011, the juries seem to have favoured strong voices over pop songs. They would need a reminder that this is a song contest - not a singing contest - and that we do not want to return to the old hit-less days of the 90's again.

2006 - Russia



Dima Bilan - Never Let You Go (Russia 2006)

Of course I am deeply happy that Finland won, that's beside the point, but in my book Russia was by far the best. A lavish stage show, slick presentation and one of the best pop compositions to grace a eurovision stage in the last ten years.

The whole production is classical and modern at the same time, and for some reason I find the slow drum loop a tiny bit Beatles-esque.

How sad to see that in only two years, the lovely Dima Bilan would grow into a pompously arrogant nobody. And even sadder to see him win, when he clearly no longer deserved it.

Real winner:
Lordi - Hard Rock Hallelujah (Finland)


2007 - Georgia



Sopho - Visionary Dream (Georgia 2007)

Ever wondered what "Ray Of Light" would have sounded like had Madonna been born in Tbilisi? Wonder no more.

Georgia's debut entry in Helsinki is a real knockout of an entry, it doesn't sound like anything that was ever heard at the ESC before. A wild mix between etno, ballad, aggressive beats, sword dancing and, in the middle of the storm, the wonderful Sopho Khalvashi, queen-like and supreme, keeping the whole thing together.

Too demanding for the average voter, perhaps, but it gives me serious goose bumps.

Real winner:
Marija Šerifović - Molitva (Serbia)


2008 - Bosnia-Herzegovina



Laka - Pokušaj (Bosnia-Herzegovina 2008)

As eurovision has filled up with more and more quality pop songs, modern and chart-friendly, it just gets harder to decide which one is my favourite each year. Often something quirky makes the top of my bill, I've noticed.

Calling this entry quirky would be something of an understatement, though.

It is artistic, experimental, edgy, boundbreaking, melodic, fun and Wogan hated it. Laka is a real artist (and his sister too) who uses his three minutes in full to present himself to a potential audience, not caring the slightest for the people who won't understand. When eurovision allows something as demanding as this to make top ten, that's when I really love my old contest.

Real winner:
Dima Bilan - Belive (Russia)


2009 - Bosnia-Herzegovina



Regina - Bistra voda (Bosnia-Herzegovina 2009)

If there is one national that truly emerged like a real quality engine since the semi finals were introduced, then it is Bosnia-Herzegovina. Once they got their machinery running, after the civial war and some hopeless attempts at staging fair national finals, few others can match the Bosnians when it comes to personable performers, strong melodies and memorable performances.

Rock band Regina, who possibly heard a track or two by Coldplay through the years, deliver a tender, delicate melody line, demanding and inviting and the same time, and how this song didn't reach higher than ninth place remains a real mystery for me.

Real winner:
Alexander Rybak - Fairytale (Norway)


2010 - Germany



Lena - Satellite (Germany 2010)

When there are forty-something entries in the line-up, the chance that your personal favourite will be the winner in the end diminishes quite clearly. My joy was immense as my big pre-contest favourite made it all the way in 2010.

Even more so since I had been hoping for Germany for a few years already. They had been trying to deliver quality entries for quite some time without really getting it right, ending in failure year after year in spite of creating quite a few domestic hit singles.

Lena was a bull's eye in many aspects: young, appealing, hit friendly, equipped with a bubbly personality. A dream winner for Eurovision in many ways. And the importance of one of the Big Four countries winning can hardly be over-estimated.

Real winner:
Lena - Satellite (Germany)

Songs only I like: Spain 2006

This is a song I don't just like - I love it. Out of the songs of the 2006 Eurovision, this is the one that has been spinning the most in my iPod since and I never grow tired of it.



Las Ketchup - Bloody Mary (Spain 2006)

It wasn't love at first sight, though. And who are to blame but the good people at RTVE?

They decided internally to send Las Ketchup to Athens, but as a PR-stunt (and possibly to give some credibility to the choice of a has-been one-hit-wonder) they stated they were selecting between them, Azucar Moreno, David Civera and some more act.

Trouble is that the managements of Azucar Moreno and David Civera promptly denied any involvement in Eurovision - and RTVE stood there looking ridiculous. Given this media circus (and the fact that I was beyond fed up with The Ketchup Song), I didn't pay much attention to the song until the cute preview arrived.



Las Ketchup - Bloody Mary (Spain 2006 preview)

Perhaps the live vocal performance was a bit of a let-down, but I still adore this song. If you are with me on this one, please be kind and leave a comment.

Runner-up: Estonia 2006

Despite being only 18 and fairly inexperienced, Eda-Ines Etti managed to secure what was Estonia's best ever showing until then: a 4th place in a very tough competition in Stockholm 2000.

She was not willing to content herself with this, but wanted to show that she had learned her profession to perfection. In 2006, she entered a song she had written in co-operation with her brother and which sounded very much like an Estonian version of Coldplay.



Ines - Iseendale (Estonia NF 2006)

For some reason the Eurolaul performance is nowhere to be found on YouTube, but imagine an almost hypnotic rendition by a far more sophisticated and confident Ines compared to 2006.

Everybody was sure of her winning, and she was in the lead for the greater part of the voting, until the last juror gave her a very low mark and gave the overall victory to the closest contender - Sandra Oxenryd who was really Swedish.



Sandra Oxenryd - Through My Window (Estonia 2006)

In Athens, Sandra performed well but the song didn't score very well and Estonia was nowhere near a place in the final.

What if Ines had won instead, what would Europe had made of "Iseendale"? Would it have gone down a storm or would it have been to demanding for the audience?

So what did the Estonian audience make of the international juries giving Eurolaul victory to a Swede instead of Ines? Maybe they didn't care too much - had televoting decided the outcome, a completely different song would have won anyway. What if that one would have been sent off to Athens?



Meribel Müürsepp - Mr Right (Estonia NF 2006)

Norway missed a few pearls as well...

Most of the Nordic countries have successfully re-invented their national finals during the last years, and Norway has been working very hard on finding ESC success.

They have been successful as well. Wig Wam in 2005, Maria Haukaas Storeng in 2008 and, of course, Alexander Rybak in 2009 all left lasting impressions on the international audience. Not bad for the country that used to end in bottom five every year for such a long period of time.

But who is perfect? Also Norway has rejected a few personal favourites of mine during the last ten years. It would have been most interesting to find out how these ones would have fared had they reached the ESC.



Venke Knutsen - Jealous Cause I Love You (2010)

I was never a fan of Didrik Solli-Tangen's pompous old ballad and can't help thinking that Venke would have spiced up the Oslo happening quite a bit with her output, presence and wacky lyrics.



Velvet Inc - Tricky (2009)

Of course Rybak was the right choice. Nobody else could have crushed all resistance in Moscow like he did. But had Norway opted for this slick pop praline instead, nobody would ever have known that.



Veronica Akselsen - Am I Supposed To Love Again (2008)

Mellow and melancholic. Very sensitive performance, also. Again, not strong enough to better Maria's fifth place in Belgrade, but a very proud entry for any country.



Ann-Mari Andersen - Ándagassii (2008)

Ethnic, haunting, suggestive piece of modern pop. Slick production and soft, appealing lyrics in Sami. One of the best and most progressive entries that Norway ever left behind.



Mocci - Tonight (2006)

And then there is always Mocci, who has the distinction of missing out twice with modern, urban sounding entries. Her 2006 Sophie Ellis-Bextor sound would probably have been too laid-back in Athens (and had she hit the notes as poorly as she does in this clip, she could have had to fight it out with Fabrizio over the last place) but the song is good. And her 2001 effort would have rocked Copenhagen and filled a real void in the extremely weak line-up of that year.



Mocci - You've Got The Motion (2001)