This morning, the EBU announced one of the major changes for the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest. Unlike in previous years, each delegation's first rehearsal will take place behind closed doors, with fan press being able to watch on screens in the Euroclub.
Importantly, this means that there will likely be no video clips of initial rehearsals - except perhaps for those on official Eurovision YouTube channel.
As someone who doesn't like to watch rehearsal videos, I fully approve of this. In recent years, the rush to be the first to have a rehearsal video uploaded has meant that a lot of false impressions are given, with the first run-through often only a dry run with no-one putting in much effort. This means that acts often look and sound a lot worse than they really are - not an impression many are happy with, I imagine!
More importantly though, the advent of the video clips has meant a drop in the quality of actual writing about rehearsals. Five years ago, a Eurovision blogger had the quite difficult job of succintly summing up the appearance of the performance and the vocals, describing backdrops and costumes, as well as how the song was coming across on stage.
Now it's more or less deemed sufficient to embed a video and say 'Lithuania's coming across much better than we expected' and leave it at that.
That latter approach is boring, quite frankly, and does nothing to differentiate the content of various sites, or make them interesting. It means that the experience of reading the rehearsal blogs is far less enjoyable than it could be.
So, I hope that there are no videos at all of the initial rehearsals. I look forward to reading some strong, vivid material produced by some really good writers - and I hope to be doing the same thing myself.
Friday 21 December 2012
Saturday 15 December 2012
Swiss Final - Preview
Tonight, it's the turn of Switzerland to select their representative for Malmö. Nine entries will battle it out on stage in Kreuzlingen, and the winner will once again be chosen by televoting.
RSI, the Swiss Italian language broadcaster held its own pre-preselection again, though this year on radio rather than with Barbara Berta offering her comments while propping up the bar. The first qualifier was Ally, whose American-sounding, jazzy number 'Catch Me' is unrelentingly repetitive. Her voice isn't much less annoying, and I don't see this troubling the top end of the results sheet.
Chiara Dubey (above) came 3rd last year, with the lovely 'Anima nuova'. Her entry this year, 'Bella sera', is even more quiet and understated, and has the potential to come across beautifully on stage. Fingers firmly crossed for second time lucky.
Carrousel bring a very French sounding entry to the Kreuzlingen stage, which reminds me a little of Les Fatals Picards in 2007. The fact there's a woman involved generally brings the likelihood of it being as punchable as that excruciating three minutes down a little, but I always approach this kind of song with a degree of caution.
Do the Monkey... do I have to? This kind of song is all about the performance and the video (which is of course how acts should be thinking about their Eurovision entry), but listening to just the audio files, it's close to unbearable. Anthony Bighead's live performance will almost certainly redeem the lack of melody if they can make it fun and engaging though - and they'll have the benefit of only having to keep that atmosphere going for two minutes tonight.
The German Finals in the era from 1997-2005 almost always had something like this - melodic rock with a God-bothering edge - and it always did better than you'd expect it to. The edge is more of an entire side this time around, and with a strong chorus, Heilsarmee must have a really decent chance.
After what are, for better or worse, two of the more interesting entries in tonight's contest, comes the most unremarkable. Nill's rock-lite sounding 'On My Way' is perfectly serviceable but has absolutely nothing to recommend it for a second listen. Doomed.
Melissa has been a favourite of the fans since even before the finalists were announced. This may be because she was once in a national final before or may even be because she's nice to them on Twitter. She does however have the most obviously fan-friendly song, but, unfortunately, 'The Point of No Return's chorus is a let-down after a promising verse. You'll be hearing this in Malmö, but it's more likely to be in Euroclub than on the international stage.
'Lève-toi' is far more my kind of thing than most of the songs in this line-up, but it's another victim of the 'strong verse, weak chorus' syndrome that affects so many unsuccessful national final songs and is especially prevalent tonight. A shame, because a bigger chorus would lift this, and could help Nicolas Fraissinet (above) go very far indeed.
Jesse Ritch's 'Forever and a Day' is radio-friendly pop. It's pretty contemporary, and could even have some success at Eurovision if it's well-performed, but I'm concerned that, like so many of tonight's songs, it's just a little too mediocre and, well, Swiss. It's another one that will all depend on the performance.
So, who's going to win? I genuinely have no idea. Swiss finals in the past couple of years have been notoriously hard to predict, with the winner (and often the second and third placed songs too) often coming out of nowhere. I suspect it's probably between the Monkey and the Godbotherers, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Chiara Dubey or Jesse Ritch off to Malmö either.
And I still miss Lys.
RSI, the Swiss Italian language broadcaster held its own pre-preselection again, though this year on radio rather than with Barbara Berta offering her comments while propping up the bar. The first qualifier was Ally, whose American-sounding, jazzy number 'Catch Me' is unrelentingly repetitive. Her voice isn't much less annoying, and I don't see this troubling the top end of the results sheet.
Chiara Dubey (above) came 3rd last year, with the lovely 'Anima nuova'. Her entry this year, 'Bella sera', is even more quiet and understated, and has the potential to come across beautifully on stage. Fingers firmly crossed for second time lucky.
Carrousel bring a very French sounding entry to the Kreuzlingen stage, which reminds me a little of Les Fatals Picards in 2007. The fact there's a woman involved generally brings the likelihood of it being as punchable as that excruciating three minutes down a little, but I always approach this kind of song with a degree of caution.
Do the Monkey... do I have to? This kind of song is all about the performance and the video (which is of course how acts should be thinking about their Eurovision entry), but listening to just the audio files, it's close to unbearable. Anthony Bighead's live performance will almost certainly redeem the lack of melody if they can make it fun and engaging though - and they'll have the benefit of only having to keep that atmosphere going for two minutes tonight.
The German Finals in the era from 1997-2005 almost always had something like this - melodic rock with a God-bothering edge - and it always did better than you'd expect it to. The edge is more of an entire side this time around, and with a strong chorus, Heilsarmee must have a really decent chance.
After what are, for better or worse, two of the more interesting entries in tonight's contest, comes the most unremarkable. Nill's rock-lite sounding 'On My Way' is perfectly serviceable but has absolutely nothing to recommend it for a second listen. Doomed.
Melissa has been a favourite of the fans since even before the finalists were announced. This may be because she was once in a national final before or may even be because she's nice to them on Twitter. She does however have the most obviously fan-friendly song, but, unfortunately, 'The Point of No Return's chorus is a let-down after a promising verse. You'll be hearing this in Malmö, but it's more likely to be in Euroclub than on the international stage.
'Lève-toi' is far more my kind of thing than most of the songs in this line-up, but it's another victim of the 'strong verse, weak chorus' syndrome that affects so many unsuccessful national final songs and is especially prevalent tonight. A shame, because a bigger chorus would lift this, and could help Nicolas Fraissinet (above) go very far indeed.
Jesse Ritch's 'Forever and a Day' is radio-friendly pop. It's pretty contemporary, and could even have some success at Eurovision if it's well-performed, but I'm concerned that, like so many of tonight's songs, it's just a little too mediocre and, well, Swiss. It's another one that will all depend on the performance.
So, who's going to win? I genuinely have no idea. Swiss finals in the past couple of years have been notoriously hard to predict, with the winner (and often the second and third placed songs too) often coming out of nowhere. I suspect it's probably between the Monkey and the Godbotherers, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Chiara Dubey or Jesse Ritch off to Malmö either.
And I still miss Lys.
Monday 10 December 2012
Repeat offenders: Inger Lise Rypdal
In the 1960s and '70s, it seemed like there were only a handful of singers in Norway, so it's no surprise that many of them turned up in numerous editions of Melodi Grand Prix. One of these was Inger Lise Rypdal, a successful artist who had several hits in her own right, but never made it to Eurovision.
Rypdal came to fame in 1968, with Norwegian-language versions of hits by artists as disparate as Peggy March and Jeannie C. Riley, scoring two #1s on the country's singles chart. The following year she took part in Melodi Grand Prix for the first time.
Wikipedia describes Rypdal as the 'dominant female artist on the Norwegian popular music scene' in the 1970s, so it's perhaps a surprise that she never won Melodi Grand Prix. She took part almost every year, including in duets with Stein Ingebrigtsen (Christian's dad) and Jahn Teigen, even 'winning' in 1973 singing 'Å for et spill'. Unfortunately, it was as part of the group accompanied by the small band and, as was traditional, the singers of the orchestral arrangement from the national final - the Bendik Singers - represented the country in Luxembourg.
In total, Rypdal participated 13 times in Melodi Grand Prix:
Perhaps the best remembered of these is 'Voodoo', the bonkers duet with Jahn Teigen in 1976, which features Jahn exchanging his braces for a skeleton outfit. It could have been the infamous 'nul points' two years earlier for Norway, but either way, this would have been somewhat amazing at Eurovision.
Her later entries are a closer reflection of the electro sound that her career took on in later years, including this personal favourite.
And, as a little bonus, here's Rypdal receiving the Spellemann prize in 1974 and performing one of her biggest hits.
Rypdal came to fame in 1968, with Norwegian-language versions of hits by artists as disparate as Peggy March and Jeannie C. Riley, scoring two #1s on the country's singles chart. The following year she took part in Melodi Grand Prix for the first time.
Wikipedia describes Rypdal as the 'dominant female artist on the Norwegian popular music scene' in the 1970s, so it's perhaps a surprise that she never won Melodi Grand Prix. She took part almost every year, including in duets with Stein Ingebrigtsen (Christian's dad) and Jahn Teigen, even 'winning' in 1973 singing 'Å for et spill'. Unfortunately, it was as part of the group accompanied by the small band and, as was traditional, the singers of the orchestral arrangement from the national final - the Bendik Singers - represented the country in Luxembourg.
In total, Rypdal participated 13 times in Melodi Grand Prix:
- 1969: "Eventyr" – 9th place
- 1972: "Lillebror" – 2nd place
- 1973: "Å for et spill" (with Stein Ingebrigtsen, Gro Anita Schønn and Ola Neegaard) – 1st place
- 1973: "Alternativ" – 4th place
- 1974: "Yo-Yo" (duet with Stein Ingebrigtsen) – 4th place
- 1976: "Voodoo" (duet with Jahn Teigen) – 2nd place
- 1979: "Så lenge du er hos meg" – 3rd place
- 1980: "Svart fortid" – 5th place
- 1981: "Tanker" – 3rd place
- 1981: "Født på ny" (as part of The Darlings) – 8th place
- 1982: "Lady Di" – 2nd place
- 1983: "Elegi" (duet with Freddy Dahl) – 9th place
- 1984: "Vindar" – 3rd place
Perhaps the best remembered of these is 'Voodoo', the bonkers duet with Jahn Teigen in 1976, which features Jahn exchanging his braces for a skeleton outfit. It could have been the infamous 'nul points' two years earlier for Norway, but either way, this would have been somewhat amazing at Eurovision.
Her later entries are a closer reflection of the electro sound that her career took on in later years, including this personal favourite.
And, as a little bonus, here's Rypdal receiving the Spellemann prize in 1974 and performing one of her biggest hits.
Friday 7 December 2012
Missed opportunities: Sarah Dawn Finer - I Remember Love
In the middle of the last decade, it felt like a ballad stood no chance in Melodifestivalen. In both 2005 and 2006, nearly all the slower songs fell out of the competition in the semi-final stages, leaving a final full of upbeat pop songs, schlager-by-numbers and the occasional Caroline Wennergren.
2007 promised a much greater variety of song, and not of the type that brought us Kwanzaa and The Elephantz. And it was a relief when, in the second semi-final, Marie Lindberg made it through direkt till Globen, and then when Sarah Dawn Finer managed the same in the fourth.
In a field featuring acts like Andreas Johnson, Måns Zelmerlöw and The Ark, fourth place in the final was about as much as the unknown Sarah Dawn Finer could reasonably expect, especially with a ballad. It's one of Melodifestivalen's best though – heartfelt without being melodramatic, honest and emotional lyrics and a strong, big performance that doesn't overshadow the song.
How would it have performed at Eurovision? Probably better than The Ark, but in a year with Molitva at the top, it almost certainly wouldn’t have challenged for the win. And if 'I Remember Love' had won Melodifestivalen, we wouldn't have got the drama-fest of 'Moving On' two years later, and Lynda Woodruff have probably never been more than a spark in Sarah Dawn’s eye. And *that* would have been the real missed opportunity.
2007 promised a much greater variety of song, and not of the type that brought us Kwanzaa and The Elephantz. And it was a relief when, in the second semi-final, Marie Lindberg made it through direkt till Globen, and then when Sarah Dawn Finer managed the same in the fourth.
In a field featuring acts like Andreas Johnson, Måns Zelmerlöw and The Ark, fourth place in the final was about as much as the unknown Sarah Dawn Finer could reasonably expect, especially with a ballad. It's one of Melodifestivalen's best though – heartfelt without being melodramatic, honest and emotional lyrics and a strong, big performance that doesn't overshadow the song.
How would it have performed at Eurovision? Probably better than The Ark, but in a year with Molitva at the top, it almost certainly wouldn’t have challenged for the win. And if 'I Remember Love' had won Melodifestivalen, we wouldn't have got the drama-fest of 'Moving On' two years later, and Lynda Woodruff have probably never been more than a spark in Sarah Dawn’s eye. And *that* would have been the real missed opportunity.
Tuesday 4 December 2012
We were never told about that: Bizek Emi falls down
Some performances in national finals are infamous. We all remember Tara from Karma fighting a losing battle against bronchitis live on stage in 2003, and that bit in the 1990 Austrian Final where the woman passes out. But there's some things in Eurovision history that, for some reason, nobody ever thought to tell us about.
Take Bizek Emi in the Hungarian Final in 2005. She sits at the piano and sings a perfectly inoffensive, if slightly dull ditty about being past the halfway-point or something. And for years we all assumed that was it.
Because somehow, nobody ever bothered to tell us that when she comes to the front of the stage to take her bow following the performance, she slips and falls flat on her face, the poor love.
It's the kind of thing you can't help but watch twenty times in a row. Go on, I challenge you not to.
This is what we watch Eurovision for. More please.
Take Bizek Emi in the Hungarian Final in 2005. She sits at the piano and sings a perfectly inoffensive, if slightly dull ditty about being past the halfway-point or something. And for years we all assumed that was it.
Because somehow, nobody ever bothered to tell us that when she comes to the front of the stage to take her bow following the performance, she slips and falls flat on her face, the poor love.
It's the kind of thing you can't help but watch twenty times in a row. Go on, I challenge you not to.
This is what we watch Eurovision for. More please.
Monday 3 December 2012
Missed opportunities: Paula Seling - Step Back
He slides the CD into the player, links into the track and Bucharest hears 'Step Back' for the very first time.
And that's that, perhaps one of the most famous missed opportunities in recent Eurovision history. Paula Seling is instantly disqualified from the Romanian Final, the producers being incredibly strict about the rules, particularly the 1st January cut-off as it was back then. For one man's error and the want of waiting just a few hours, Romanian TV loses one of its first real contenders.
The incident is notorious in fan circles. Whether the story really went down as described is debateable and probably unverifiable. Whether it would have won what was likely a deeply rigged national final is equally uncertain. And as for its chances at Eurovision, it would have had to compete against Alsou and Ines for the Britney-votes – a tough fight in 2000.
Of course, we will never know. It's still a damn good little pop song though.
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