Melodifestivalen 2014 - Sanna Nielsen won!

The problem when I delay these posts is that I forget what I wanted to write about. Up until last year I was blogging as soon as the semis and the final were over. But not this year. So many things happened this year that I kinda abandoned the blog. But here I am, 5 days after the final.

Sanna did it! 7th time's the charm in her case! Her dream finally came true! She will represent Sweden in Copenhagen! And I'm so happy for her! Even happier coz she won mello with only 2 points above Ace Wilder! Thank God! 3 more points for Ace and we would have the worst Swedish entry ever! I have no problem with Ace. I don't even know her. But I hate her song.

So, Sanna first, Ace second and my Alcazar finished 3rd! Both in juries and televoting! So proud for them! :') And that top 3 got actually the biggest response in the arena! The audience went crazy during and right after Alcazar's performance! It was insane! They also cheered for them during the voting numbers' announcement. And that happened only during Alcazar's and Ace's numbers! However I knew that Sanna was going to win as soon as she stepped on Friends' stage. The second the playback kicked in the audience started cheering. It was too obvious she'd win. In the televoting at least.

And then we have Helena Paparizou who finished 4th! Amazing Helena! I saw her after the final and she was so happy. Her comeback in Sweden was great. And now we wait for the album on March 26th.

About the rest of the acts, I don't really care. I'm just happy that Yohio did so bad. He should change that "I'm a star" attitude. I was waiting at the after party entrance (as always) for the artists and Yohio arrived with about 10 others who made a circle around him so that nobody would go near him. Such a diva! Honey, you're nobody so stop acting like you are.

And then we also have Anton Ewald who came last both in juries and televoting! Hahaha! Sooo happy about that! Even happier coz Sanna won. That "do people want a popstar (refering to himself) or a Sanna Nielsen?" ate him alive! And after the final he blamed the media for his last place! LOL

Unfortunately I didn't get to see Alcazar after the final. I went behind the green room after the final was over and when they were done with the interviews, Tess saw me and screamed a "Heeeey Ifiiiiiii!" on her way out. At least they knew I was there to cheer for them haha. Ah an EP is on its way so I will have chances to see them somewhere. And they should definitely keep coming back to Melodifestivalen. If Sanna could do it so can them!

The rest of the night was good. I liked the opening and interval acts but really there's nothing more to say. Only that the final needs to return to Globen. Asap.

So, Sweden 12 points! :D

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Songs we will miss in the final

I'm kinda ok with the final's line up but I will miss some songs and I'd rather have them in Friends Arena instead of some finalists. So, just a quick post!

Alvaro Estrella instead of Yohio!
JEM instead of Ellen Benediktson!
Martin Stenmarck instead of Linus Svenning!
EKO instead of Ace Wilder! (One of this year's best songs!! How on earth did it came last in the semi?)
Jessica Folcker & Dr Alban instead of Oscar Zia! (I'm ok with Oscar but I'd rather have Jessica and Dr Alban in the final. I adore Jessica's vocals and I think it would have been better if she had sung this by herself)
Linda Bengtzing instead of Anton Ewald!
Janet Leon... I want to fit this in the final but there's no room. So we can have the "jury's choice" like in 2009. 11 songs in the final!

So the ideal 2014 final is like this (random order):
Alcazar
Helena Paparizou
Sanna Nielsen
Panetoz
Alvaro Estrella
JEM
Martin Stenmarck
EKO
Jessica Folcker & Dr Alban
Linda Bengtzing
Janet Leon

Ah I wish!

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Final's running order revealed

This is so sad! :(

1. Anton Ewald – Natural
2. Ellen Benediktson – Songbird
3. Alcazar – Blame It On The Disco
4. Oscar Zia – Yes We Can
5. Linus Svenning – Bröder
6. Helena Paparizou – Survivor
7. YOHIO – To the End
8. Sanna Nielsen – Undo
9. Panetoz – Efter solsken
10. Ace Wilder – Busy Doin’ Nothin’

3? 3?! 3?!?!??!?! Goodbye Copenhagen! :'(

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Andra chansen - Results

Photo: Christian Örnberg

I think the photo is more than enough but ok... Helena made it! She is in the final!! Wooohooo! Linus Svenning is the second finalist. Helena ("Survivor") beated Outtrigger ("Echo") in the first duel and Linus ("Bröder") beated Martin Stenmarck ("När Änglarna Går Hem"). Poor Martin! :( I wanted him in the final. And for him it's 2005 all over again. Actually the whole night felt like 2005. Helena and Linus were both in the first semi. Just like Alcazar and Linda Bengtzing who were also in the first semi in 2005 and both made it to the final through andra chansen...

The rest of the songs:

5. State of Drama – ”All We Are”
6. JEM – ”Love Trigger”
7. Ellinore Holmer – ”En himmelsk sång”
8. Ammotrack – ”Raise Your Hands”

Well Sweden, your next task: Alcazar to Copenhagen, Helena to be the runner up. :)

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Fourth semi - Results

Photo: Olle Kirchmeier/SVT

Tears of joy! Literally! I don't think I was ever as obssessed as tonight! I almost got two heart attacks. Stupid SVT announced them last! I am going to watch this SHOW live! :'D Tack Sverige!

Alcazar ("Blame It On The Disco") made it to the final!!!!!!! Yeah Anton Ewald ("Natural") too with a totally indifferent song but it was totally expected and as long as my 3 loves are in I don't care!

Ammotrack ("Raise Your Hands") and Ellinore Holmer ("En Himmelsk Sång") made it to andra chansen.

5. Linda Bengtzing – ”Ta Mig”
6. I.D.A – ”Fight Me If You Dare”
7. Josef Johansson – ”Hela natten”
8. Janet Leon – ”Hollow”

Linda came 5th! :( :( Not even to andra chansen! I was so sad when it was either her or Alcazar! And Janet Leon last? Really? Oh well. The most important for me was Alcazar making it to the final and I got what I wanted the most! Next stop Copenhagen please!

Reminder for tonight's mello semi

Please Sweden. Be wise tonight!

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Rehearsals of the fourth semi

Finally! The semi I waited for the most is here! Well, the rehearsals. But still!

Alcazar - Blame It On The Disco
I must have watched this 1-minute clip 30 times since they put it online. Maybe more. Seriously! I don't know if I like it more than "Stay The Night" but I love it. But yeah how can I like it more. I've been listening to "Stay The Night" non stop for the last 5 years. "Blame It On The Disco" is brand new, plus it's only one minute of the song. Anyway, Alcazar are back! Making a fab entrance inside a giant discoball coming from the roof! The choreo is fab! This time they dance non stop during the entire song! There are moments where I get that Eurovision vibe that is so hard to explain, so I won't. Alcazar to win mello!

I.D.A. - Fight Me If You Dare
No these kind of songs are not my thing. And after Alcazar's performance I doubt I'll even pay attention to this!

Janet Leon - Hollow
Janet tries something different this year. I like the chorus a lot. Though Janet isn't doing much on stage. At least not in this one minute. And yes, I think I like the song!

Ammotrack - Raise Your Hands
Why do we have so many rock/metal (whatever) songs this year? Where is schlager???? I don't like this! At all!

Josef Johansson - Hela Natten
I've read some pretty positive reviews about Josef and his song but I don't really see the reason why... Ok song I guess. Some extra points for singing it in Swedish but not really my thing.

Linda Bengtzing - Ta Mig
Hm... Yeah of course I wasn't expecting a schlager song since it's Nicke Borg who wrote this but it's good! I like it! And what can I say? I love Linda! To Friends please!

Ellinore Holmer - En Himmelsk Sång
I would say that we have our 8th place but I won't. I mean the Swedes sent "Songbird" to Friends! Both songs make me sleepy so no, I don't like this either!

Anton Ewald - Natural
So yes, they took last year's choreo and put it in a much worse song than "Begging". At least "Begging" was catchy. "Natural" is pretty crappy and definitely so forgettable! Anton is still a horrible singer. Why can't he just dance (he should stop grabbing his crotch that often though)? Unfortunately these crazy 15-year-olds will vote like hell for him. -.-


So yes. Alcazar to win Melodifestivalen 2014! Period

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Third semi - Results

Photo: Olle Sporrong

Worst semi of the year. Period. When they announced the 5 first finalists I thought they were showing us the fake results of the dress rehearsal but no! It's actually Oscar Zia ("Yes We Can") and Ace Wilder ("Busy Doin' Nothing") who made it to Friends Arena. I'm fine with Oscar but I don't think I'll be able to listen to Ace's song live. It's horrble! Like an American teen song performed at a college party (before or after State Of Drama's song).

And yes, State Of Drama ("All We Are") and Outtrigger ("Echo") made it to andra chansen. Eew.

5. Dr. Alban & Jessica Folcker - ”Around The World”
6. Shirley Clamp – ”Burning Alive”
7. CajsaStina Åkerström – ”En Enkel Sång”
8. EKO – ”Red”

By the time we knew the first 5 who were through I wanted Oscar and Dr Alban & Jessica Folcker to Friends. Generally I think I'd go with Dr Alban & Jessica and EKO to the final. I really liked "Red".

The rest of the show was also boring. They brought back Björn Gustafsson. Generally I love Sweden's sense of humour but Björn? No. I hate him.

I can't say anything else really. I'm waiting for next Saturday and Alcazar to rescue mello! 

Alcazar - Back in full action!

Photo: Tess' instagram

Aah! They.Are.Back. And not only in Melodifestivalen! And that's the best part! They are 100% back! All three of them are fully focused on the group! They are going to release a new album!! When? No idea. I'm hoping sometime after Melodifestivalen, in spring. New album, new gigs, new interviews!! That comeback makes me wonder. When did they decide to come back? I think I read it on Aftonbladet or on Expressen that after the interval act last February they wanted to take part again. So those faces Andreas made while we were talking back then might have been actual hints! Or maybe not. And then they posted a couple of photos in the studio! The first one was in April if I recall correctly and the second one around September (?). Which could possibly mean that they were recording the mello song (in the last one)!

Melodifestivalen! I'm glad I waited until today to make this post coz Andreas blogged about it! He describes "Blame It On The Disco" as a real Alcazar-song and that we should be prepared for an amazing show! What else can I ask for? :D He also says that he'll be blogging all the time about their mello journey (of course!). Too excited already!

I'm just quite pissed at SVT. They put Helena in Malmö's semi (I might make it to the reheasal though) and Alcazar in Örnsköldsvik! Really? Why don't you send them to Kiruna next time? -.- So they have to make it to the final so I can get to see them performing in Friends Arena!

I guess that's all I wanted to say. For now. I hope I didn't forget about anything. Needless to say that I haven't stopped listening to them since yesterday, right?

Melodifestivalen 2014: The artists, the songs, the composers - Heats 3 & 4

The alarm clock went off at 9:40 in the morning. Turned it off. 10:07, fuck! The artist presentation! Well I tuned in kinda late. Actually, too late. But it didn't matter. I checked on facebook and I got what I needed. I also did a check on Alcazar's instagram just to get some hints. Where they back in Stockholm or still in Kalmar (they're having Christmas shows there)? Still in Kalmar. "Ok, they're not in.". Yeah right! The moment I tuned in at SVT's webcast I heard Gustav Dahlander saying something like "There is one more artist who didn't make it today. The song is called "Blame It On The Disco" and it's performed by Alcazar!"! And there it hit me. There is a lot to say about that but I'll do it tomorrow. Let's go to the semis.

Photo: Linwall Sven

Semi-final 3, Gothenburg 15/2

• All We Are
Artist: State of Drama
Composers: Göran Werner, Sanken Sandqvist, Emil Gullhamn, Sebastian Hallifax

• Around the World
Artist: Dr. Alban & Jessica Folcker
Composers: dr. alban, Jakke Erixson, Karl-Ola Kjellholm

• Burning Alive
Artist: Shirley Clamp
Composers: Bobby Ljunggren, Marcos Ubeda, Sharon Vaughn, Henrik Wikström

• Busy Doin’ Nothin’
Artist: Ace Wilder
Composers: Ace Wilder, Joy Deb, Linnéa Deb

• Echo
Artist: Outtrigger
Composers: Joy Deb, Linnéa Deb, Anton Malmberg Hård Af Segerstad, Outtrigger Kontaktperson:

• En enkel sång
Artist: CajsaStina Åkerström
Composer: CajsaStina Åkerström

• Red
Artist: EKO
Composers: Linnéa Deb, Joy Deb, Anna Lidman, Hannes Lundberg, Michael Ottosson

• Yes We Can
Artist: Oscar Zia
Composers: Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah

So, a bunch of artists that come back! Shirley Clamp, State of Drama and Oscar Zia (well sort of comeback). There are no "standard qualifiers" here. Based just on their names, that is. I'm saying Oscar Zia will make it since the little girls are gonna vote like crazy for him. I really like the team begind Shirley's song! I'm really hoping for some good schlager!! The rest of them... Well I can't say anything yet.

Photo: Stefan Mattsson

Semi-final 4, Örnsköldsvik 22/2

• Blame It On The Disco
Artist: Alcazar
Composers: Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah

• En himmelsk sång
Artist: Ellinore Holmer
Composers: Ellinore Holmer, Vanna Rosenberg, Åsa Schmalenbach, Josefina Sanner, Henrik Wikström, Amir Aly

• Fight Me If You Dare
Artist: I.D.A
Composers: Albin Nicklasson, Nicklas Laine, Louise Frick Sveen

• Hela natten
Artist: Josef Johansson
Composers: Peter Boström, Thomas G:son, Josef Johansson, Peo Thyrén

• Hollow
Artist: Janet Leon
Composers: Karl-Ola Kjellholm, Jimmy Jansson, Louise Winter

• Natural
Artist: Anton Ewald
Composers: John Lundvik

• Raise Your Hands
Artist: Ammotrack
Composers: Jari Kujansuu, Thomas Johansson, Calle Kindbom, Mikael de Bruin

• Ta mig
Artist: Linda Bengtzing
Composers: Nicke Borg, Jojo Borg Larsson

A-L-C-A-Z-A-R! So I was wrong when I said they won't be in. So much for posting about Tess' plans everywhere! xD I guess somehow she'll find a way to do both! "Blame It On The Disco"! Sounds really "Alcazar" but I really don't like seeing Fredrik Kempe's name there. It just doesn't feel right. Alcazar don't do Kempe's music. Of course, Andreas said it's a real party song so that gives me hope. Can't wait for that!

Then we have Linda Bengtzing!! I love the schlager queen! But again, Nicke Borg is behind the song? Are we really talking about a turbo schlager a la Linda song? Please don't be a ballad!

Anton Ewald and Janet Leon are also coming back. As far as I'm concerned, Alcazar and Linda B to the final!

More info about my Alcazar tomorrow! There's a lot to say. You can find that info basically in every swedish website but there's no way I'll leave them without a blog post dedicated to them! ;)

Melodifestivalen 2014: The artists, the songs, the composers - Heats 1 & 2

Here we are! The artists of the first two semis are revealed! And of course Helena Paparizou was one of them. ;) Also, the expected Yohio and Sanna Nielsen. And many unknown artists (to me).

Photo: Lina Siksjö

Semi-final 1: Malmö 1/2

• Aleo
Artist: Mahan Moin
Composers: Mahan Moin, Anderz Wrethov

• Bedroom
Artist: Alvaro Estrella
Composers: Jakke Erixson, Jon Bordon, Lauren Francis, Kristofer Östergren

• Bröder
Artist: Linus Svenning
Composer: Fredrik Kempe

• Bygdens son
 Artist: Sylvester Schlegel
Composer: Sylvester Schlegel

• Casanova
Artist: Elisa Lindström
Composers: Ingela ”Pling” Forsman, Bobby Ljunggren, Jimmy Jansson

• Songbird
Artist: Ellen Benediktson
Composers: Sharon Vaughn, Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson, Tobias Lundgren

• Survivor
Artist: Helena Paparizou
Composers: Bobby Ljunggren, Henrik Wikström, Karl-Ola Kjellholm, Sharon Vaughn

• To the End
Artist: YOHIO
Composers: Andreas Johnson, Johan Lyander, Peter Kvint, YOHIO

Yeah, apart from Helena and Yohio I have no idea who the rest are! And if I just stick to the names then it's Helena and Yohio to the final! It's all about the songs though so I can't be sure about anything. It's the Swedes who vote after all. If you know what I mean. ;) I'm sad that Helena competes in Malmö and not in Linköping. But I totally expected it right after I found out (last night) that she'd be in today's press conference. Now she will either open the semi or perform last. She and Yohio will be the ones who'll share the spots 1 and 8. Who knows... I might repeat last year's craziness... Love Malmö!

Photo: Lina Siksjö

Semi-final 2, Linköping 8/2

• Efter solsken
Artist: Panetoz
Composers: Johan Hirvi, Mats Lie Skåre, Nebeyu Baheru, Njol Badjie, Pa Modou Badjie

• Glow
 Artist: Manda
Composers: Joy Deb, Linnéa Deb, Melanie Wehbe, Charlie Mason

• I Am Somebody
Artist: Pink Pistols
Composers: Joakim Törnqvist, Nestor Geli, Per Ivar Hed, Susie Päivärinta, Tord Bäckström

• Love Trigger
 Artist: JEM
Composers: Thomas G:son, Peter Boström, Julimar ”J-Son” Santos

• När änglarna går hem
Artist: Martin Stenmarck
Composers: Andreas Öhrn, Alexander Bard, Martin Stenmarck, Peter Boström

• Set Yourself Free
 Artist: Little Great Things
Composers: Charlie Grönvall, Cristoffer Wernqvist, Felix Grönvall, Adam Dahlström

• Hallelujah
Artist: The Refreshments
Composer: Joakim Arnell

• Undo
Artist: Sanna Nielsen
Composers: Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah

Ok I didn't get Helena in "my" semi but I got Sanna Nielsen! And Martin Stenmarck! Funny that the last time I got to see Sanna was in April 2011, with Martin in Kvällen Är Din! Now I'll get to see them again! What can I say about the second semi? Again, I only know Sanna and Martin! And I've just heard of Panetoz... I'd say it's Sanna and Martin to the final. Based on my taste, that is. :P Sanna's song seems to be a ballad. That's the vibe I get by the title. But then I see Fredrik Kempe's name there and it screams schlager. We'll see...

EDIT: I just watched a video from TV4 and Sanna confirms it's a ballad!

Generally I'm not too excited about the names. 16 artists are revealed and I only care about 3 of them. Hopefully the songs will be good.

On Thursday we'll know the rest of the contestants. Expressen and Aftonbladet are sure that Alcazar are in. I'm not. At all. Tess is supposed to be in Thailand for two months during the mello season. I doubt she'll be going back and forth for Melodifestivalen. And I've posted this on many groups on fb and on escunited.com. Imagine if they're actually in! xD That would be awesome but I'll also be pissed coz they'll definitely be in Gothenburg's semi (again!). And neither Helena or my Alcazar will be in "my" semi! Grrr!

Malmö, Alcazar and Eurovision!

The best weekend since I moved to Sweden! Maybe the best weekend of my life! Left Linköping at 8am. Had only slept for about 4,5 hours the previous night and I wasn't supposed to get any sleep the entire weekend. Hadn't booked any rooms in Malmö. Anyway I arrived in Malmö at 11:00. Went around the city for a while and then went to the arena. Saw some of the greek OGAE members and then went back to the center. There was no chance I'd meet the artists in the arena. All Eurovision related locations are near the central station (including the hotels ;)) so I began walking toward the Eurovillage. As I was walking I saw some people across the street with accreditation tags and there was one woman who seemed so familiar. I was too far, she had sunglasses on but I could swear it was Hannah Mancini from Slovenia. So I said to myself "go closer, you have nothing to lose". I went there and yup! It was Hannah! I took a photo (of course) and I chatted with her for a while. She's amazing and extremely friendly!

I went to the Eurovillage after that. Klapa s Mora from Croatia, Zlata Ognevich from Ukraine and Hannah would perform there. After that they'd all give an interview to Andreas Lundstedt. Apart from the gig with Alcazar he'll be all week in Malmö interviewing the artists. You can watch the interviews here.

Andreas interviewing Hannah

After the interviews I met both Klapa s Mora and Zlata. I also saw Hannah and we talked again. I asked her about the fb pages. If both of them are official because both are getting updated. She said one was created especially for Eurovision and probably it will stop being updated after the ESC. She joked and said "just like both of them" hahaha. I already had. We said goodbye and Hannah said "see you". I mean which artist says "see you"? They usually say "nice meeting you, bye"... Really liked that "see you". It's like she wants to keep contact with the fans! Pretty great!

Anyway, I went to grab something to eat and then walked around the city for a while. Went back to Eurovillage and Andreas was in the "Super-studio" with Tess and Lina. An Alcazar interview!

Watched them while they were being interviewed. They also sang "Stay The Night" a capella. When they were done I met Tess and Lina. We talked for a few minutes and they left. I stayed there until Andreas was done and I met him after he finished. Talked with him for a while as well. The gig at WONK club would be at 2:30am and it was around 22:00. As I said I wasn't supposed to get any sleep while I was in Malmö but I was too tired. So I was lucky to find a hotel with free rooms with a good price. Slept for about an hour and a half and then went to the club. Saw them performing and then I got to meet them. Backstage... Here they are!

I was too tired but really happy. Hadn't seen them all three at the same time since August 2011! Went back to the hotel at around 4am. The sun was rising!

Slept for 5 hours, had breakfast, checked out and went back to the Eurovillage to spend the last day in Malmö. Estonia had a party there. Tanel Padar and Ott Lepland started singing. Then PeR got on stage and then Birgit. Krista Siegfrids was supposed to sing as well but she didn't come. I don't know why. Missed the chance to meet her. Met Ott, PeR and Birgit though. After the party Switzerland, Montenegro, Lithuania, Austria and Greece would perform at the Eurovillage. Met Natália Kelly, Takasa and Koza Mostra & Agathon. I also got a Austria's and Greece's promos. And a chocolate from Estonia with Birgit's face on it. Is this their promo this year? lol

I also saw the boys and Nina from Montenegro along with Andrius Pojavis from Lithuania but didn't take a photo. The lead singer of Dorians was also walking around at the Eurovillage wearing a hood and sunglasses. It was like he didn't want people to recognize him. lol Later I met Lozano & Esma from FYROM. There were two girls there, no older than 20, who literally got crazy when they saw Esma! They almost fainted! They were like "oh my God! Esma! I can't believe it! oh my God!". I mean, Esma? Seriously? o.O

Later in the afternoon I saw Andreas again. I asked him if he'd be interviewing any artists and he said he would. Takasa, Zlata and Margaret Berger. When I asked him he didn't remember which artists were coming for an interview so he looked at his schedule and he saw Margaret's name. He told me about her interview in a "look what I got for you ;)" way because when I met him after the gig we talked a bit about our favourite songs this year. And of course I told him Norway is my winner. I met Margaret after her interview and she was the last artist I met. On Sunday was the opening party so all the artists were there.

Looked at my watch two hours before my train was leaving and I got depressed. Didn't want to leave! But stupid money and stupid uni (just for these two ESC weeks)! :( But seriously if Eurovision takes place near me next year I'm going! With accreditation and everything! I don't know how, but I'm going!

ESC 2013 - Rehearsals Day 5

DAY 5

Austria - Natália Kelly - "Shine" (2nd rehearsal) 
The best way to open the ESC 2013 (the competing part, that is)! Love it! Everything about it! Simple but great! Natália's vocals are great. The backing vocals are great. The outfits are great. Yeah it stuck in my top 3 and there's absolutely no way that it will drop! Austria to win the semi and finish in final's top 3!

Estonia - Birgit - "Et Uus Saaks Alguse" (2nd rehearsal) 
And months later I kinda start to remember the melody but still, it's too forgettable. It just doesn't do anything to me. Another simple performance and this one is also good. The vocals are pretty good but I don't like the dress. At all.

Slovenia - Hannah Mancini - "Straight Into Love" (2nd rehearsal)
Aha. I liked what I saw. But I didn't really like what I heard. Hannah needs to improve her vocals when she's moving. And I don't like the sound in the arena. Of course it will be different on tv (thank God!) but now we can't really hear the playback. The bass. I have a problem with the dancers too. I want them to be more synchronized but that's easy to fix.

Croatia - Klapa s Mora - "Mižerja" (2nd rehearsal)
This feels like I've seen it so many times before. I don't like it. And I don't like their outfits. I know they said they're traditional outfits or whatever but I don't like them. The only good thing about this performance is their vocals.

Denmark - Emmelie de Forest - "Teardrops" (2nd rehearsal)
Identical to the DMGP performance. Even the backdrop. Nothing else to say. Go Denmark!

Russia - Dina Garipova - "What If" (2nd rehearsal)
The last 50 seconds are so cheesy! I don't like those big bulbs on stage but I like the "flying lanterns". They're cheesy too but I like them. Don't like Dina's outfit that much though.

Ukraine - Zlata Ognevich - "Gravity" (2nd rehearsal)
I'm sorry but that giant at the beginning will make everyone go "wtf?". What's the point really? And what's with the whole fairytale thing? I don't get it. Zlata's vocals were good. The outfit is ok I guess...

The Netherlands - Anouk - "Birds" (2nd rehearsal)
Love the outfit. I said it from the beginning. Simple and static performance. When we first heard the song many fans said that the Netherlands will make it to the final and finish in a good spot. I don't see this happening. Unfortunately. The song is too "bizarre" for the average viewer. Too dark and for some reason it feels like it lasts for too long. I kinda got bored in the first two minutes. And the whole performance doesn't really help the song...

Montenegro - Who See - "Igranka" (2nd rehearsal)
First of all, congrats for the Barbara Dex award! Secondly, I literally struggled to watch this until the end! Horrible! I seriously want to punch the screen when Nina sings the first lines. HORRIBLE!

Belgium - Roberto Bellarosa - "Love Kills" (2nd rehearsal)
What are you doing Belgium? Wrong outfits! Ridiculous choreo and in combination with those outfits it looks much much worse. And the worst part? The backing vocalists are also doing the dance routine! I think this ruins Belgium's chances. Such a shame because the song is much better than others in this semi. Poor Roberto.

Belarus - Alyona Lanskaya - "Solayo" (2nd rehearsal)
Alyona is too static. Yeah she does the choreo but she barely moves. A few steps to the left, then back at her original spot and that's it. Only the camera work can save it. Nothing special about the performance...

Moldova - Aliona Moon - "O Mie" (2nd rehearsal)
I couldn't stop thinking what the Azerbaijanis think about Aliona using the exact same gimmick as Sabina. Just one year later. Anyway, I really like the song but I think the performance is too much. Actually the length of the dress is too much. That's what bugs me. But generally, it's an ok performance. Really good vocals too.

Ireland - Ryan Dolan - "Only Love Survives" (2nd rehearsal)
I like it! Love Ryan's outfit (already said that) and I like the performance. It's good. Ireland is most likely in the final.

Cyprus - Despina Olympiou - "An Me Thimase" (2nd rehearsal)
Yeah now it's confirmed. Despina is alone on stage. Cyprus 2004 vibes anyone? Nah not a top 5 but why not make it to the final? Good draw, good vocals, ok song... You never know.

Lithuania - Andrius Pojavis - "Something" (2nd rehearsal)
He looks like he's bored to sing. And yes the performance and outfit are the same as in Lithuania's NF. No matter what, I don't like this.

Serbia - Moje 3 - "Ljubav Je Svuda" (2nd rehearsal)
Ok. I totally love the concept, the performance, call it however you want. I mean that Nevena is the ordinary girl, Mirna is the angel and Sara is the devil. Nevena is the confused girl and Mirna and Sara are trying to make her a good and a bad girl respectively. Love it! I still hate the outfits though! Bring back the NF ones! Yeah who am I kidding? Vocals were good, the draw is good. Final? Sure! Oh! Is it me or there was a lot of touching between Nevena and Mirna? Just saying... xD


Btw, I'm off to Malmö for the weekend (as I said in the first post) so no blogging tomorrow. I'll do it though sometime on Sunday when I get back. ALCAZAR and ESC tomorrow! :D

Melodifestivalen 2013 - Fourth semi - Results

Photo: Lindwall Sven

Fourth semi is over and honestly I couldn't care less about the results right now. ALCAZAR! Just wow!

Ok so Ulrik Munther with "Tell The World I'm Here" and Ralf Gyllenhammar with "Bed On Fire" made it to the final. Ehm. Ok.

To andra chansen: Behrang Miri with "Jalla Dansa Sawa" and Robin Stjernberg with "You".
Damn I wanted Behrang to the final!

5. "Breaking The Silence" – Terese Fredenwall
6. "Rockin' The Ride" – Army of Lovers
7. "Trivialitet" – Sylvia Vrethammar
8. "Must Be Love" – Lucia Piñera

So Army of Lovers didn't make it. Not even to the ac! But really couldn't they sing live? I mean camera caught La Camilla lip synching! Lame! And damn I was so close about Sylvia! Not last. Second-to-last! At least the cleaning crew won't have so much work to do in her dressing room. xD

So yeah, highlights of the 4th semi: Petra Mede, Sarah Dawn Finer and Alcazar. Anything BUT the competing songs!

And once again all the good songs are in andra chansen! 

EDIT: So after hearing all 32 songs I have to say one thing. Why couldn't Lisa Miskovsky enter this year with "Why Start A Fire"? It would have been the perfect entry for the hosts! :(  

Melodifestivalen 2013 - 1st general rehearsal of the 4th semi (plus some extra details about my day in Malmö)

Back from Malmö! What a day! And night! I left Linköping at 10:18 (yeah I'm becoming a Swede lol) and arrived in Malmö at 13:35. Again, the only reason I went there is Alcazar! I knew in which hotel they were staying (long story but honestly if you follow them on instagram it's not difficult to find out ;)) so I went there to meet them. I will leave out lots of details on the how-I-knew-about-their-schedule. Anyway, they weren't there. I left and went to Malmö Arena hoping to run into them. I was out in the cold for about two hours. Almost froze to death (yeah not the first time I'm doing this). During these two hours I saw Danny and Gina (didn't care to talk to them or take a photo), Jean-Pierre of Army of Lovers (nope, no photo with him either. too "frozen" and too depressed to the idea that I might not meet my Alcazar) and La Camilla of AoL! Now, I'm not 100% sure it was her... She was wearing snglasses (it was cloudy!) so it has to be her right?

And the time went by... I decided to go inside the mall which was right across the street. Just for 5 minutes. To get my body temperature back to normal. Needless to say that I was terrified that Alcazar might show up while I was inside. Well I knew the girls would stay in the arena all day but who could guarantee that they actually stay in? Andreas was tricky. I was told he was in the arena but he wasn't. I went outside again and within the next 2-3 minutes a bus stopped and Andreas got off! It took me a while to recognize him and I literally stopped him on his way in! We talked for a few seconds and he went inside. Last thing he told me: "Don't freeze to death!" I was thinking "aaaww how sweet" but I said "I will!" (like "I will because of you (Alcazar)! Coz I want to see you! So I will freeze to death if I have to!") Anyway, let's go to the part you're probably reading the post for.

General rehearsal

After meeting Andreas I went back to the mall so I wouldn't freeze to death. The arena doors were still closed. But eventually they opened the doors, I went inside and I got my seat (a good one I might add) and the show began.

Opening act! A great one! They make it look like we're about to watch Eurovision's final! The music, the old ESC logo, the commentators! Danny and Gina acting like Ell and Leyla. I laughed a lot with that and you'll see why... ;) And then comes Petra! Petra Mede! She scolds them for making fun of it and doing her job! She takes over and presents Melodifestivalen in french! Respect! Her french (even though I dislike the language) is really really good! Totally the best choice to host the ESC (Sarah Dawn Finer would be great for me as well but I don't know if she speaks french). Sarah had her own part in the semi... ;)

Then we go to the first contestants. Army of Lovers! I don't know what to say about their song. It's weird with a "wtf is this?" feeling but catchy at the same time! I liked what I saw but it could have been better. It's AoL after all!

Lucia Piñera is next. Yeah the song is too Adele but I like it! Nothing special on stage. Unlike AoL.

Robin Stjernberg gets on stage and I have to say that the song is good but his voice still annoys me... Smoke and dancers on stage.

Then comes Sylvia Verthammar with the ultimate snoozefest! And probably the most boring staging of this year's mello! In the mello magazine there's a question asked to her: "What will you do if you finish last?". She replies: "I will go to my dressing room and break everything!". I say: The cleaning crew will have a lot of work to do in Sylvia's dressing room. ;)

And here comes Ralf Gyllenhammar. Remember when I told you I got scared for a sec? I was prepeared yesterday. Can't say the same about the rest of the audience though. There's a lot of fire on stage. I was sitting quite far (as you can see) and I felt the heat! I wonder what those people in the first row felt!

Behrang Miri. All I'm gonna say here is: SEND HIM TO THE FINAL!! Love the song! So happy and uplifting! Amazing!

Terese Fredenwall tries to pull a Lisa Miskovsky but it doesn't work for me. Sorry.

And finally we have Ulrik Munther. He grew up in one year! At least that's how he seemed to me. And I liked what I saw.

Then it's (fake) voting time. The weekly video they do (which I didn't pay any attention to) and the (fake) results. Army of Lovers are 6th, Behrang 7th and Ulrik 8th! xD

And here comes the highlight of the evening! The reason I came to Malmö! Alcazar's comeback! New fluo outfits, new choreos and a new member. Danny. Well they start without him with "Stay The Night" then "Alcastar" and Danny joins them in "Not A Sinner Nor A Saint". I was really negative about Danny joining them but I have to say it was good! What I'm really happy about is that I got to see them performing "Stay The Night" in a big arena. A la Melodifestivalen! Simply amazing!!

I actually left the rehearsal right after Alcazar performed. Andreas told me earlier that they would leave right away so I left too. I went back to their hotel waiting for them. While I was waiting (outside again! brr) a woman passed me by. It was dark, she was wearing a hood... I thought it was Lina. She looked at me but she didn't react so I thought it wasn't her. I found Andreas and Tess later at a hotel a few steps away from the one they were staying. (it's a hotel chain. in both hotels are staying the artists and crew of mello). They were outside ready to go so yeah. I finally met them! They told me Lina had gone back to the hotel coz her baby was with her in Malmö. So I'm pretty sure it was Lina who passed right in front of me earlier...

Anyway I got my photo with Andreas, Tess and a "new" member who I asked to pose as "Lina". Sarah Dawn Finer! I got to meet Sarah too! :D Oh, I talked with Andreas (obviously) and he asked me if I liked the show. Apart from the "YES!!!" I told him that they need to come back!

- In mello?
- No. Generally! Alcazar needs to come back!
- Mmm we will see how it turns out... (And he had a look)
- Should I take that as a hint?
- Mmm I don't know (that look again)... we'll see... (getting serious) You never know.

Oh my God! Please please let that be a comeback! Pleeeeease!

And to end the post, let me tell you that I missed (more like I let it leave) the last train back to Linköping! Thank God I found a Burger King that is open until 6am on Fridays and Saturdays! Otherwise I'd be screwed. Big time! There's no way I'd stay out for 6-7 hours in that cold! I'd had to find a hotel and pay A LOT. I couldn't afford spending more money. I really couldn't! Well I "blame" Alcazar for that. But I couldn't leave without seeing them! Even though I didn't see Lina... :/ Call me crazy for doing that. Call me an idiot or whatever you want. I might be at some level. But I love them.

Melodifestivalen 2013 - Rehearsals of the fourth semi

Ok before I start commenting on the rehearsals let me tell you that Carola will perform at the interval act of the final! Malmö's interval act will be better though. For me at least. We'll get to that even though I think it's old news by now but I'm super excited about it, so yeah, I will say a few things on that.

Rehearsals ladies and gentlemen!

Army of Lovers - Rockin’ The Ride
Legends or what? However, correct me if I'm wrong but that was a playback right? The song is quite catchy. Weird lyrics but it's AoL! Green light from me!

Lucia Piñera - Must Be Love
"We could have had it aaaaaaaaaaaaaaall, rolling in the deeeeeeeeeeeep...." Sorry I got carried away. That's not what Lucia was singing. Or was it? No? Ok. It's not bad but I need to hear the full version.

Robin Stjernberg - You
His voice annoys me and the song is nothing special. Next!

Syliva Vrethammar - Trivialitet
Seriously? o.O For the love of God! Really I'm like wtf? I don't like it. I find it boring and the perfect candidate for the 8th place! 

Ralf Gyllenhammar - Bed On Fire
Brolle in 20 years from now? Hopefully not! Ralf, dear Ralf. What is this? I have to say I got scared for a moment... You'll know in which part. Not really my cup of tea...

Behrang Miri - Jalla Dansa Sawa
That's nice actually. Perfect after this snoozefest we had until now (AoL are an excpetion). 

Terese Frendenwall - Breaking The Silence
The winner of "Svensktoppen nästa".... I'm not fan of the song. I got a Lisa Miskovsky wannabe vibe and that's not good...

Ulrik Munther - Tell The World I'm Here
Better than last year's attempt. Much better I can say. For my taste. But still it's nothing "wow". I see him making it to the final though... Little girls will vote for him.


So it's Army of Lovers and Behrang to the final for me. Or Lucia (yeah I know!) instead of Behrang. I'll be fine with Ulrik too. I guess.

Anyway, let's go the important part of the fourth semi! The opening and interval acts! Petra Mede will open the semi on Staturday! :D Wiiiie!! I've no idea what she's gonna do but I don't care! It's Petra Mede!

And the highlight for me...

Photo: Fredrik Sandberg/Scanpix

ALCAZAR

Alcazar will perform on Staruday! That's the interval act! Danny will be the "4th member" (a bit -.- here)... No idea what he's gonna do. Why does he have to be involved in everything? Really? Can't they let my Alcazar do their thing? Ok, ok. I stop whinning. I'm actually in a great great mood! Because I am going to Malmö!!!! I went through a mini (serious) depression the day I found out they'll perform in mello but that was it. I bought a ticket for tomorrow's general rehearsal! There was no way I will let them "go away" again! I haven't seen them since Stockholm Pride 2011! They have reunited a few times since then but it was either for private performances, or they were too far, or I had no money (ok I don't have money now but to hell with it! I'm going!) or I found out about the performance after they did it! That's it! I'm going to see them! Tomorrow I am going to Malmö!

So on Saturday morning [(if I manage to come back home somehow) coz I haven't booked a ticket to come home yet] you will have, for the first time through my blog, a review about what you will see on tv on Saturday evening!

Annikafiore - Don't Wanna C U 2nite (Piol Remix) video release

Loaned from Dave

Sooo what do we have here? New remix and new video for Annikafiore's "Don't Wanna C U 2nite"! We loved (don't tell me you didn't!) the SoundFactory remix but now we have the Piol remix which is a more summer night/lounge version. Personally I love both! Keep the SoundFactory remix for dancing and keep the Piol remix for relaxing at nights!

The new video is just awesome! Watched it quite a few times and I had it on repeat for many more. There are two parts (so far) that I totally love and I have to say that I rewinded the video a few times just to rewatch those parts. xD The first one is at 1:02-1:05 and the second is at 2:49 and at 2:51 (you get it right? two WOW frames!). Gaah I just LOVE the video! Those scenes while Annikafiore is sitting on the bench are probably my favourite. I know, not much happening over there but I love the colors and the feeling. Oh and those drama-looks on the camera are so only-Annikafiore-can-do-it-like-this! Yeah you get it, I LOVE everything on that video! :D


This remix will be included on her new EP called "RECOVERED"! It's gonna be an EP with new remixes and listen to this: there will be two new versions of Alcazar's "Crying At The Discoteque"! I watched her performing CATD last August and recorded that performance (don't go searching on youtube, the video is still unlisted but when the EP comes out I'll make it public)! I have no idea if that version she performed back then is one of the two on the EP. What I know is that one of them will be the version she performed in May at the Alcazar reunion (still don't have that performance guys. I got no reply from the uploader). Anyway, read more about the EP here. It's Annikafiore's official blog!

Spread the news about the new remix people! :D

Reunion for Alcazar with the original members!

Photo: Mette-Marits

Well I know I know. We're in the ESC week but I had to blog about this! The title is true! Well sort of! Yesterday my lovely Andreas Lundstedt turned 40!! Of course they had a party and Annikafiore was there as well! They reunited just for the night! They performed a new remixed version of "Crying At The Discoteque"! I saw the link on my main wall on facebook and I was shocked! Tears of joy seeing them performing together again. Even though I never watched them live (with the original members!).

Check back for the video later guys. As I said it's on facebook and I don't know if you'll be able to watch it. I contacted the guy who uploaded it and asked him to upload it on youtube or give me the permission to upload it myself.

Dear Alcazar...

...can we please have once in a while a new song? It's been 9 months (!!) since the release of "Feel 4 U" and I feel I need my next Alcazar dose. Can't you just go in the studio every few months and record an ALCAZAR song to keep us going? No strings attached! No releases of CD singles or gigs or anything! Just a song! An Alcazar song! I don't really think that a record company could work this way anyway but since I don't know how things work in the music industry I can hope right? Or whatever buy your own studio and do all the work by yourselves! Just bring another Alcazar baby to this world!

Your fans.                       

PS I sign this "Your fans" because I know I'm not the only one who wants you back. And since there's no comeback planned in the near future, we'll be satisfied with just a song.

Melodifestivalen 2012 - Snippets of the first rehearsals - Semi 2 Göteborg

Ok the snippets of today's rehearsals are up! Which means one minute of each song and act is available! Let's see!

1. Soldiers - Ulrik Munther
Just an ok song! No wow-factor at all! No way I want this on ESC when we have Loreen! But keep an eye on Ulrik. Unfortunately the teenage girls will send him to Globen and maybe to Baku. (no thank you!)

2. Baby Doll - Top Cats 
Wow. I din't know the Playtones entered Mello 2012! Come on! Seriously? It's "The King" all over again. Don't like it!

3. I Din Himmel - Sonja Aldén 
I like Sonja but the song... Hm nothing much for me. It's a ballad which means, well you know, I don't like it. (Spain and Israel in ESC can have as many ballads as they want but it's off topic right now) The thing is that it's not a great ballad so I don't like it. I totally prefer Sonja's Mello 2007 entry! Maybe I need to listen to "I Din Himmel" a few more times but I don't know if it will grow on me... :/

4. Aldrig Aldrig - Andreas Lundstedt 
Dandy Andy! I'm gonna say a lot here and I think you know why. ;P Ok I don't read or watch any interviews of the Mello artists. Except for Andreas'. So I know a bit more about the song and why he picked this song and why there's not much dancing (in that 1 minute snippet at least). Andreas wanted to focus on his vocal performance. To show us what he's capable of and I think we can see that in "Aldrig Aldrig". I like the song but again nothing special that can make Europe go crazy. It has a very familiar sound. Mello sound? Hm I'll call it mello sound. I don't see him in Globen. Unfortunately. Hopefully to andra chansen? He's in a difficult semi even though out of these first 4 songs I like only Andreas'. But of course I'm biased hahaha. It's proven that the Swedes vote for names and not for the songs. I don't know... maybe it's because I'm not used to it but I can't see Andreas solo. I want the Alcazar Andreas! He needs Alcazar! He needs his girls. We need the Alcazar music!!!

5. Stormande Hav - Timoteij
Oh my God!! Oh my God!!! I read so many comments about this! About "Stormande Hav" being an exact copy of "Kom" but this is nowhere near it!!! I'm out of words! Totally not what I expected! I'm quite disappointed! So this is it. Loreen to Baku hands down and I don't care that we have 2 more semis to go!

6. Shout It Out - David Lindgren
Ah nothing again. This semi is really bad! This is totally not the worst song. And it's not bad either but I don't see it going far.

7. Det Går För Långsamt - Mimi Oh
 I like this! I like Mimi! Good for the ESC? Naah.

8. Ge Aldrig Upp - Thomas Di Leva
I wonder if Thomas ever wears pants! I never liked this bizzare style! As for the song, I don't like it much.


Seriously this is a really bad semi! And if it wasn't for the "big" names I'd say that Andreas has a chance. Needless to say that I want him in Globen right? So biaseeed! :P Fingers crossed for my man! I'm gonna vote for him!

LOREEN TO BAKU!