ESC 2013 - Semi-final 1 Results

*Sigh...*

I didn't ask for much. I just wanted 4 countries in the final and I didn't really care about the rest. Only one made it. I got 8/10 (prediction) and 7/10 (wantlist). Those 3 that stayed out of the semi were my absolute favourites! Austria, sLOVEnia and Serbia. The 4th was Denmark. Well, in my overall top 10 Denmark is acutally higher than Serbia but whatever. Voted for Austria and sLOVEnia but... :/

Moldova
Lithuania
Ireland
Estonia
Belarus
Denmark
Russia
Belgium
Ukraine
The Netherlands

Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania and Moldova please thank each other! And Belgium making it? Wow.

Pff... poor Natália and Hannah... I'm sad but since the 2011 thing with Dana these things don't affect me that much anymore...

Let's forget about the results for a while. The opening was good. I've seen it live in Melodifestivalen's final. Petra Mede was awesome! Even though I felt like she's trying too much to have a good english accent. I don't think she needs to do that. But she was awesome! The best hostess! Loved the video with the old entries! Lynda Woodruff! Simply amAYzyiiing! The interval act was boring. I wasn't really paying attention. And the australian video was also nice. I think that was all right?

Austria... :( sLOVEnia... :(

ESC 2013 - Semi-final 1

Less than one hour before the first semi (yay!) and it's time to guess the 10 finalists! So it's just a quick post.

First Semi-Final

1. Austria
2. Estonia
3. Slovenia
4. Croatia
5. Denmark
6. Russia
7. Ukraine
8. The Netherlands
9. Montenegro
10. Lithuania
11. Belarus
12. Moldova
13. Ireland
14. Cyprus
15. Belgium
16. Serbia

So the 10 countries I think that will make it to the final are (random order):

Austria
Denmark
Russia
Ukraine
Belarus
Moldova
Ireland
Serbia
Estonia
Lithuania

The 10 countries I want to see in the final are (random order):

Austria
sLOVEnia
Denmark
Moldova
Serbia
Ireland
The Netherlands
Russia
Ukraine
Belarus

Please people vote for AUSTRIA and SLOVENIA!!!

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

ESC 2013 - Rehearsals Day 2

DAY 2

Montenegro - Who See - "Igranka" (1st rehearsal) 
Astronaut suits? Really? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Ok this is the worst gimmick ever! The song itself was in my bottom 3 this year. Now with this performance it definitely stuck there!

Belgium - Roberto Bellarosa - "Love Kills" (1st rehearsal)
I watched the backstage footage and I thought ok really nice outfits. Then I saw the rehearsal and oh my God! Did the female dancers really have to wear those dresses? The dance routine looks ridiculous.

Belarus - Alyona Lanskaya - "Solayo" (1st rehearsal)
It looks like Alyona didn't wear her stage outfit. We didn't get to see much of the rehearsal so I can't say a lot. I love disco balls (ain't it obvious?) but this one? I don't know...

Moldova - Aliona Moon - "O Mie" (1st rehearsal)
So they took Sabina's gimmick and took it a step forward. Ok... It looks nice and as I said I like Moldova's song this year. The dancers are a bit "off"...

Ireland - Ryan Dolan - "Only Love Survives" (1st rehearsal)
Could the dancers be more gay? No, it's not a bad thing. I'm just pointing it out. I love Ryan's outfit and the song is growing on me. I still find it a bit repetitive and in this case, this repetitiveness is a bit annoying.

Cyprus - Despina Olympiou - "An Me Thimase" (1st rehearsal)
I'm not a fan of this kind of dress. Pastora Soler wore a similar dress during her tour and I really disliked it but ok, Despina's is much better. She's alone on stage (at least it looks like it) and correct me if I'm wrong but the last time a Cypriot was alone on stage was in 2004... ;) Naah, the song isn't as good as "Stronger Every Minute".

Lithuania - Andrius Pojavis - "Something" (1st rehearsal)
First thing I noticed, the camera is following him! Oh God! Why do we have to see those close-ups? His facial expressions=irritating!! His outfit looks identical to the one he wore in the NF which is nothing wow. Oh and yeah, I still find nothing likeable in the song.

Serbia - Moje 3 - "Ljubav Je Svuda" (1st rehearsal)
Oh my God!! Please bring back the NF outfits!!!! These are horrible!! I love the song but these outfits? H O R R I B L E ! ! ! I liked the vocals but I'm still in shock!! Change the outfits! Just change them!!!

ESC 2013 - Reviewing the countries beginning with "I"

Iceland sends Eythor Ingi with the song "Ég Á Líf" written by Örlygur Smári and Pétur Örn Gudmundsson.
Once again, Iceland has the best preview video. A beautiful song but unfortunately it's not one of my favourites. It's somewhere in my top 20 I guess. Kudos though for keeping it in icelandic. This is a huge bonus! I just wish they were wise enough to send "Mundu Eftir Mér" in icelandic last year...
Iceland competes in the 2nd semi-final with running order #8.

5pts from me and good luck to Iceland!

Ireland sends Ryan Dolan with the song "Only Love Survives" written by Wez Devine and Ryan Dolan.
I don't know when was the last time Ireland sent such a good entry. It's not amazing. I'm just comparing it with their previous entries so yeah. This is great! Too much "love" though...
Ireland competes in the 1st semi-final with running order #13.

5pts from me and good luck to Ireland!

Israel sends Moran Mazor with the song "Rak Bishvilo" written by Han Harari and Gal Sarig.

Love it! Classic israeli ballad. They're the masters on such songs! Yeah Moran wasn't my winner. Kathleen was but she withdrew. However I don't see this going as expected. Moran's styling is horrible! They seriously need to get rid of her stylists! She's only 22 and they make her look like 40+! And not only in KDAM! We all know that the styling and performance have an impact on the song's final placing!

Israel competes in the 2nd semi-final with running order #10.

10pts from me and good luck to Israel! 

Italy sends Marco Mengoni with the song "L'Essenziale" written by Francesco De Benedittis, Roberto Casalino and Marco Mengoni.
My first impression was good. After that it started growing out of me and now I just find it ok. I've listened to better songs by Marco...
Italy competes in the final. Running order TBA.

5pts from me and good luck to Italy! 

ESC 2012 - Semi-final 1 - Running order for the 10 finalists

Ok here is the list of the 10 finalists and their running order on Saturday!

Romania 14
Moldova 26
Iceland 7
Hungary 2
Denmark 15
Albania 3
Cyprus 8
Greece 16
Russia 6
Ireland 23

Lucky Moldova!!! So lucky! Ok draw for Romania. Good for Greece. That #6 for Russia I hope it's enough to stop them from placing high. I loved their performance tonight but they can't win! Hungary and Albania, bad draws. Iceland and Cyprus, not good. And damn Ireland! But you know what? Loreen will pick #24 muahahaha!

ESC 2012 - Rehearsals Day 6

Day 6!

Russia - Buranovskiye Babushki - Party For Everybody (2nd rehearsal)
Ok seriously 12 points to the cute granny!!! :D And check the camera work at 2:10! Close up on the cute granny for a few seconds! Oh that's gonna get them lots of votes! Lol at the oven! Hahaha They're "baking" cookies or something for the party? Hahahahaha This is so fun to watch!!

Hungary - Compact Disco - Sound Of Our Hearts (2nd rehearsal)
I start to believe that this is not enough to send them to the final. Personally I like the song but there's nothing special on stage so it will be really hard for Hungary this year...

Austria - Trackshittaz - Woki Mit Deim Popo (2nd rehearsal)
Ah can you imagine Sweden sending Danny? How many light effects would we have? Those guys are entertaining. I don't listen to the song at all but if I'm watching the performance at the same time it's ok. I don't see a place in the final for them though.

Moldova - Pasha Parfeny - Lăutar (2nd rehearsal)
Ridiculous! Just ridiculous choreo! And Pasha is wearing the same pants as in the first rehearsal... hm... I wonder why... Anyway, I don't see this in the final but who knows.

Ireland - Jedward - Waterline (2nd rehearsal)
I'll say it again! Same as last year! No changes! Their singing is still below average, they still jump around like crazy and that's all. Ah yes! We have the water! Too bad Eric Saade already used it two years ago! And it's obvious they will take a shower but that will happen in the dress rehearsal. I hope I won't see you in the final Jedward!

Serbia - Željko Joksimović - Nije Ljubav Stvar (2nd rehearsal)
Great rehearsal for Serbia! I don't have a lot to say here. Željko is an amazing artist! He'll do great! Totally in the final despite the running order.

FYROM - Kaliopi - Crno I Belo (1st rehearsal)
Annoying once again. Sorry I guess it's my taste. It was a solid performance but I can't stand it. 

The Netherlands - Joan Franka You And Me (2nd rehearsal) 
The wild west... Why didn't they light the fire today? Ok vocals but no final for the Netherlands. 

Malta - Kurt Calleja - This Is The Night (2nd rehearsal) 
Nice second reheasal for Malta! I like the backdrop, Kurt sounded nice but I still don't like the DJ/dancer back there. It's a tough one for Malta.

Belarus - Litesound - We Are The Heroes (2nd rehearsal) 
I like the gravity trick! We've seen it already but it doesn't matter. I like their clothes but in an interview they said they will wear the same outfits as in the belarussian NF. Please don't do it! You're singing the electro pop version and you'll wear those outfits? Stop ruining your chances Belarus! :(

Portugal - Filipa Sousa - Vida Minha (2nd rehearsal) 
Hm she's barefoot... Is this how she'll perform on Tuesday? Is this the dress? I don't think so and I hope it's not. I don't like it. I like the backdrop and Filipa's voice. But the song is not my cup of tea. The positive thing is that Portugal sends traditional music and I love that in ESC! :)

Ukraine - Gaitana - Be My Guest (2nd rehearsal) 
This looks like a circus at times. Dancers' clothes are horrible. And I don't like the live performance of Gaitana. She has a strong voice but I don't like what I hear. However this version of the song is a bit better...

Bulgaria - Sofi Marinova - Love Unlimited (2nd rehearsal) 
Why Sofi? Why are you alone on stage with a song like this? It's gonna cost you the final! My fourth favourite song of the contest won't make it to the final! :( Vocally she was great! But damn that one woman show!  


That's it for today! Tomorrow's the big day!!! It's Spain's first rehearsal!!!!! :D Yay! Finally!! Go Pastora!! 

ESC 2012 - Rehearsals Day 2

Day 2!!

Israel - Izabo - Time (1st rehearsal)
Simple performance for Israel. I like the backing vocalists! Hahaha  Izabo's vocals were good even though there was something wrong with Shiri's vocals. Or her mic sound I don't know. But ok it's the first rehearsal. Hope to see them in the final!

San Marino - Valentina Monetta - The Social Network Song (1st rehearsal)
I'm sorry! Really! I'm sitting here watching San Marino's rehearsal and all I can say is "SERIOUSLY?". Seriously San Marino? Cameras, iPads, laptops... Seriously? This is horrible. Just horrible! No way you're gonna see the final! Thank God!

Cyprus - Ivi Adamou - La La Love (1st rehearsal)
Ok the choreo is kinda silly in some parts. But I love the song and overall it's gonna look great on tv. But what's with the table made of books? I have some thoughts on that but I will wait for the second rehearsal. Just now it seems out of place. Ivi was ok vocally. I said it before, I don't like her. At all. But I see Cyprus in the final and I want Cyprus in the final and they deserve a place in the final! So, Cyprus is in the final! :P

Denmark - Soluna Samay - Should've Known Better (1st rehearsal)
First negative point, the clothes! Come on Soluna? Why on earth did you wear the same outfit? I've got nothing against wearing the same clothes as in the NF. For example I would love Pastora Soler to wear the dress of the 1st performance of "Quédate Conmigo". But Soluna's outfit is really bad! I hope they find something better even though I doubt it. Vocally she was good. I love the song and I want Denmark in the final! They deserve it!

Russia - Buranovskiye Babushki - Party For Everybody (1st rehearsal)
Ahahahaha that made me happy! Yay for the cute granny! For the last few weeks I got tired of the song but watching the grannies at the same time is totally fine! The same performance as in NF but it's gonna work! I'm sure they will make it to the final but that's it! No top 10 please. There are much better songs.

Hungary - Compact Disco - Sound Of Our Hearts (1st rehearsal)
Solid rehearsal and really good vocals for Hungary! But it's simple and I don't know if they're gonna make it. I want them in the final but I think it will be hard...

Austria - Trackshittaz - Woki Mit Deim Popo (1st rehearsal)
Hm.. ok... I don't know... I'm not that bored watching this. It's not the worst song but it's not my cup of tea. And I definitely don't see them in the final.

Moldova - Pasha Parfeny - Lăutar (1st rehearsal)
Pff the same ridiculous choreography! It's really bad! And I don't like the song. Pasha was good vocally but that's not enough. No final for Moldova this year.

Ireland - Jedward - Waterline (1st rehearsal)
Wait did I watch 2011's rehearsal? Oh yes yes. It's 2012! Sorry it's just that they're almost identical. Seriously they can't do anything else other than jumping around! And that makes the viewers stressed! Vocally they were ok. Nothing much there. But the song is worse than "Lipstick" so my guess is that they will make it to the final but they will end up around 15th or something and they should! There are so many better songs than "Waterline"!

ESC 2012 - Reviewing the countries beginning with "I"

Iceland sends Greta Salóme and Jónsi with the song "Never Forget" written by Greta Salóme Stefánsdóttir.
What can I say here? If you're a regular reader you know the story... :/ I so miss the icelandic version! I have to admit it though, the english chorus is addictive and easy to remember and sing along. But the song lost its magic the moment they translated it. Nothing more to say here. Just that Iceland has the best preview video of 2012. Oh yes! I gave 10pts to the original version.
Iceland competes in the 1st semi-final with running order #3.

7pts from me and good luck to Iceland!

Ireland sends Jedward with the song "Waterline" written by Nick Jarl and Sharon Vaughn.
"Lipstick" was my guilty pleasure last year. This year, I don't even see them in the final (yeah I wish!). Ok they'll make it to the final but they'll do worse than last year. Anyway to comment the song, I don't like it. I find it below the average and their choreography is almost identical to last year's. Can't they do anything else apart from jumping around?
Ireland competes in the 1st semi-final with running order #18.

1pt from me and good luck to Ireland!

Israel sends Izabo with the song "Time" written by Ran Shem Tov and Shiri Hadar.

I would give anything to send Maya Buskila's "Ahava Acheret"! Anything! Don't get me wrong. I like "Time" a lot! But this year Maya had a top 3 song! But we can't do anything now. As I said I like "Time". It's something totally different this year and I like that Israel sends Izabo. I love the music of the song! It's so great! Israel is my dark horse this year.

Israel competes in the 1st semi-final with running order #10.

8pts from me and good luck to Israel! 

Italy sends Nina Zilli with the song "L'Amore È Femmina (Out Of Love)" written by Kristoffer Sjokvist, Charlie Mason, Frida Molander, Nina Zilli and Christian Rabb.
Another song ruined by the english language! Imo anyway. English is my favourite language but when it comes to eurosongs I prefere the original versions. The plus here is that they keep some parts in italian and that's good. I love the song! (the original version) I'm probably one of the very few that prefer this over "Per Sempre". I find "Per Sempre" really forgettable and indifferent. 10pts to the original version of "L'Amore È Femmina"!
Italy competes in the final with running order #10.

7pts from me and good luck to Italy! 

EDIT: I feel quite embarrassed coz I forgot to review Italy's song! I'm sorry guys! I missed the flag!

ESC 2012 - Jedward to make a comeback?

The duo’s manager Louis Walsh said that he would strongly consider re-entering the twins into the 2012 Eurovision in Azerbaijan, the Irish Independent reports. “Ireland could definitely win Eurovision again and we might do it next year with Jedward. I think after what happened this year, Jedward would do incredibly well in Eurovision 2012,” Walsh told the newspaper.

Source thedailyedge.thejournal.ie

Oh God please no! Not them again!! Ok I told you before I enjoyed their performance but not again! They'll be even more annoying! Duh! Ireland did good after many years and because the Jedward recipe worked they wanna go with it again. Well find someone else! I'm sure you got better artists than Jedward!

I hope at least they get some tips from Dana before they come back! *shifty*

 

ESC 2011 - Rehearsals Day 8

The 2nd rehearsal of Slovenia, Romania, Estonia, Belarus, Latvia, Denmark and Ireland.
Also the 2nd rehearsal for the Big 5: France, Italy, United Kingdom, Germany and Spain.

Slovenia’s 2nd rehearsal: Serisously what can I say about Maja? She's fantastic! One of the best voices this year and she knows how to sing live. And she said she would wear the dress from the 1st rehearsal in the semi... I don't really like it. I would prefer something like the one she wore in the NF. It would fit the song better.

Romania’s 2nd rehearsal: Really nice rehearsal for Romania. I still don't like the girls with the trumpets but I like the song. And I like their clothes.

Estonia’s 2nd rehearsal: Nah that wasn't a good rehearsal. Getter and the backing vocalists sounded bad... The choreo is kinda messy and the song is nothing special. I love the rhythm of the chorus but that's all.

Belarus’ 2nd rehearsal: Good rehearsal but I don't really like the song. I liked their clothes though.

Latvia’s 2nd rehearsal: OK one more listening and it enters my top 10 kicking out Sweden or UK! This grew on me a lot! And I really like their performance. It's not something special but I like it!

Denmark’s 2nd rehearsal: I like the song, I like the performance I hate the shirt! Come on! This is really bad! Vocally was great.

Ireland’s 2nd rehearsal: They are annoying! So annoying! But damn I like watching their performance! Guilty pleasure! Hahaha And the song stucks on your mind... I am almost sure we will see them in the final. Well ok I can (almost) live with that but they ain't gonna win!

France’s 2nd rehearsal: He's got a great voice but as I said I don't like the song. Why such a hype? Why? And please someone cut his hair! And I noticed that he's sweating a lot... That won't look good on tv...

Italy’s 2nd rehearsal: I dislike Raphael. This will sound so crazy but I dislike him because he reminds me of a classmate I had in school and he was a jerk! Anyway, his rehearsal was fine but I don't like the song. And the music hurts my ears... Sorry Italy!

United Kingdom’s 2nd rehearsal: Much better rehearsal for Blue! And couldn't they wear these clothes in the final? At least this style? It's better. The 4 screens behind them are really distracting and I still don't like this version of the song. There aren't many differences but I prefer the first one.

Germany’s 2nd rehearsal: Better than yesterday but I still thing she can't sing live. She's not bad but she doesn't sound good to my ears. And I like that outfit too.

 

Spain’s 2nd rehearsal: Oh I so love this!!! Go Lucía! Great rehearsal! And I like her dress. But I'd like the dancers wearing only the shirts... Anyway Spain has to finish in top 10 this year!