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! 

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Rehearsals of the third semi

Yeah I didn't blog about the results of the 2nd semi but you already know what happened. I'm so glad Sanna made it to the final! I liked Panetoz, Martin was ok even though I expected him to be the second finalist and JEM were also good. And big "thanks" to Sean Banan for ruining a true classic. -.- Herreys were great as always! Met them after the semi! :)

So, rehearsals of the third semi!

Outtrigger - Echo
Good news, it's the first song we're gonna hear. Bad news, everything else! I don't think I can listen to the entire song. Unfortunately, I will have to.

EKO - Red
Yeah after "Echo" anything else sounds so much better! But I don't know about this one... It's ok but I can't tell a lot from that one minute.

Oscar Zia - Yes We Can
I don't think I will ever become a fan of every cute boy that attracts all the teen girls... Oscar is not bad. His voice is nothing special. The song is ok-ish. Semi 3 isn't looking that promising so far...

Shirley Clamp - Burning Alive
No! No Shirley! What happened to schlager-Shirley? Where is she? Bring her back! I need to listen to the entire song before I can say something more but I was expecting something else. :(

State Of Drama - All We Are
Just like those hundreds American bands who are playing at college parties. There's nothing special about the song. It feels like we've heard it so many times before...

CajsaStina Åkerström – En Enkel Sång 
I got bored! So bored! Snoozefest! Enough said! 

Ace Wilder - Busy Doin' Nothing  
Another song that escaped from the States and made it to Sweden. What on earth is going on in that semi?! 

Dr Alban & Jessica Folcker - Around The World  
I found a song I kinda like but I'm not crazy about it. 

Yeah, definitely the worst semi! I have no idea what's gonna happen! 

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Rehearsals of the second semi

So, rehearsals of semi two!

JEM - Love Trigger
I think I like the song but their voices are so indifferent and bland. There's nothing special about JEM. Not when they perform "Love Trigger" at least...

The Refreshments - Hallelujah
No, definitely not my cup of tea. This would be the perfect toilet break but I never do that while Melodifestivalen or Eurovision is on. So it's gonna be really boring for me. It's good to have diversity in the contest but at least give us some good songs of each genre.

Manda - Glow
I think I like this... It's really nothing special but ok... I can see it making it to andra chansen. 

Panetoz - Efter Solsken
Ok... Just ok. Enjoyable song but it can't make it that far I'm afraid...

Pink Pistols - I Am Somebody
Now you can't have a mello without a drag act right? Ah sure you can but still... I actually like the chorus quite a lot but generally it's not a song I'd listen to outside the mello bubble.

Sanna Nielsen - Undo
Ladies and gentlemen here is our first finalist! There's something in the chorus that kinda bugs me but the verses are amazing! At least what we've heard so far! It's not an "Empty Room" but it's really good!

Little Great Things - Set Yourself Free
I wasn't expecting that kind of song by Little Great Things! I was expecting a teen pop or something. Well I hadn't read or heard any of their comments on the song or the music they do. The song is actually ok but not my thing.

Martin Stenmarck - När Änglarna Går Hem
Thank you Martin for not entering with something like "Las Vegas"! This is so much better! I like it! It's really a Martin Stenmarck song!

Well it looks like that Sanna and Martin will sail to the final without a problem. But hey! It's the Swedish who vote here! ;) And finally February 8th is here! Well almost here! First row for me in the live tomorrow! :D

Melodifestivalen 2014 - First semi - Results

Photo: Lindwall Sven

I don't know what's wrong with me this year... :S The truth is that there is a lot of work to do with Paparizou's interviews. I need to translate them from Swedish to Greek for the official fan club. I had promised a post about Friday's dress rehearsal but I got back home at 3am, slept at 5am and was at work from 11am to 7pm so there was no point and no time to blog about it. Anyway...

Oh Sweden... You never get it right (except for 2012). To the final made it Ellen Benediktson ("Songbird") and Yohio ("To The End Of The World"). Really? Ok Yohio's place to the final was more than expected but Ellen? The song is too boring for my taste.

To andra chansen we have Helena Paparizou ("Survivor") and Linus Svenning ("Bröder"). Are you deaf Sweden? What on earth is Helena doing in andra chansen? She should have easily sailed to the final! By far the best song, vocals and performance! I don't get how you guys are thinking when it comes to voting! Linus was fine. I still don't like the song but whatever.

5. Elisa Lindström – ”Casanova”
6. Alvaro Estrella – ”Bedroom”
7. Mahan Moin – ”Aleo”
8. Sylvester Schlegel – ”Bygdens son”

What is Alvaro doing in the 6th place? The catchiest song of the night. Yes, pretty bad lyrics but the melody is catchy as hell! Had "Bedroom" been sung by a guy like Saade or Ewald, it would have been to the final before we even got to listen to it!

My ideal results would have been like this: Helena and Alvaro to Friends, Elisa and Mahan to andra chansen.

The rest of the night was ok. I liked the intro and there were some funny moments. Nour seemed to be very nervous during the entire evening. I don't know if it was because of the first dress rehearsal on Friday coz they had a lot of technical problems! But they should have fixed them in the second dress rehearsal on Saturday...

Let's see what will happen this week. Hopefully I will blog about it later tonight...

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Rehearsals of the first semi

I'm so unfaithful to my blog this year... And it's gonna be a hectic mello for me!

Rehearsal-day today and we have officially kicked off! All the rehearsals' clips are here.

Yohio - To The End
Yohio is so freaking fake. On everything. It's all about the image. Without it he's really nothing special. The song is average. It has nothing to do with his Japan material and yes, this might be Melodifestivalen but shouldn't he stay true to "his music"? Hopefully I won't see him in Friends Arena.

Mahan Moin - Aleo
Hm... ok... I don't know. Not a big fun of it... Sometimes I find some vocals annoying, sometimes I don't. It's a 50-50 for that 1 minute.

Linus Svenning - Bröder
It's really hard when you lose a family member. But I'm sorry. I think it's too much putting all these photos on the LED screens. People should vote for the song itself and not for story behind the song. I don't like it.

Elisa Lindström - Casanova
Schlager-ish but kinda old-ish too. It's fun but that's all. I won't get bored though. That's for sure.

Alvaro Estrella - Bedroom
I like it! Great music! But I'm not a big fan of the lyrics... And I wonder if he will able to pull it live...

Ellen Benediktson - Songbird
Nope. Not my cup of tea. I'm not a ballad fan unless it's a super wow ballad. Don't like this.

Sylvester Schlegel - Bygdens Son
Hey there 8th place! On my ranking at least!

Helena Paparizou - Survivor
How can I be objective here? "Objective"... that word doesn't exist in my vocabulary! Helena to Friends Arena! Now! The song is amazing! Smash hit! Can't wait until tomorrow! Love it love it love it! The more I listen to it the more I love it!

I'm off to Malmö for the general rehearsal. Once again! And it's Helena's birthday after all. How could I not be there? There will be a full post about this just like last year but I don't know when...

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Running order revealed

Earlier today, SVT announced the running order of the Melodifestivalen 2014 contestants.

Semi-final 1: Malmö 1/2
1. ”To the End” - Yohio
2. ”Aleo” - Mahan Moin
3. ”Bröder” - Linus Svenning
4. ”Casanova” - Elisa Lindström
5. ”Bedroom” - Alvaro Estrella
6. ”Songbird” - Ellen Benediktson
7. ”Bygdens son” - Sylvester Schlegel
8. ”Survivor” - Helena Paparizou

Semi-final 2: Linköping 8/2
1. ”Love Trigger” - JEM
2. ”Hallelujah” - The Refreshments
3. ”Glow” - Manda
4. ”Efter solsken” - Panetoz
5. ”I Am Somebody” - Pink Pistols
6. ”Undo” - Sanna Nielsen
7. ”Set Yourself Free” - Little Great Things
8. ”När änglarna går hem” - Martin Stenmarck

Semi-final 3: Göteborg 15/2
1. ”Echo” - Outtrigger
2. ”Red” - EKO
3. ”Yes We Can” - Oscar Zia
4. ”Burning Alive” - Shirley Clamp
5. ”All We Are” - State of Drama
6. ”En enkel sång” - CajsaStina Åkerström
7. ”Busy Doin’ Nothin’” - Ace Wilder
8. ”Around the World” - dr. alban & Jessica Folcker

Semi-final 4: Örnsköldsvik 22/2
1. ”Blame It On The Disco” - Alcazar
2. ”Fight Me If You Dare” - I.D.A
3. ”Hollow” - Janet Leon
4. ”Raise Your Hands” - Ammotrack
5. ”Hela natten” - Josef Johansson
6. ”Ta mig” - Linda Bengtzing
7. ”En himmelsk sång” - Ellinore Holmer
8. ”Natural” - Anton Ewald

Just two comments. Helena Paparizou performs last in her semi. Alcazar perform first in their semi. Someone wants them in the final... ;)

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! ;)