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mr-no-life · 2 years

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Eurovision 2022 Review

Ahh Eurovision, that time of year where we in the States realize that we can not have anything nice. This is the first year I listened to all the songs for the Simi-Finals witch has been made easier thanks to the official Youtube channel showing the music videos, it made doing this write up A LOT easier. It still does not change the fact that here in America it costs an arm and a leg just to see the live shows… Now, I will not be grading this the way they do in the actual contest, I will be using simple 1-5 scale for each song and highlight what I like about each one. All opinions are personal and are by no means professional in any means.

First Simi-Final (aired 10/May/22 written same day):

Sekret by: Ronela Hajati (Albania) 4/5

I did not know what to expect from Albania, but it was not this. I do not believe I have heard a female artist have such a diverse vocal range like this, and it is freaking awesome. The fluid transition between English and Albanian lyrics is quiet a nice touch on top of the instrumentation and how you can almost follow the song from beginning to end and is not all over the place. This has the potential to gain some good traction post Eurovision and rivals some American artist in this genre.

Eat Your Salad by: Citi Zēni (Latvia)- 5/5*

By far one of the funnier songs I have listened to so far. I feel like this was all a metaphor for wanting to have sex with someone all in the disguise of explaining how to solve a real-world issue. The jazzy/pop vibes this gives off is awesome and it just sounds so smooth like, I can not think of the right words to describe this. In some cases, saxophones are a nightmare because they are either too quiet or too loud. Not here, it is mixed perfectly in with the rest of the song, and nothing seems like it is out of place. A beautiful song and one of my favorites of the first Simi-Final so far.

Sentimetai by: Monkia Liu (Lithuania) - 4/5

To me this sounds like something that would be in a modern French Noir film. The overall rhythm and flow of the song is smooth, and everything is in place where it is supposed to be. A nice snazzy beat accompanied with simple yet dynamic vocals just goes to show that simple is sometimes better.

Boys Do Cry by: Marius Bear (Switzerland) - 4.5/5

It takes a lot for a song to make me cry. But this song (and the music video that goes with it) almost made me cry (got teary eyed not going to lie). Any song that can drive such strong emotions with a simplistic instrumentation has the most respect in my book. The lyrics do a splendid job in breaking down the stereotype that “men/boys do not cry” when in fact they do. “And sometimes airplanes, fall down from the sky, and mountains they crumble, and rivers they run dry…” all examples of things that we normally think are strong and can not break but they do. The societal norm of “the man shows no emotion” is broken down in this song and shows how it is okay to cry when you feel like you have to.

Disko by: LPS (Slovenia) – 3.5/5

I like this song; it has good flow and rhythm. But I feel like it is missing something, and I do not know what. This lands me in a tricky spot because I like the song, but it is missing that one thing to really give it that special touch. I do hope Slovenia dose well this year because I am willing to bet most of us forget that they exist (and this is not me hating on them I genially do forget they are a country in Europe).

Stefania by: Kalush Orchestra (Ukraine) – 4/5

For starters I think it is amazing that Ukraine is in this year despite current geopolitical situations (at the time of this writing). I think not only singing in their native language (witch not saying singing in English makes a song good/bad, but I think it is a nice touch) added a lot of character in this song. The song is a tribute to the lead singer’s mother (witch to be honest made me want to cry because it is another nice touch). What stands out the most to me is that you do not see a lot of Rap songs in Eurovision, especially rap songs that draw influence from traditional folk as well. The fact that a Rap song made it this far is amazing and I hope to see more of this moving forward.

Intention by: Intelligent Music Project (Bulgaria) - 5/5*

A slight bias for this one. I am big fan of the rock/metal genre, and this is now one of my new favorite rock songs so far (we still have a lot more to go). This gave me strong early Bon Jovi mixed with Foo Fighters vibes and I am loving it. Clean instrumentation and solid song flow, another one of my favorites right up there with Latvia’s submission.

De Diepte by: S10 (Netherlands) - 4.5/5

Where do I start? To be transparent, I am a fan of slow(ish) songs in a non-English language (Dutch in this case). When reading the English lyrics while listening to the song, the song paints a striking narrative of when a relationship turns sour, and you cannot seem to shake the feeling of them out of your head (at least that is how I took it). The overall tone of the song is sad yes, but it is well put together and is by far one of my favorite Dutch based songs I have listed to.

Trenuleţul By: Zdob și Zdub (Moldova) – 4/5

Shoutout to Youtube for having English lyrics on hand because I do not know what I listened to, but it was pretty great. According to some research I have done, this is not the band’s first rodeo with Eurovision (this is there third go around) (just a fun little fact). This is a prime example of how music can highlight a country’s culture just from instrumentation alone. The energetic nature of this song makes it almost binge worthy to listen to. Definitely a song that I think is an acquired taste for some (at least of the American listener, the style is not seen as much in mainstream America), but it is overall a very pleasant listening experience

Saudade, Saudade by: MARO (Portugal) – 4/5

A quaint little song. I think this benefits being a mainly vocal heavy song with not a heavy focus on the instrumentals. I do not have much to talk about outside of that, it’s mixed well, and I think that this represents Portugal quite nicely.

Guilty Pleasure by: Mia Dimšić (Croatia) – 3/5

I hate to say this, but the song sounds good but is low key generic. I know that seems like an odd term to use (especially with the current music scene), but to me it sounds like a lot of other similar songs in the genre and dose not really stand out. Like I said, it sounds good, mixed well, but that is about it really.

The Show by: REDDI (Denmark) – 4.5/5

Right out the gate, starting with a piano solo that kind of sounds like Creep threw me off for a bit, but then the smash cut to high energy and a faster tempo was executed PERFECTLY. I think there needs to be more female rock artists that need this level of publicity and attention because it is clear as glass that they can keep up the energy and tempo of a male dominated genre (and industry as a whole).

Halo by: Pia Maria ft. LUM!X (Austria) - 3/5

I do not have much to say in all honesty, a little generic sounding but has a nice solid rhythm that is easy to track and is not overbearing. As mentioned with Croatia’s submission, it is hard to say when something sounds generic, but at the same time when you pick up on it you can’t shake it. It’s a well-made song and I think this a strong submission for Austria.

Með Hækkandi Sól by: Systur (Iceland) – 5/5*

This is the track that gave me the idea for this in the first place. I absolutely love this song, from the instrument arrangement to the vocals it is an all-around amazing piece. If I could vote in the official Eurovision contest, I would put the max number of points (witch I think is twelve) on this song. I know it sounds like I am being bias and gushy about this, but it is hard not to be in all honesty.

Die Together by: Amanda Georgiadi Tenfjord (Greece) – 4/5

A solid little banger in all honesty. Beautiful vocals accompanied by a decent mix of a drum kit and an orchestral arrangement. When mixed together you get a song that surprisingly feels really dynamic both technically and lyrically.

Give that Wolf a Banana by: Subwoolfer (Norway) – ?

Umm… All I can say is... What the fuck did I listen to? I guess there is always that one song that makes you question your existence as not only a human but a music lover, this is that song. Now, it’s made well do not give me wrong, but shortly after listening to this song my brain decided to shut down from the confusion. I do not know how to even rank this song because I am genially disturbed by what happened. Props for Norway for letting the freak flag fly and showing the world that “Zero Fucks, caution to the wind.” Joking aside, I am glad Norway went with something like this, because this is what Art and Music is all about. It does not have to make sense to the audience, if a select group of people like it, then there you go.

Snap by: Rosa Linn (Armenia) – 4/5

This gives me big Florence + The Machine vibes and I dig it. It is amazing what an acoustic guitar and a drum arrangement can do for a song (and I mean that in a good way). I think this puts Armenia (a country that I did not know was apart of the Soviet Union at one point) on the map musically quite nicely and I hope for the best.

First Simi-Final conclusion:

Wow. All these songs sounded amazing for assorted reasons, and it was almost hard at times to put to words. From the wide diversity of genres to the gender representation, this is by far an excellent showcase of what it means to make Music. But overall, I would rate the first batch of songs a 4/5. There were some solid bangers, some songs that were almost there, and only a couple I felt like were not there for me.

Top Three:

Með Hækkandi Sól by: Systur (Iceland)

Intention by: Intelligent Music Project (Bulgaria)

Eat Your Salad by: Citi Zēni (Latvia)

Second Simi-Final (aired 12/May/2022 Written 13/May/2022

** Editor’s note these reviews were written over the period of both Simi-Finals and the Grand Final, so my reviews and predictions are made ahead of the official release (this will be addressed towards the end) **

Jezebel by: The Rasmus (Finland) – 4/5

This gives me strong mid-2000s rock vibes, and I dig it. Not going to lie the opining lyrics caught me off guard (but at this point after Latvia I’m used to it) but the overall lyrics were pretty solid. This is about what I expected for a Finnish submission, and I hope for the best moving forward.

** Editor’s note, the following submissions I pretty much had the same ratting and thoughts about them.**

The following Submissions I rated 3/5 due to there over all generic sounding nature. They sounded good and were mixed good but were over all just bland.

I.M by: Michael Ben David (Israel)

I am Honestly Surprised they are here anyway in all honesty

I Am What I Am by: Emma Muscat (Malta)

It sounded a bit corny and a bit repetitive

Would make for a grate back track to an advertisement

Stripper by: Achille Lauro (San Marino)

Started strong but fell flat quick

Very on key with Italy’s 2021 Submission (witch I liked)

That’s Ritch by: Brooke (Ireland)

A bit disappointing considering the music scene in Ireland

Circles by: Andrea (North Macedonia)

Points for at least making it this far

Llámame by: WRS (Romania)

Points for the Romania lyrics sprinkled in

Very Latin inspired (and that is awesome)

(Like San Marino) Started strong and fell flat quickly

Miss You by: Jérémine Makiese (Belgium)

Very early Chris Brown mixed with Usher

Excellent vocal range

Painfully generic R&B instrumentation

In Corpore Sano by: Konstrakta (Serbia) – 5/5*

This whole song oozes Lady Gaga and it WORKS. From the vocals to the rhythm, it flows like melted butter in your ears. This is also another prime example on how non-English vocals can make a song just pop. One key lyric that stood out to me (when translated to English) would have to be, “A sick mind in a healthy body.” This song really dose highlight how we as people are so focused on how our body looks and we do not give much of a care to how we feel or think.

Fade to Black by: Nadir Rustamli (Azerbaijan) – 4/5

This would honestly do great on U.S markets (and that can be a good or bad thing, take your pick. This song also doses a surprisingly little trick where it has a subtle tempo increase but you do not feel as if you are being left behind (as I personally feel a lot of songs in this genre do). Being able to carry your vocal through a song and not tapper out towards is quite the feat (so props to him and who ever mixed this song because it is great).

Lock Me in by: Circus Mircus (Georgia)– 5/5*

This is by far one of the more unique songs of the submissions today. A nice little funky tune that its simplistic nature sculpts its own fashion. It is almost hard to put this into words about how this song’s odd quirky nature. If you would have told me that this is from a country that most people get confused with a U.S state I would honestly not believe you, and I am eager to listen to more of them.

Not The Same by: Sheldon Riley (Australia) - 4/5

Okay, for starters, I (like many others) am wondering why Australia is here. But none the less I think this is a solid track. His delivery is very Adel like, and it is hard not to hear it as such. Having heard the live version, I do not think I have heard many male singers have this sort of range (at least in a live setting) and it really helps pull the song together.

Ela by: Andromache (Cyprus) – 4/5

Right out the gate this song is almost harmonious in the balance of Mediterranean and modern instruments and that makes this song slap. This is only further supported by the stylistic choice of the English to non-English mid-sentence. Fun little fact, she is named (or her stage name) is based off of Greek Mythology (I thought it was a nice touch).

Hope by: Stefan (Estonia) – 4/5

Once again, we find ourselves on the verge of a generic track. This time it is saved with the fact that it has a nice little western twang to it. I know I have made a lot of comparisons to other artist through this post, but this time I swear this sounds like an early Avicii style songs and it kind of shows. I would not have guessed this is from Estonia if you played this side by side with other like tracks.

River by: Ochman (Poland) – 4/5

Now, this is interesting. The instruments are nothing really to write home about, in fact I think this would benefit from no drums and more strings (personally) Because I do genially love his vocal range and the natural flow during this song. I feel like it is trying to accomplish to much but somehow still coming out wit ha song that actually makes sense. As I mentioned with several countries, this is an interesting submission from Poland (the fact they are at this point is surprising enough in my opinion).

Breathe by: Vladana (Montenegro) – 4/5

I have noticed a small pattern, the countries we never hear much about have some pretty solid bangers coming out of them (most of the time). Were there are spots in this track that are kind of generic, there are moments in this song were it just carries this track and makes you think “Now why can’t we have more of THIS?” But nevertheless, in short, we have a classic case of very nice and powerful vocals being accompanied by a beautiful instrumentation.

Hold Me Closer by: Cornelia Jakobs (Sweden) – 4/5

So, this almost ended up being added to the “generically bland list” but luckily it didn’t. Something about the vocal presence through this song almost demands attention and to listen. Witch not a lot of singers in this genre manage to pull off now a days. It’s not surprising that the same county that gave us ABBA for Eurovision continues the interesting tradition of having some solid singers/performers.

Lights off by: We are Domi (Czech Republic) – 3.5/5

Hm. This one is tricky, because it dose sound a bit generic not going to lie. But I can not help to get a bit of a Deadmau5 vibe from time to time. Mixed and sounded well, and not bad for a country that not many people see much of now (especially in the music scene). I decent little way to cap today’s line up.

Second Simi-Final conclusion:

Oof. Not as strong as the first, but there were a few solid songs. I hate to say this, but a good portion of these songs just sounded generic, bland, and just not appealing to me. Similar to the first, I appreciate the equal gender representation, but the genres were not as much. Overall, I rate this batch a 3.5/5, some duds, but there are some diamonds in the rough.

Top 3:

Lock Me in by: Circus Mircus (Georgia)

In Corpore Sano by: Konstrakta (Serbia)

Ela by: Andromache (Cyprus)

The Big 5 (France, Germany, Italy (also the host), Spain and the United Kingdom)

I am going to be honest, none of these submissions caught my ear and were all bland (yes despite the attention Space Man (U.K) has gotten.). I honestly think it is kind of weird that these countries get to automatically go the Grand Final, but everyone else has to go through this process. I feel like if you want to have a competition like this, make sure EVERYONE is on the same playing field and being judged the same.

The Grand Final and Final Opinion (aired 14/May/22 written 21/May/22)

** Editor’s note this is written a week after the end of Eurovision.**

Well, after the dust has settled it was announced Ukraine won. I am actually surprised that they won. Geopolitical events aside, they were not my favorite submission, but I did appreciate the cultural touch they added in their work. Having only seen the music videos of each submission I have to say that this was a doozy of an experience. One gripe I have seen over Twitter was the number of slow Ballads that were in the Grand Final, and that is a fair criticism. Moldova and Norway were by far the one that stood out the most and were really in a league of there own from all the submissions (despite how freaking weird Norway was). I think overall this Eurovision was a decent showcase of the wonderful music talents of these countries (even if a bulk of them sounded the same) and I hope moving forward they’ll FINALLY LET THE U.S WATCH IT FOR FREE.

Jokes aside I enjoyed this very much and I hope you all enjoyed reading this impromptu review. Feel free to ask any questions on Twitter or in the DMs here on Tumblr.

#eurovison 2022 #art #audio engineering #audio production #audio music #music #live music #ukraine #song #musical revue

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