217 Technical Difficulties === [00:00:00] Ben: It is an acceptable pop song for the Eurovision Song Contest. Hello, and welcome to the Eurowhat, episode 217, dropping on February 6th, 2024. We are a pair of Americans trying to make sense of the Eurovision Song Contest. I'm Ben Smith, and I'm here with my co host, Mike McComb. Hey, Mike. [00:00:20] Mike: Hello! [00:00:21] Ben: In this episode, we'll be talking about the draw, four national final winners, and previewing Finland's UMK. [00:00:27] The Draw handles the Semi-Final Allocation --- [00:00:27] Mike: Don't you mean, The Draw? I [00:00:32] Ben: it that. And then I watched it. I feel like the UK set, a really high bar for the draw. [00:00:38] Mike: think the problem with trying to make The Draw a thing is that you have to stretch a ten minute process to thirty minutes and that doesn't always work. [00:00:50] Ben: As much as I love the bowls, it is the same thing for, a good seven of those ten minutes. [00:00:57] Mike: Yeah, I was not able to watch live, so I was just like, okay, I just get the results, update spreadsheets, all of that, and I was like, oh, I should tune in, like, when I got home from work, and I got about five minutes in, and then when they got to the, like, person on the street, pre recorded, drawing countries out of the cube or whatever, it's just like, I think I'm good! [00:01:16] Ben: Yeah, yeah, like, they had, like, a few little, like, pre record packages, just, like, I assume just, like, as a nice little setup, Something to put on screen while we make sure that the bowls are all set up and secure and stuff like that. one of them features Will from WeWeBlogs being described in the Chiron as Superfan, which, uh, just, just lists me as Podcaster. [00:01:36] Mike: I think that was actually about the point where I turned off. trying to make it seem like he was just like some rando that they picked out of the blue, and it's just like, mm, [00:01:45] Ben: we, we know who that [00:01:46] Mike: yeah. [00:01:48] Ben: they show up at a lot of national finals, like, on the panel side of things, so like, we know. Having, the visual record and seeing this happening in real time is good, just because we know that the process is nice and clean, but there's just like a real, this could have been an email vibe, compared to last year. [00:02:01] Mike: it made sense last year for BBC to do something, because it really was a case of, yeah, we need to reintroduce you to Eurovision, because a lot of you checked out 25 years ago. And, like, that's not going to be the case in Sweden. [00:02:15] Ben: Let's talk about the results of the draw, so Israel is going to be in semi final two, by request. this is not the first time they've done that, it's an overlap with Independence Day and semi final one. In semifinal one, we have the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Germany voting. the first half will consist of Ukraine, Cyprus, Poland, Serbia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Ireland. And the second half of the show will feature Slovenia, Iceland, Finland, Portugal, Luxembourg, Australia, Azerbaijan, and Moldova. [00:02:45] Mike: Over in semifinal two, Spain, Italy, and France will be participating in the voting, and the first half will include Austria, Malta, Switzerland, Greece, Czechia, Albania, Denmark, and Armenia. the second half will include Israel, Estonia, Georgia, Netherlands, Norway. Latvia, San Marino, and Belgium. There are a number of countries in here that have not made it to the final in a while, and because of math, they stand a good chance of qualifying. I like how this shook out. [00:03:20] Ben: Yes, yeah, like, I think it's going to lead to a very interesting lineup in the grand final. even with where we sit now, where we don't know what a lot of these songs are. [00:03:28] Mike: Lot to look forward to, we finally have some structure, yay. Just waiting on what the actual writing order will be for each of the semifinals, but that's not happening until end of March at the earliest, because we don't know what songs are in play yet. But, we are getting that process underway. This weekend was a super Saturday that kind of snuck up on me, like, to the point where we forgot Latvia! I feel so bad about that! Like, it just completely fell off my calendar, and it was just like, oh, that's happening? Okay, and, uh, yeah, there were seven shows on Saturday, total? it was a very tough Saturday to get through. [00:04:08] VidBir (eventually) selects alyona alyona & Jerry Heil & "Maria & Teresa" --- [00:04:08] Mike: Ukraine did not make that easy. the show started rather early. it was 10 a. m. Chicago time and, Ukraine's process can be very thorough. I think it took about three hours to get through all of the performances and the jury The performances were pre recorded. They did rehearsals on Wednesday and Thursday, and then recorded the show on Friday, and aired the main show on Saturday, and it was going to cut over to live television once the Televote closed. and then the app that was handling the Televote, completely crashed! [00:04:42] Ben: Bless Ukraine for, taking that and then doing, an additional, like, hour, hour and a half in the studio as they try to figure out, do we have a vote, or do we have to, like, postpone this? Because, like, I would have broken out in hives on air. [00:04:52] Mike: What do you do in that situation? Because they can't reveal what the jury voted, because if they had to reopen the televote, which they eventually did, like, you can't have that influencing, how the public is going to vote. So, they went on for about an hour and a half after, the, you Pre taped show ended and then decided, all right, we're going to call it a night. we'll rebroadcast vidbeer and then, keep voting open, up until, uh, like an hour before we started recording this on Sunday. So it was like, uh, 11 a. m. Chicago time. and then just going through the results. that was actually kind of a fun results show, uh, unexpectedly, they opened with. Pointing out that, uh, some people on social media were rather savage about the whole incident, [00:05:33] Ben: just like the, just like, I can't understand any of the memes that are happening, but I also deeply can understand the memes that are happening. [00:05:39] Mike: Yeah, it was a lot of animals in distress, but animals, like, getting cornered by Roombas, like, not in any actual danger, so [00:05:46] Ben: Animals in distress, like, labeled with the, the icon from the app. [00:05:50] Mike: Yeah. and then there was, an extended interview, we think, because, uh, I don't think they had an English feed, uh, of this [00:05:56] Ben: There was not, there was not an English feed today, but just like, as, as a software professional, I know what it looks like when somebody is giving like the, the dev team post mortem to a non technical audience. [00:06:05] Mike: Mm hmm. Yeah, and, uh, yeah, they just had an extended interview with the app team, explaining what happened. I think, again, I, I don't speak Ukrainian, but, you could also see that the contestants Some were more interested in the topic than others. [00:06:20] Ben: Yes. [00:06:22] Mike: Yeah, I don't think Jamala was all into the, uh, tech talk either. But, they, got through that and then, uh, got through the results. Going to Malmo will be Alyona Alyona and Jerry Heil with their song Teresa and Maria. So this is going to be the first time that Ukraine has sent a duo to Eurovision, uh, so that's fun. Both Alyona Alyona and Jerry Heil, they are long time Vidbeer veterans. they've competed several times. they've done tours of the U. S. I think Alyona Alyona was supposed to be at SXSW this year, um, at least she's been on the program there before. so this is, really cool that they're finally getting to go to Eurovision. I was kind of surprised by the results, at least the jury [00:07:23] Ben: Yeah, yeah, the jury results, I thought I knew what was happening and I did not. Even with the English language feed, like, the nature of vidbeer and the thorough vetting of every entry means that you listen to a lot of compliment sandwich critiques. Like to the effect that they're like the type of compliment sandwich that you're not supposed to give of just like, hello, we love your energy, I did not care for the bridge and how the dancers were on stage. Thank you for representing Ukraine! [00:07:48] Mike: yeah, yeah, there was one contestant, uh, I believe Skylar, was receiving a critique from Jamala and, uh, I, I did not get the sense that really anybody on the jury liked the entry and, they finished off the critique with, Oh, but at least you got to experience your dream. It was like, is her dream to be reamed out by Jamala on national television? [00:08:08] Ben: I deeply enjoy the process though, because like, this is, like, every year Ukraine just has like a wealth of, of good entries and interesting entries. [00:08:16] Mike: Yes, yeah, there was such variety, and it really was the case, after the jury, I do not know how this is going to go, because the televote audience, could just be on a completely different wavelength than where I was, and, uh, yeah, it really is anybody's game. Before we recorded today, it's like, you know, I should do the audio polls and I'll pull the ones that I think are going to be potential winners. Did not pill Zifferblatt, which was the winner of the jury. [00:08:47] Ben: There were a few just performance wise that felt very much ready to go to Eurovision for me, like, I, I really liked Melovin's performance, that was a lot of fun. And then like the other one that felt very much, oh, this is what Ukraine sends to Eurovision, was Eliona, Eliona, and Jerry Heil. [00:09:02] Mike: I feel like that one was one of the favorites going in. it was certainly one of my favorites. I really love this pairing. I think it's setting the right tone, I guess? It's, it's so weird. I mean, like, I, I feel like Eurovision has the ability to kind of capture the zeitgeist or like what the moment is. Like, the moment right now is so incredibly bleak, I think the song kind of captures that bleakness, but there is, like, some hope mixed in there as well. [00:09:34] Ben: I would love to see a staging where it feels a little bit more connected, because right now you have Jerry Heil and then you have Elyona Elyona. We have some chocolate and we have some peanut butter, but we have not yet achieved, the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. [00:09:46] Mike: yeah, and that was one of the things that came up in the critique, and like, one of the things that I love about vidbears, like, if they start going into the art direction of the performance, you know that the jury's already in favor of the performance. If it's, uh, like, talking about, like, the vocals, or the bridge, or the lyrics, it's like, okay, that's stuff that really can't be fixed at this point. But when they're just like, no, you need to be in this position and holding the mic this particular way, it's like, oh, okay, they, they're already thinking next steps. [00:10:11] Ben: they're thinking, how can we make this even better instead of, how do we say something nice about this? I really liked the Verka interval act, the Swedish lullaby. [00:10:22] Mike: It got a little repetitive toward the end, but Vrka knows what she's doing, so. [00:10:27] Ben: but also it opens up questions like, why does Virka have a Tony Romo jersey of all things? [00:10:32] Mike: Well, I don't know, Super Bowl's coming up. [00:10:34] Ben: I do now want to see like the, the Virka halftime show immediately. What would they do with that venue? And also, can we just like cut to the audience every so often just like, going, what? [00:10:44] Mike: Yeah. Maybe next year, who [00:10:47] Ben: Maybe next year, yeah. [00:10:49] Mike: That was the show that kicked off on Saturday, even though it did not finish until Sunday. But that does, that is kind of what this weekend felt like, so. [00:10:59] Ben: yeah, like there was, a brief moment where I'm like, I think Spain might be the first place. To name their entry. They, they were not [00:11:05] Gate wins NRK MGP with "Ulveham" --- [00:11:05] Ben: Norway finished up this year's Melody Grand Prix process. . It was a good show. I don't know, I feel like we kind of get surprised every year. [00:11:13] Mike: I think it was a good lineup. As we said in the last episode, the right entries advanced out of the semifinals, so I was not worried about that. I'm not surprised that it came down to Guta and Kano. [00:11:27] Ben: I am also not surprised, like, those two felt like the two that really had the momentum behind them. [00:11:33] Mike: in terms of the performances, that stage really swallowed up a couple of people. Like, I thought it really swallowed up Gothminister. Like, you could tell that there were some performances that were staged for a TV audience, but not an arena show. [00:11:48] Ben: I found how, Judge Tenderly of me just, like, really rang out in the arena really beautifully, and it was nice to see, like, that gain some jury love. One thing to note about this year's process is that the standard split was not 50 50 jury tele vote. They did a 40 60 split, or the, the jury had slightly less weight than the tele vote Overall, it turns out that the televote was just kind of eh about a lot of stuff, because if you look at the numbers, Gaute, which won, their 174 points from the televote was greater than the combined score of every act except for Kano won the jury by 22 points, and I was trying to, trying to figure out the percentages in my head of, like, okay, how much do they need, and it turns out, Gauto won with six points, overall. I'm slightly disappointed that Cano is not getting the nod again, but that performance is really good. I am excited about this, talking about how you, things that feel like they're with the mood is like, this feels different from what we've heard so far in the contest, in a good way, I feel. And like, it, covers a lot of different fanbases. Cause there's like, a little bit of a metal y rock edge to it, you've got like, the folk in the mix, the vocal is really good. The current staging they've got also just feels really dynamic, and like, they can really adapt it to Malmo Arena well. [00:13:15] Mike: The fact that they had to rewrite the song pretty much in a week, maybe they had a little bit more notice. we only knew about it for a week that they would need to rewrite the song, but, it went over well. I feel like there are entries like this one in some of the other national finals, like, uh, Ukraine had one. There's one in Lithuania's process right now, but this one feels the most polished of the, like, ethno bands, as, Ukraine's act referred to themselves. So. I'm curious to see how this one evolves over the next couple of months. [00:13:46] Ben: It feels like we have like, a really established act representing Norway this year, cause like, they have been a band since like, 1999 2000. [00:13:53] Mike: Oh, wow. [00:13:53] Ben: Yeah, yeah, I was digging into, their backstory today and it was like blown away that they had been playing together for that long. Again, like I'm a little disappointed about Cano but like this is also a really solid choice and I'm excited about this one being in the mix. [00:14:07] Mike: Yeah, this one does not feel as much of a heartbreak as Monument losing out to Tix. So, yeah, yeah, it's just like, alright, Kate and Kano, I assume they'll be back. They will be fine. Like, they will probably be at all of the Nordic parties in Malmo, so [00:14:22] Ben: Yes. [00:14:23] Nebulossa conquers Spain's Benidorm Fest with "Zorra" --- [00:14:23] Mike: Normally it took a little while to wrap up, and it was just like, uh, Spain's going to get started, and it was just like, oh man, how, how late is Saturday going to go, but, Spain's Benidorm Fest was a pretty good show this year. Were you able to watch the semi finals, or the final were you able to watch any of it, because there was just so much going on? [00:14:39] Ben: There was a lot going on, and my plan had been, okay, I have set up my laptop, I have plugged it into my big monitor so I can have two things going on that, I can have social media over here, I can use my TV for the stuff that's on YouTube. Or has one of the apps where it's not, region blocked. Tried to use the Spain app, and they would not let me watch their final. about that time, you sent me a YouTube link, and I watched that until it stopped working, like, 20 minutes later. [00:15:02] Mike: Spain makes this very difficult to watch. [00:15:06] Ben: I don't kn yeah, I don't understand why. Spain, I am rooting for you. Especially because, like, so many of the previous acts show up in the ESC 250, and I love all the up tempo stuff there. [00:15:15] Mike: Yeah, I was able to watch the semis and the final, and I really feel like the right choices were made throughout. In the first semifinal, Nebulosa's Zora, won the semifinal and the jury, Angie won the Demoscopic, in the semifinal with Seiki and Soi, and finished second overall in the semi, there was, Mantra's Mevas Aver, uh, which won the televote, but it ended up finishing in fifth place. That was, that was kind of tough to watch. They, they, uh, were really upset at the end of the show. we had talked about how, um, The scoring in Spain is just kind of lopsided in a way, so the jury vote, that one is a dynamic vote. Like, it's just a collection of the points from the jury. For the Demoscopic and the Televote, it's set points. So, like, whoever finishes first gets 40 points, whoever finishes second gets 35, and then it's down to 16 points. It's not proportional, it's not a percentage, nothing like that. That just seems kind of odd? Like, it should be the other way around or something? I don't know. Like, I'm not a fan of the scoring system, but I'm happy with this outcome, In the second semi final, St. Pedro won the semi and the jury. Jorge Gonzalez, who was probably the crowd favorite of the semi final, won the demoscopic and the televote. Did not do well with the jury, and the audience made sure they were heard about that. Like, like, uh, the hosts looked very uncomfortable whenever the audience was getting riled. And that was happening quite a bit, throughout the week. in the final Nebulosa ended up winning, so Zora will be their, selection in Malmo. it tied with San Pedro in the jury. Zora won the televote and was third in the Demoscopic, and that was, was the obvious crowd favorite. the audio clip that I pulled, you can hear the audience singing along quite clearly. Jorge Gonzalez won the Demoscopic vote, and it turned out the results were very, very close in the Demoscopic and the Televote. There were only 22 votes that separated Jorge and Angie, uh, in Demoscopic. Two votes separated Nebulosa and Jorge in the Televote. The results changed, it would not have, like, affected the overall outcome. Like, Zora was the winner of the contest, like, was ahead by several points. But it does kind of show that the jury was out of step with the other two groups, mainly, the jury tanked, uh, Caliente, and The audience was all about that performance. So [00:18:07] Ben: Mmm, yeah. [00:18:09] Mike: I was not, I don't know, that was not my preferred entry. I really like Zora. I think this is a great choice for Spain. [00:18:16] Ben: Yes, you know, it's fun, I like when Spain decides to send a fun thing instead of a ballad. [00:18:21] Mike: Yeah. And it was actually kind of reminding me of Erica Vickman's entry a few years back. 2020. This was in Finland's process, not in Spain. That would have been wild. [00:18:33] Ben: But also, but also, hey, Finland, like, if you wanna loan Erika Vikman over to Spain That feels fun to me. [00:18:39] Mike: The subject matter of the song and the, overall vibe of it and the performance and the enthusiasm from the crowd about that particular entry. It's just like, Oh, like Spain, maybe onto something with this one. [00:18:52] Ben: This feels like a really good direction for them. On my first listen, just because we've talked about being tired about all of the very 80s stuff that's been happening, this one feels a little bit too 80s for me, but I'm gonna sit with this one, cause like, I like the general vibe of the song, the staging is fun, like, there's a lot of potential here. [00:19:11] Mike: I think that's a fair critique. I'm willing to make an exception on the 80s ness of it, just because, the people in the group, I believe, were around in the 80s, so that's okay. Like, it's not 80s nostalgia for people that were born in, like, 1998. I'm really shocked that Spain finished very timely. It was only like a two hour show, for each of the semifinals and for the final. So, uh, good on you, Spain. Uh, yay for keeping it on time. So, [00:19:38] Ben: production manager is behind the scenes yelling at people to make things happen on time. Great work. [00:19:43] Malta has Sarah Bonnici on "Loop" --- [00:19:43] Ben: Okay, and then Malta also selected an entry. [00:19:46] Mike: yeah, yeah, they did. Uh, [00:19:49] Ben: So, yeah, when, when I could not watch, uh, Spain, Malta was also available on YouTube, so that's what I put on. And like I, I got in at like the, the tail end, like the last three things were showing their live to tape performance. I just distinctly remember seeing, uh, them announcing that they had a message from Ha I love Hari. I love that little dude. Love that, love that. There's a member of Kara's entourage whose job is to be the past version of Kaia. I've read the lore. I know what his job is, cool dude. But also just like, like, come on, Malta. You could, you couldn't spring for like the slightly more expensive cameo. [00:20:21] Mike: that's one of the things that I'm finding very weird this year, is there have not been many direct references to Loreen or Tattoo or anything like that. Like, there have been more references to Cha Cha Cha and What Finland Accomplished last [00:20:36] Ben: Yeah. 'cause like the, like we got the Norway covering Sweden Montage interval Act at, at MGPI [00:20:44] Mike: of that montage included a snippet of Tattoo. And I swear that is the first direct reference I have encountered. Just seems odd, but maybe it's just a scheduling thing or a timing thing. I don't know. [00:20:59] Ben: every national broadcast being like, we don't want, we don't want it to build a toaster. We don't have the production budget. With Malta, like, I almost want them to just go back to doing an internal selection and putting the remaining money behind really getting that a good entry. [00:21:13] Mike: So what was selected was Sara Bonici's Loop. If you've been playing along at home, this was the second song to be performed on the very first quarterfinal back in October of 2023. [00:21:45] Ben: you for keeping track of that, because I was sitting here wondering, which of the weeks was that? Was that the one that I watched? I think it was, and I also just don't remember this one. [00:21:54] Mike: Yeah, the note that I had, from way back when was, this is slo mo at home, and I [00:22:01] Ben: Oh good, those [00:22:02] Mike: so [00:22:02] Ben: exact notes from yesterday after watching the winning performance. [00:22:05] Mike: although it has two dance breaks, uh, which feels very wig under a wig, uh, to put it in drag race parlance. [00:22:15] Ben: Speaking of Drag Race I did appreciate the energy for gratitude, but also I look forward to her winning the, the talent show on Drag Race Malta, whenever that happens. [00:22:24] Mike: Gratitude did win Best Video. they had, minor awards, for the other parts of the process. Like, they had Best Newcomer, which went to Lisa Gauci. Um, and, yeah, so, like, it's a different process. I don't know, I, I did not watch any of it during the week. It's just like, Malta, I do not have the time. [00:22:42] Ben: just like Malta. Just send me a press release. Just pick one. [00:22:44] Mike: I think Loop is, it has a hook. [00:22:48] Ben: It is an acceptable pop song for the Eurovision song contest. [00:22:51] Mike: Really, my main note at this point is She needs an enunciation coach. Even YouTube captioning could not pick up, uh, a lot of it, like, and, like, the song is, like, fully in English, but there's the part where, uh, it sounds like she's saying, you're like my father or something, and it's like, no, that's not what it is, and, like, the YouTube automatic captions, reached a point where it just went, brackets, music. It's like, oh no, so [00:23:20] Ben: Oh no. [00:23:21] Mike: yeah, yeah, but I feel like there's something here, but, uh, yeah, it's still gonna need another draft. [00:23:29] Ben: I think of what I heard, like watching the, the little recap they showed. I'm like, this one is the correct choice. This one has good bones for them to build on. I'm not sure it's there yet, I hope they can get it there. [00:23:39] Mike: Yeah, and they are in the second semifinal, so, like, they have a little bit more wiggle room, at least based on what's been selected so far. I'm, like, skimming over the list, we've got Albania, we know what Albania's sending. Uh, we have a sense of what Estonia's gonna do. Norway, they've selected. Norway will be fine. [00:24:00] Ben: Yeah, yes, Norway feels very safe in that second semifinal. [00:24:04] Mike: Yeah, uh, but everybody else is just kind of question [00:24:07] Ben: Yeah, right now it's just like, I don't know this. [00:24:09] Mike: Like, something could happen with this one. And, I mean, it is an uptempo number, so it is going to stand out in that regard. getting into the voting mechanics, the ratio was 78 to 22 jury to televote. So, I don't know, it kind of reminded me of, like, Romania and Albania, like, a few years back, where it was just like, oh, the audience is basically an eighth or ninth juror. [00:24:34] Ben: Yeah, yeah, it's like, I mean, I don't love that particular ratio of jury versus televote, if you're gonna do like a 75 25 situation, put it in the hands of the people. On the other hand, the people in Malta, uh, picked Matt Black, and that song was awful. [00:24:48] Mike: And you were so looking forward to that one. [00:24:50] Ben: Because I had one joke about my new stand mixer being Matt Black, [00:24:54] Mike: Ah, there we go. Yeah. [00:24:55] Ben: and then I heard the song, and, uh, yeah, like, at this point I'm not even gonna, like, joke about banana bread with that. [00:25:00] Mike: Four new entries this past week. That's great. [00:25:04] Ben: There were also three whole selection processes also happening. Okay, so during Norway being on, because I knew kind of what was happening there, I would, like, unmute for the performances I wanted to see in the arena. on my big monitor, I had both, uh, Lithuania and Latvia next to one another, trying to like, balance those out. [00:25:21] Il Senso and Monika Marija advance in Lithuania --- [00:25:21] Ben: Lithuania, this week, I had been wanting to pay attention to, Vilja, uh, Monika Maria, and Ilsenca. Well, not, not Ilsenca. Ilsenca was part of the mix. but like, Monika Maria, that was the top jury pick. I liked her song. The, the title feels like a little wordy, but it was a solid performance, it was a fully realized idea. [00:25:40] Mike: I loved the staging of that performance. Like, it was very minimal on props and was relying on lighting and smoke and camera angles. I just loved how it was executed. I'm very excited for Monika and I would like to see this on a bigger stage and see how it works. [00:25:59] Ben: Yeah, like, there's a good idea there. the other one through this week, uh, is Il Senso, they were second with the jury, they smashed the televote, they had 3. 35 times, the number of votes that the second place had. That is the biggest televote total of the series so far, and I do not get it. [00:26:14] Mike: It was a very technically precise performance. [00:26:17] Ben: it was well executed for what it is, but it was like PBS Pledge Drive special music. Slot that next to Celtic Woman and, like, give me a pitch for a tote bag. [00:26:25] Mike: This format, again, it's a case of, like, winner of the jury, winner of the televote has advanced, but I feel like it's also a format That is favoring people who are very familiar with this process. I mean, both Monika and Ilsenso have done Lithuania's process multiple times. It's not really the best venue right now for new talent to truly emerge. Like, it feels like this is kind of setting up a JV squad for future selection processes. Which is fine, but [00:26:56] Ben: is fine, but yeah, but yeah, because, like, I really liked Jigsaw by Martin. Like, I thought that was a really interesting, creative performance and just sort of artist persona. [00:27:07] Mike: Like if this were the Pabandom process, that would be one that I would want to keep an eye on. for this particular process, it just felt like there was way too much happening on stage, and like one fewer thing needed to be part of that performance, and I think it would have worked better for me, but I was just having a very difficult time just kind of like figuring out what I'm supposed to be focusing on in this [00:27:29] Ben: Yes, yes, yeah, that's fair. But yeah, there are some really interesting ideas there that, like, in a Pabandom, I would be like, yeah, I want to see this in a second round. [00:27:39] Mike: box around the frowny face cardboard head and the box body. Was the box body there at the beginning or did that get added in between the verse and the chorus or? Yeah. Yeah, [00:27:57] Ben: Il Senso, which is, again, very, very technically precise performance, it's definitely a sort of music we've seen at Eurovision before, but yeah, it just doesn't excite me the same way, on the plus side, I feel like Il Senso did very well last year, and then got to the final, and like, there were just other things that night that were, that were more exciting, amidst, like, the final field. [00:28:15] Mike: I think it's going to be An interesting final, like, there's still one more week of qualifying, um, but yeah, like, the lineup that has assembled so far is like, oh, there's a lot of different things going on here, so it will be a variety pack. [00:28:29] Latvia's Supernova Semi-Final --- [00:28:29] Mike: Meanwhile, in Latvia, again, sorry for almost completely forgetting you, Latvia, but, uh, yeah, they had First part of their Supernova process, the semi final. 15 acts performed, 10 advanced. I wasn't able to watch this live and I decided to just focus on the performances that, actually advanced to next week's final. One of the acts had a Where's Marcus Riva shirt. [00:28:53] Ben: Yeah, like, I'm not sure it said that exactly, but it was definitely something to the, like, the words Markus Riva were on the TU shirt along with a question [00:29:00] Mike: Yeah. I'm sure he will be back at some point. [00:29:05] Ben: He had a song this year and it didn't make the cut apparently, and I'm one, like, having watched the, the Latvian process at the same time as Lithuania, I, I am sort of just like, but why? I like watching the Supernova semi final because they're, like, Latvia's another one where, like, there's a lot of very interesting stuff on the shortlist. And, like, they're really trying some stuff, and some of it absolutely repels me, where I'm just like, no, not this, uh uh. Uh, and, like, luckily, most of those ones did not go through. [00:29:32] Mike: Okay, were there any that did go through that you're, uh, questioning? [00:29:37] Ben: Nothing jumped out to me this year at Latvia, like, either, like, in a good way or a bad way. [00:29:44] Mike: Okay, I don't know. I really love the lineup that's making it to the final. I think there were a number of performances that will not succeed at Eurovision, but there are just some really out there songs or performances. Like, TikTok has just some of the craziest lyrics I've encountered in quite a while. [00:30:08] Ben: The lyrics for that one are wild. The staging felt very High School Drama Club Senior Showcase. [00:30:13] Mike: Yes, uh, I think I put in, uh, that this is just, like, a full opera that is happening. Not a good opera, but, like, a full opera. Like, there is a three act structure to this. Uh, yes, tell us briefly what the judge said is part of the chorus of the song. [00:30:30] Ben: Um, the other one where I'm like, I don't see this succeeding if it is the choice, but I am intrigued by how you were staging this, was, uh, Papyrelish Mashinas Mindbreaker. [00:30:41] Mike: Yeah, that one, oh. Like, I have that one noted as being, like, a Franz Ferdinand Cade track. The protagonist of this song is not a sympathetic character, but I feel like musically it's being executed well. It's kind of the thing with Sam Marino's entry last year, where it's like, Oh yeah, if you just ignore the lyrical content, this song is great. But heheheheheheheheh [00:31:07] Ben: If you just ignore this, this one very critical part of the song, it's fantastic. [00:31:11] Mike: yeah, the misogyny, that's just something that you push to the side, you know? So . Um, but yeah, the, the, the two non-English entries, I really, really liked, that there was, Funken bz, NA Chi Voodoo, which is Ukrainian, that I've probably butchered and vestus with Kerr, which is in Latvian. [00:31:34] Ben: I also responded really well to Kour. [00:31:36] Mike: That one is a duet. The voices really go together nicely. And, yeah, and it would just be nice to hear some Latvian at Eurovision. [00:31:46] Ben: Like, the other one that fit in the same sort of, like, I don't think that this would do well at Eurovision, but I'm happy to see it in the final again, is, uh, the Cats song. [00:31:55] Mike: Yes. Yeah, my notes for that is just dot dot dot, because I do not know much about there. [00:32:02] Ben: Yeah, it's, yeah, yeah, just like, I, yeah, I, like, just, like, just, head empty, no thoughts, but just like, yes, I would like to see this again. [00:32:09] Mike: I'm hopeful for Latvia, I really want them to break their streak. I don't know if any of these songs are going to be able to do it, just because they are so out there. [00:32:17] Ben: I think that's why I'm, like, I'm so pessimistic about this, this crop of things, is because I want Latvia to do well! They're doing interesting stuff, they're trying things, and none of it has been working, even though I've really responded well to it, generally. [00:32:29] Mike: Yeah, and, the performances, they are, full performances. It's not just people standing in behind a microphone on a soundstage. Like, they are fully developed performances. Not necessarily final draft, but, like, it's, like, lights, and props, and movement, and everything. It's not, it's not first draft. It's maybe second or third draft, but it is not first draft. [00:32:52] Ben: I think that's why I am, like, so harsh on them is because Latvia, I like what you're doing a lot. I want you to succeed. [00:32:58] Mike: We will see what happens on, Saturday. [00:33:01] Sweden kicks off Melodifestivalen 2024 --- [00:33:01] Ben: After all of the important live stuff was done, I was like, oh right, Sweden. Sweden happened. Sweden is trying new stuff with Melfest, but like, they still have not done like the structural overhaul that I crave. But we're trying five heats with six songs each this year. Where the top two will advance, third and fourth will be a wildcard held at the end of heat five. I feel like Melfest should try to put, like, some of the strong stuff in the first heat. I don't think that happened, because, like, if this is the strong stuff, I'm concerned. [00:33:29] Mike: Yeah, like, it really doesn't feel like they are evolving at [00:33:34] Ben: No. No, no, [00:33:35] Mike: That very first performance by Adam Woods, there's like where it feels like that should be your thesis statement for the year. It's like, oh, hey, it's 2016. [00:33:43] Ben: The problem with the current structure of Melfest, for me, is that it re You can really see, oh, we're gonna fill in this, this slot. We're gonna fill in, like, the, the older Schlager Diva over here. And we're gonna put, like, the Swedish entry that's not gonna make the final over here. Like, it feels like they are plugging in certain archetypes instead of actively developing a lineup of what is happening in pop. [00:34:05] Mike: That was actually one of the notes that I had as a question for you. Are Samir and Victor the veteran, we need to put an old act into the lineup act? [00:34:16] Ben: I had not thought of that, but that's because I realized in watching the performance that I had been mentally confusing them with Marcus and Martinus. Who are also in, who are also in Melfest this year. Where I'm like, uh oh. This is different. [00:34:30] Mike: I can sort of understand the confusion, but at the same time, huh! Oh! [00:34:35] Ben: There's two of them. They're a duo. They've been in Melfest before. My brain stores that in the same [00:34:40] Mike: Yeah, it's the ampersand, it's messing with the sort. But, yeah, I mean, it's just, yeah, cause like you have the first one, where it's just like standard Swedish pop track. [00:34:51] Ben: Yeah, standard Swedish pop thing. Uh, Samir and Viktor doing their stuff. [00:34:55] Mike: The Veteran Act, uh, the Acoustic Act that, uh, I appreciate that she had the guitar so that she had something to do with her hands because, like, weird arms thing has been a problem at other national finals this year, and it's like, no, just give her something to do with her hands. [00:35:08] Ben: Then we had, uh, Lisa Lindström, the, the sort of like the, the Dansband Diva, which is like Schlager Diva adjacent. [00:35:14] Mike: Yeah, uh, I have The Only Reason Carola Wasn't Doing This was because she was over in Norway. [00:35:18] Ben: Yep. [00:35:20] Mike: uh, then Lisa Axe, uh, who I really like. [00:35:23] Ben: I like her. Yeah, I like her. Not my favorite song from her, but like it was a good, it was a good choice for something going to the final. [00:35:28] Mike: And then, uh, Smash into Pieces, uh, which I have listed here as an ad for CBS's next super fash procedural that will run for 15 years even though you do not know a single person who has even heard of the show, let alone watched it. Ugh. [00:35:45] Ben: I just, I just filed them as Swedish Linkin Park in my brain and didn't think about it again. [00:35:49] Mike: Yeah. [00:35:50] Ben: I, I, I did like their, their, like, face thingies that had lights on them. [00:35:54] Mike: Now, I think I may have checked out, before the lights started [00:35:56] Ben: Oh, okay, yeah, no, like, they had, they had, like, the, the fun sort of, like, thing that you do when you have, like, someone whose brain has been taken over by cyborgs in, like, a sci fi program. This is the Week 1 lineup, and this is what you usually bury as the Week 3 lineup. [00:36:09] Mike: Yeah, ooh, yeah, well, we've got four more weeks of qualifying heats, so we'll see. [00:36:15] Ben: Well, and like, speaking to the kind of not currentness of it all, one of the big intervals was a 25 year reunion of the A Teens. I have not thought about the A Teens for several of those 25 years, because they did not really impact in America. Uh, but watching the performance and hearing the songs, like, unlocked something in my brain that I did not expect, the first incarnation of the A Teens was they were the ABBA Teens. They were to they were, like, a cover band doing ABBA songs in, like, a late 90s. style. Although some of the production stuff is like very, it's still just like the original tracks. I just remember seeing like the video going, what is the appeal for this? Where are all of the, the tweens clamoring for ABBA covers at the end of the late 90s? [00:37:02] Mike: Yeah, well, that's the thing, like, I feel like I would have been the target market for that. Like, I am aware that 18s is a thing. That is the extent of my knowledge of the 18s. [00:37:16] Ben: This is what I worked on last night. It's like walking through a bunch of their previous, of their discography that's still on YouTube, just like, this is Disney channel music for tweens. [00:37:24] Mike: Okay. Yeah, then I would not have been the target demo for that. Got it. Alright. [00:37:28] Ben: like, the things that impacted American radio, [00:37:31] Mike: Right. [00:37:32] Ben: the ABBA covers kinda. I distinctly remember all of these things happening on the Disney Channel Between Programs. Cover of Dancing Queen, upside down, like one of the original tracks, it still sounds very ABBA, so good branding. And then like a couple years later, cover of Can't Help Falling in Love with You for the Lilo Stitch soundtrack. It's weirdly uptempo, I don't like it. [00:37:54] Mike: I did not see the interval because I was just, like, clicking through to the competitive performances. Uh, how, how was it? [00:38:01] Ben: It was fine. They were doing the moves, it was great, it was definitely like pop group coming together after 25 years that still kinda knows the choreography. [00:38:08] Mike: Okay. I mean, they would be in their 40s now, wouldn't they? [00:38:12] Ben: Oh yeah, they're all like 40. Like one of one of them does does business stuff now. Like, like a couple of them work in the record business. One of them just like works in like normal business. Got their MBA? [00:38:20] Mike: Okay. Well, glad, glad that they did stuff afterwards, but [00:38:24] Ben: Yeah. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. No, like I, I went down like a weird rabbit hole going. Is this, is this a fun side episode for the Patreon and I don't think there's enough there, there, [00:38:32] Mike: Okay, good. Thank you. Please don't make me research this. [00:38:38] Ben: Oh, I would, I would be shouldering the research load there. [00:38:43] Mike: It's like getting rick rolled, you know? It's like, oh, click on this link. Noooo! So yeah, very, very busy Saturday. Um, it's not going to get any less busy in the coming week because we've got San Remo. [00:38:59] This week: Italy's Sanremo, Germany's Wildcard, Finland's UMK --- [00:38:59] Mike: Starting on Tuesday, and it's gonna be Even bigger this year, they've got 30 artists in competition. Yeah, the first night, all 30 of them are going to perform. Then they'll be split up into two groups of 15 for Wednesday and Thursday. They'll have their covers and duets night on Friday. And then the big show, the big, big big big show on Saturday. They have it starting at like 2. 30 U. S. Eastern and they are predicting 8 p. m. U. S. Eastern. I feel like that is optimistic. [00:39:35] Ben: I feel like, I feel like they normally predict that it's gonna be done at like 6. 30 and it's done at 8. 30, so uh oh. [00:39:39] Mike: Yeah, yeah, um, they are changing the results, piece of it a little bit, rather than going through the full lineup of where people are ranking, they're only going to be showing, like, the top five, uh, each night, um, so keeping a little bit of mystery in there. [00:39:56] Ben: I fully trust in Italy's ability to still make that take as long as the full list of 30. [00:40:00] Mike: Oh, yeah, well, I mean, I figure on the final night of it, they are going to do the full ranking, cause, uh, you gotta get the booing in there, so [00:40:07] Ben: Mhm, yes, the booing is very important. [00:40:10] Mike: It's gonna be a killer lineup, uh, the songs should be released to streaming after the performances on night one, so, uh, yeah, getting ready to add that big chunk to our playlist, which is actually probably gonna hit 400 songs by the time that we're, uh, done with this season. [00:40:27] Ben: Germany's wildcard process is also happening. There will be four finalists, where the winner joins Das Deutsche Finale a week from this Friday. Uh, and then also happening at the same time as San Remo, uh, Finland's UMK. So I will not be watching the Italian final because I will be at UMK. [00:40:45] Mike: I mean, you could probably still catch the second [00:40:47] Ben: Like, [00:40:47] Mike: by the time you're done! [00:40:49] Ben: I am absolutely going home, going to, going back to my hotel and just like opening up my laptop and catching like the last [00:40:56] Mike: Five hours. [00:40:57] Ben: five, five hours. Just like rolling up to the, to the, Finnish airport Sunday morning, just like having not slept because Because Italy was happening. [00:41:07] Mike: Well, you'll just sleep on the flight, it'll be great. [00:41:09] Ben: It'll be great, yeah. Like, I think part of my frustration with Sweden right now is that if you look at Finland, we have seven entries, and they're all very solid. Are all of them to my taste? Not necessarily, but like, there are different facets of what's happening in music in Finland, and they're all well produced. [00:41:30] Mike: What are you most looking forward to seeing at UMK? [00:41:34] Ben: Unlike a couple, like, of the last UMKs, there's not like one thing that feels like, yeah, this is running away with it. Like, they all feel really balanced, like it feels like it's really come down to like, what does the live staging look like for some of these? The two that I would say I'm most interested to see, because like I think that they're both really interesting directions for Finland to go, uh, Xenisabotage's Korey Ma. that's gonna be a great opener to the show. [00:41:57] Mike: I agree. I really, really like that track. [00:42:01] Ben: The best Eurovision song about onions in years. [00:42:03] Mike: Finally. [00:42:05] Ben: Finally! The people have been clamoring for it. the other one that I think would be a really interesting direction for Finland to go, that I think could be, work really well for them, and like also feels Next to what Spain's doing in terms of, like, songs with titles that you probably shouldn't translate into English, Sarasipula's Pascana is just like a really lovely ballad. [00:42:25] Mike: I agree. I think those two are maybe the strongest of the field, or at least the ones that I am responding to the most. [00:42:32] Ben: Uh, I also like Jesse Markin's Glow, Cyan Kicks, I find, like, I've been listening to that track a lot, it doesn't quite feel like the winner to me. And then, like, I generally like Windows 95 Man's vibe, and I do like the, the logistical difficulties of figuring out can we call him that at Eurovision, given that Windows 95 is kind of a brand. But it's, it's very much sort of the, the Pandora, whatever the, the, I love you of this batch where it's like the fun kind of nineties party song. It's a little bit too planet of the base for me. [00:43:00] Mike: I really don't like this entry. It feels like it's kind of regressing in a way, or just kind of cancelling out the incredible progress that Finland has made in the contest in the last few years. [00:43:17] Ben: Yeah. Like is is it a good closure to the show? Yes. Do I want it to win? No. [00:43:22] Mike: No. But, uh, yeah, I mean, it's a really solid lineup of seven, and I am incredibly jealous that you get to see it live, so [00:43:32] Ben: Oh yeah. And like, I'm on, I, I'm pretty sure I'm on the floor too, so like please let me, yeah, please let me know. If you see a man with a mustache, it's probably me, [00:43:40] Mike: Yeah, that'll really narrow it down, thank you. [00:43:46] Ben: I am, I'm pumped. It's gonna be a fun time. On that note, that's gonna do it for this episode of the Eurowhat. Thanks for listening. The Eurowhat podcast is hosted by Ben Smith, that's me, and Mike McComb. [00:43:56] Mike: That's me. If you'd like to help support the show and access a ton of bonus content, head on over to patreon. com slash eurowhat. [00:44:04] Ben: Our full coverage of the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest can be found on our website at eurowhat. com. You can also follow us on social media at Eurowhat. [00:44:12] Mike: Next time on the Eurowhat, we'll be talking about the results from Italy, Finland, and Latvia with our special guest, Tripp Payne.