Monday was dominated by high energy stagings and the pink/purple neon visuals. Today was something of a departure from that with variation in colour schemes and perhaps a little less energy. With the exception of Denmark. Which was exactly that. The back half of semi-final two is an odd one and today’s run throughs only served to confirm that.
The opening acts of the first three days have all served as fun wake up calls. The Roop, Elena Tsagrinou and Senhit have all set us up perfectly for a day’s content. Georgia’s Tornike Kipiani? Not so much. By the time he hit his last rehearsal he was clearly messing about vocally, seemingly to amuse himself. This I had time for. However, when he was actually performing what should’ve been an emotional or intense mood just came across as disinterest. Rather than looking like a performer, he looked like a man who…
- Realised he’d left the gas on.
- Remembered he’d forgotten to return a library book.
- Had a sudden memory of something embarrassing he did in 1997.
- Was trying to figure out why Buckells was H.
- Quite simply did not want to be there.
Tuesday was all about the sadder songs competing at the top of the bookies odds. For those looking for something more emotional and introspective today had both Victoria of Bulgaria and Gjon’s Tears of Switzerland. In the interest of full disclosure neither of these songs are the kind of thing I’m looking for at Eurovision, this year especially. I cannot deny, however, that both were impeccably staged with strong visual concepts and terrific vocals throughout. In 2021 I am personally desperate for a happy or uptempo song to win but objectively it’s impossible for me to count either of these out of the running.
I really don’t like the term guilty pleasure but the closest I’ve ever felt to using is for Denmark’s Øve os på hinanden from Fyr & Flamme. It’s fair to say I’ve gone a full 180 on this since it was chosen in their national selection. After some sad Swiss swooning it’s the perfect livener for those tuning in for a good time. The lead singer is arguably the most energetic male performer of the Contest (tied with Jendrik), at one point sprinting to and from the satellite stage for no apparent reason whatsoever. Given the recent theme of SF2 closers going on to open the final, I wouldn’t be mad to see that again.
Surprise of the Day: Well this is a fairly easy one…where on earth did Portugal pull that from? The Black Mamba’s Love is on My Side has always been a song I’ve found pleasant but not outstanding with probable non-qualifier status. However, their staging was visually sumptuous and the years of experience in performance shone through. This will get A LOT of jury love.
Disappointment of the Day: Latvia. Many were expecting something a bit mad and a bit daft but it was all oddly restrained. They can be added to Moldova and Azerbaijan on the “No, MORE is more” list.
Thank God someone’s actually bringing some proper pyro to this Contest of the Day:
Now very sadly I must return to the day job for the next few days so the content will slow down. I’ll try me damndest to still get some stuff out but from tomorrow till Friday it may be a bit quieter here.
Only seven days till SF1 though, not long now…
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