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The National Final season is behind us, Malmö is ahead of us, and in the quiet space between lies Juke Box Jury. Yes, the run is starting slightly later than previous years, but everything else stays the same. We’ll talk about all the songs over seven shows, and when we have all our hits, misses, and maybes, it’ll be time to start taking in the rehearsals!
Eurovision Insight Podcast: Juke Box Jury #1
with AJ Clay (Lockdown Transmission) and Phil Dore (Eurovision Wars).Greece: Zari, by Marina Satti.
Cyprus: Liar, by Silia Kapsis .
Moldova: In the Middle, by Natalia Barbu.
Belgium: Before the Party’s Over, by Mustii.
Estonia: (Nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi, by 5miinust and Puuluup.
Stay up to date with all the discussions, news, and reviews as we get ready to travel to Malmö for Eurovision 2024 with ESC Insight. You’ll find the show in iTunes, Google Podcasts, and Spotify. A direct RSS feed is available. We have a regular email newsletter which you can sign up to here., and you can support us on Patreon here.
Greece-
It’s a bit repetitive song. Musically, it is on the thin level and I am hearing the same beat through the whole song, with a bit of variations in the arrangement. From the instrumentation, you know this is coming from Greece. Her voice gets on my nerve quite quickly. I am probably not the target audience for this song -MISS
Cyprus-
If Cyprus wish to win Eurovision, they should start looking for something different than the female BOP song, which they have been mostly sending since 2018. It really is as generic as it come and sounds even more generic. Not a very exciting or appealing song. Really not working for me- MISS
Moldova-
Her 2007’s song is my all time favourite Moldovan entry. It was modern and had some edge to it. This one is just very low key, luck luster and has no edge to it. I am also not feeling she is passionate about this song. Somehow her rendition is as if she does not care about this song- MISS
Belgium-
On 1st hear, I thought this is a strong entry. It’s still is a strong song. It has a a good built up and the drums, which give the cue for the whole song, are there but are not overshadowing the rest of the song. The last 30 seconds are a bit repetitive, as if they didn’t know how to finish the song. The song should appeal to both jurries and televoters. It should be up there on the scoreboard. In such an open year, this song has the potential to do very well, even winning – HIT
Estonia-
This song has some energy but the national final’s performance lacks some energy to match the energy of the song. I am not entirely buying the whole thing and I am not really connected to the song or performance. It should qualify but with similar songs aiming for the same audience, this may struggle to live a mark on the scoreboard -MAYBE
Unlike you, I am not basing my judgement on the videos, but soleley on the songs. (Yes, I know it’s not a radio contest – but it’s not a video contest either.)
Greece – It’s quite a bit of work. When I heard the song for the first time I felt exhausted about halfway through and was happy when it was over. It’s since grown on me quite a bit, but it’s nowhere near my top ten. MAYBE
Cyprus – It’s a generic pop song and it is very much Cyprus, but I don’t hate it. There’s a bit of catchy there, I know what it is when it comes up on the playlist, which I honestly can’t say for all the songs. Is it going to achieve anything? No. Do I mind listening to it? Also no. MAYBE
Moldova – I have very little to say about this song, it’s so boring. Right now I can’t even remember how it goes, even though you just reminded me of it. MISS
Belgium – The build-up is sooo slooow … It’s like, get to the point already! Granted, when he does get to the point it’s a very good one, but I nearly snorted at the idea that Belgium could potentially win Eurovison. 😉 I mean, I’m the worst at predicting outcomes, but I simply can’t see it. MAYBE
Estonia – Ahh, finally one of my favourites this year! So fun, so engaging, so unique (so very much not like Käärijä – there’s another song in this year’s line-up that is much more likely to be viewed as its copycat) – love it! No idea how it will fare, but I’m sure it’ll stay on my playlist for a long while. HIT
Greece: applaud the native language but that’s about it. Not a pleasant sound. Irritating earworm in a negative way. One hundred per cent a MISS .
Cyprus: I’ve heard it thirty times before from various countries since 2018. BUT she can dance . And will attract attention…so Maybe.
Moldova: their worst entry for quite some time. Structurally incoherent and fails to lodge in the mind after far too many undeserved listenings. MISS.
Belgium: it’s good, but not quite as good as it thinks it is. Definitely NOT a contender to win on account of taking too long to peak and deliver the hook. A HIT in that it’s an assured Q for final, but likely to be more 6-10 than 1-5.
Estonia: could have struggled in a jury/televote semi but this should have public appeal. Pleasing three minutes, but like Subwoofer, easily gets a bit over familiar after two or three goes. Maybe .
Greece: HIT. Choosing Marina was a very wise move by ERT and a great improvement from last year. Choosing an artist very popular in her home country and someone who is creative and blends traditional and modern elements is always going to be a good choice. I found it strange that ERT did an open submission for songs but glad they chose something she is proud of and was involved in. Despite being on early SF2, I think it should qualify easily and make the top half in the final.
Cyprus: HIT. Australia for Cyprus again, and a reject from Greece from last year! Knowing all these things, I was prepared to be disappointed in the song but was pleasantly surprised. It’s nothing we haven’t heard before but it’s been produced competently. Silia is young but seems like she has a good voice and is a fantastic dancer, which will help her in the inevitable dance breaks. I think it will make a splash opening SF1 and qualify, but in the final it may fall down as several songs are fishing in the same pond for votes, even though it’s better than Austria and Sweden in my opinion.
Moldova: MISS. With the caveat that i’m judging this on the NF performance, it’s too static on the stage. I’m pleased Natalia gets to perform a self-written and composed song this year, but it’s not competitive enough. The chorus is lacking, there’s not enough of a melody to hang on to and the ending is underwhelming. I think it will get memory-holed by Finland. Not enough to qualify from a pretty packed semi-final.
Belgium: HIT. A very bold, standout entry from Belgium. The first couple of times I heard it I thought it was good but too back loaded with all the dramatic parts and memorable lines. Now, I think there’s enough to draw you in at the beginning to hold your attention with some drama and thoughtful lyrics. I expect Mustii will be putting on a memorable and artistic stage show. When he qualifies to the final there’s a good chance this could win the jury vote and should be top 5 overall and a qualifier to win.
Estonia: HIT. I love the clash between two different groups and sounds coming together on the stage. It is so much fun and very memorable, despite being in a language unfamiliar to most people. Seeing people performing and clearly enjoying themselves always translates well to the televote, as it did with Moldova 2022 and Käärijä last year. The NF staging needed to be tighter. It should easily qualify and could possibly reach the lower levels of the top 10 if it gets a big enough televote.
Gotta love Ewan’s fluent Estonian! 🥳😂