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We have five songs left from the Eurovision 20204 songs that we will be reviewing, so one last time, let’s bring in the hits, the misses, and the maybes.
Eurovision Insight Podcast: Juke Box Jury #7
with Matthew Ker (Majiker) and Dude Points (DudePoints.fun).France: Mon amour, by Slimane.
Georgia: Firefighter, by Nutsa Buzaladze.
Australia: One Milkali (One Blood), by Electric Fields.
Latvia: Hollow, by Dons.
Sweden: Unforgettable, by Marcus & Martinus.
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.
France: HIT. I know it’s old hat “chanson française” but when done well (2021) there’s market for this. Heard him in London..sublime. Top three jury, but may tail off with the televote who seek something more modern.
Georgia: HIT. Triumph for voice and production. Song is a typical prima Donna ESC high energy bop…but she delivers!!!
Australia: MISS. Playing on the Aboriginal theme but not impactful enough. Didgereedo..,? So what? Staging rather predictable and one of Aussie’s lesser numbers. NQ for me.
Latvia: Miss. Great voice and solid song but it’s so static on stage. In an all televote final? A goner.
Sweden: MISS..all gloss and no substance. You cannot polish a turd. Lacks soul and meaning. Worst of what Sweden has offered in recent times.
France – ugh. God, this is sleezy in a very uncomfortable way for me. It’s certainly not a bad song, but the way he oversells it makes me think there’s something wrong with it anyway. I can see the juries fawning over this, and it’ll certainly pick up a lot of televotes as well, giving it a top 5 finish, but I can’t get into it. HIT/MISS.
Georgia – for me this is the weakest of this year’s girl bops. And I’m sure it won’t be the least successful of them on the scoreboard. I think it’s the only one I’ve never found myself singing to myself (of the girl bops, that is). They will put on an impressive show with lots of fire and it will probably do alright (nothing more than that), but I would not have missed a thing if I’d never heard it. MISS
Australia – I want to like this, but I just find it so incredibly boring. I don’t think the digeridoo can save this from not making the grand final, and I’m not sure why Eurovision needs this song. I certainly don’t. MISS
Latvia – another really boring song. You’ve really grouped them well here. 😉 And he’s “keeling” me with the pronunciation, although I admit that is about the only part of the lyrics I could recite now because Hollow simply doesn’t catch my attention long enough to actually actively listen. It probably would have been better in Latvian, yes. MISS
Sweden – hmm. No. These Norwegian twins look about 14 years old, they are okay singers at best, and the whole thing depends on the show with the song itself taking a back seat. I straight away don’t like the concept. Not the first time Sweden are doing it either. I will admit that the chorus is somewhat catchy and knowing the juries they will put this song in the top 5 (because, you know, it’s Sweden), but I hope the audience will find better songs to vote for, and there are many of those around. MAYBE
Just wanted to say that this is the first Eurovision season I’ve discovered your podcast and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this series. Found myself nodding along in total agreement with some opinions, wildly disagreeing with others – but the discussion has always been fair and fun. Thanks for your work on it!
Thanks Julia, we’re here all week (try the fika); daily podcast from Malmö and a fair few articles to go before our Grand Final coming your way.
France: HIT. A powerful and emotive ballad. I’ve liked this song from the beginning. Without Slimane, it might not be the most exciting french chanson you’ve ever heard but his performance and voice bring it to another level. A man who sings with such passion and with such emotion is rare. I think this will be top 10 and should score very highly with the juries. With so many contenders for the win, I wonder if this could be a dark horse?
Georgia: MAYBE. A good artist with a solid but over-produced entry, and not one of Darko’s best. The whole thing seems like one long chorus, with only a small section towards the end where Nutsa gets to rest her voice. Some of the sound mix on the studio version has the music so loud it drowns out the vocals. It’s another song with a part to allow for a dance break. I do think this will qualify because I think it will be better live, and has been staged well from what I’ve seen so far. Nutsa herself elevates it. Qualifying for Georgia after the drought will be huge. In the final I think it’ll end up in the bottom half.
Australia: MAYBE. An enjoyable song, but maybe not the most competitive. I appreciate the song when it’s on and I really like its upbeat and inclusive message. Hearing another new language and cultural elements we haven’t seen at the contest before will always enrich it. This really needs to come alive on the stage to get enough points to qualify. Zaachariaha normally fills up the stage with his presence and if that happens they have a shot.
Latvia: MAYBE. A very well-sung and introspective ballad. This song would benefit more from the juries voting in the semi, but if it serves as a palate cleanser from all of the more energetic and high-energy numbers it could have a chance. Estonia managed that last year, but that song was more showy vocally. How Dons appears on the stage and how he connects with the viewer will be more important with this song than others in SF2 in terms of qualification.
Sweden: MISS. I think we should expect much better from a powerhouse like Sweden; it feels like a parody of what’s in Melfest at the moment. The song just feels empty and the chorus just being “she’s unforgettable” repeated isn’t powerful enough. The Melfest staging also feels a bit anonymous and you can’t really connect to the boys during the chorus. If the juries eat this up and Sweden ends up with another top 10 it will be very disappointing. There’s lots of other songs in the same genre doing it better.
France: ça marche pour moi. Frappe!
Georgia: she’s a hit, the song’s a miss so MEBBE
Australia: hot mess hit.
Latvia: were there juries for the semis, would sail through. I give it a hit, but I don’t rate Dons’ chances.
Sweden: might not qualify out of a semi, but doesn’t have to. Maybe.