Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 8)

Ok, we're winding down to the end of our country-by-country list of 2011's also-rans: the songs that should-have/would-have/could-have gone to Germany if the people had voted differently/if the juries had taken their bathroom breaks at a different time/if the networks had been bribed by a different record company (just kidding!  I think...).

Sweden: As almost any self-respecting Eurovision Fan would know, Sweden's Melodifestivalen is considered one of the biggest events of the National Final calendar.  Its position in recent years as the last of the national selections means that it's basically the final stop before the big event in May.  It tends to get higher viewership numbers in its homeland than Eurovision itself does, and ESC fans the world over flock to the Globen each year in order to watch the final firsthand.  This year's Melodifestivalen certainly did not disappoint, with 32 songs competing over four semifinals and an "Andra Chansen (Second Chance)" round for the chance to redeem Sweden's Eurovision hopes after a tough crash-and-burn last year.  As we all know, Eric Saade not only came out on top this year with "Popular", but he gave the Swedes their highest placement on the ESC scoreboard since their victory back in 1999. 

Eric faced some stiff competition, however.  Danny Saucedo's runner-up "In the Club" got quite a bit of attention.  The track ended up as #2 on the Swedish Singles Chart, and Danny even got to read out Sweden's votes this year at Eurovision.  (Eric had that honor last year; maybe it's an omen of good things to come for Danny?):


In third place was the impossibly sunny "Oh My God!" by The Moniker (real name: Daniel Karlsson).  It's like Daniel stepped off of the Magical Mystery Tour, into a Hare Krishna robe, and started hanging out with the backup singers from "Čaroban".  I'll admit, I thought this song was absolutely ridiculous the first time I heard it, but it became an complete earworm, and I'd often randomly sing it with my friends in the Press Center, choreography and all.  (I feel incredibly fortunate that no video footage of those moments exist, as far as I can tell...):

Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 7)

Romania: Romania's National Selection was an hours-long affair that also doubled as a New Year's Celebration, with 2010 representatives Paula Seling and Ovi co-managing hosting duties. Guest stars Chiara and Niamh Kavanagh even stopped by to join in the fun.  At the end of the night, Hotel FM won the ticket to Germany with the peppy, optimistic "Change".  (British-born lead singer David Bryan provided quite a bit of fun for my friends and I at the Press Center, whether he knew it or not...David, if you're reading this, thanks for being so good-natured about all of it!)

The Romanian National Selection was pretty even-keeled, in the sense that none of the songs really strayed too far from the melodic pop mold.  Unfortunately, that means that it's somewhat difficult to point out a unique entry for the purposes of this blog!  That being said, I consistently smile whenever I hear "It's So Fine", the 7th-place finisher from the Blaxy Girls:

...and I was more than a little amused by the country tinge I heard from Dalma in "Song for Him", which came in 11th place:

Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 6)

The Netherlands: When the 3Js revealed the quintet of songs that would be vying for the ticket to Düsseldorf, in my mind there was no question that "Je Vecht Nooit Alleen/Never Alone" would take the title.  (The Dutch audience seemed to feel the same way; the song won with over 63% of the public televote!)  If there had to be a substitution, however, my vote would have gone to the upbeat "De Stroom (The Stream)", which was a more than worthy runner-up:

"De Stroom" is no slouch in itself; while "Je Vecht Nooit Alleen" topped the Dutch charts, "De Stroom" charted at a respectable #12 when it was released as a single in June, six months after the National Song Selection.

Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 5)

(Pardon the brief hiatus...I just started a new job, and I took a quick trip out to New York to see some family and friends. But now I'm back in full force!)

Lithuania: Evelina Sašenko shocked quite a few people when her dramatic ballad "C'est Ma Vie" qualified for the Finals.  (You could have heard a pin drop in the arena when the Lithuanian flag emerged from its little digital envelope the night of its Semifinal!)  Without a doubt, this was one of the true surprises of the 2011 Contest. 

There were a few other songs from Lithuania that I was hoping to see in Düsseldorf, with some being more guilty pleasures than others.  Donny Montell (real name: Donatas Montvydas) has tried many times over the past few years to represent his home nation, and he even had two entries in the National Final this year (including a duet with 2009 representative Sasha Song).  Donny's solo entry this year, "Let Me", came in 5th place this year, despite his attempted channeling of Justin Timberlake:


For fans of sweet throwback entries (like Serbia's "Čaroban"), Liepa Mondeikaitė's breezy "Laukiu (I'm Looking Forward)" might have done the trick.  This sixth-place finisher was the only song in the finals sung in Lithuanian (and I might be the only one who see this, but I think Kim Cattrall might have a doppelganger in Vilnius...)

Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 4)

Ireland: Like them or not, you simply can not deny that Jedward were an unstoppable force at Eurovision.  Even if they didn't take top honors this year with "Lipstick", they were really the talk of the Press Center.  From their knee-high Converses to their now-iconic hair, you couldn't resist this year's Irish entry.  Even I fell victim to their charms:

But despite the Grimes Brothers' popularity and infectious energy, they only made it to Düsseldorf by the slimmest of margins; only two points separated them from runner-up Nikki Kavanagh's R&B ballad "Falling":

Nikki sang backup for last year's Irish entry, and "Falling" was written by a team that included Jonas Gladnikoff, who was the composer of "Et Cetera" and "It's For You", Ireland's 2009 and 2010 Eurovision submissions.  Sadly, Jonas and Co. were unable to pull off the three-peat, but who knows what 2012 will bring?

Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 3)

Skipping France and their internal selection, next on our list is:

Georgia: Eldrine's "One More Day" was definitely one of the most divisive songs in this year's Eurovision roster.  People either adored this nu-metal track or despised it with the passion of a thousand suns.  (Lucky for me, I was in the former camp, and relished the moment when Sopho and company held an impromptu acoustic jam session in the Press Center.)  Eldrine was my favorite act from the Georgian preselection, even with their previous lead singer Tako Vadachkoria, but my second favorite had to be Temo Sajaia, who performed "Jarisk'atsis Simghera (Soldier's Song)": 

Temo's stage presence might have been a bit dry, but considering that there was a span of about three months to give his presentation a bit more "oomph", it could have been a pleasant surprise.  Plus, none of the nation's entries have ever been sung in Georgian, nor have any entries been performed exclusively by a male vocalist.  It took me until moderately recently to find an English translation for "Jarisk'atsis Simghera", but it actually has a pretty strong nationalistic bent, with lyrics like "We believe in Georgian immortals/ In the hopes in your eyes and/ We believe in happiness, in beauty/ In no surrender and in victory".  It's maybe a bit more subtle than "I Love Belarus", but not quite as easy to sing along with...

Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 2)

Continuing on through our tour of the 2011 Preselections, we move straight on from Bulgaria to...

Croatia: Few people who were in the Press Center in Düsseldorf will soon be able to forget Daria Kinzer's "Celebrate", complete with two costume changes and a special appearance by a creepy Willy Wonka impersonator.  But only the most hardcore of ESC fans remembers that the lovely Daria had some serious competition in this year's Dora: Jacques Houdek.  Daria and Jacques went head-to-head on three songs, with a public televote and jury vote selecting the best option for each singer.  The interesting thing about this, however, was that the scores were tied after the jury and televote was added together during the song selection, with the public favoring "Stotinama Godina (A Hundred Years)" for both Daria and Jacques (by a landslide), and the jury selecting "Lahor/Break a Leg/Celebrate" for the two.  Most national finals used the public vote as the prevailing factor, but Croatia deferred to the jury.   The uptempo number seemed better-suited for the lovely Daria, and so Jacques' fate as runner-up was sealed.  But we were tantalizingly close to having this, instead:


"Stotinama Godina" reminds me of the classic Croatian ballads of years past: songs like "Neka Mi Ne Svane", or "Nek' ti bude ljubav sva" (which, interestingly enough, Jacques performed during the national selection process).  It's hard to say if this would have made it into the Final (I'm sure that some would have argued that it sounded "dated"), but I personally preferred it to "Celebrate".  As for Jacques, I wouldn't count him out.  In a commercial for this year's UK version of "X-Factor", eagle-eyed viewers can catch a quick glimpse of Houdek auditioning for the show that introduced the world to Jedward.  Brace yourselves, my friends.

Eurovision 2011: The Best of the Rest (Part 1)

Like many Eurovision fans and fanatics (myself included), the period between the end of May and the beginning of December is often a melancholy bit of time while we wait for news on the next year's edition and constantly re-hash the events of the past.  For me, this is the perfect time to look back on the songs that didn't quite make it to Düsseldorf this year; some of these also-rans are just as entertaining or endearing as the tunes that made the journey to the main event.  Out of the forty-three nations that sent songs to Germany this year, thirty-four of them had national selections (and the rest, like France, Belarus, Turkey, et cetera, were internal selections made behind closed doors).  Needless to say, there's a lot of ground to cover!  So, starting alphabetically...

Albania: For me, the Albanian Preselection (or Festivali i Këngës) is one of the more underrated events of the Eurovision year.  It occurs early in the ESC cycle (generally falling around Boxing Day), and it tends to involve both young, fresh faces as well as veteran performers.  This year's FiK winner was Aurela Gaçe's "Kënga Ime", which eventually became the epic, aquiline "Feel the Passion".  However, in second place this year was the lovely duet "Ende ka shpresë (There is Still Hope)", written and performed by Alban Skenderaj and Miriam Cani.  

I don't know if this song would have been translated into English (as so many other Albanian entries have been over the past few years), but if it had, it could have possibly given Azerbaijan's Ell and Nikki a run for their money.  
 
(And, for the record, another personal favorite of mine was Kamela Islamaj's "Jetova per te dy (I Lived for Us)", which came in 10th place in the FiK.  While it might not have gone over as well in the ESC as "Ende ka shpresë", I absolutely love Kamela's soulful, bluesy, voice.)

Follow Up Single Time, Part 3

Over the past few weeks, we've seen a whole bunch of new and recent releases from all over the Eurovision world.  Let's see what we've got...

One of the more highly-anticipated songs from the post-Düsseldorf boom comes, of course, from the irrepressible Jedward.  The Irish twins, who are planning on releasing their new album, "Victory", in August, have already gone to the top of the Irish Charts with their new single, "Bad Behaviour".  Featuring Hollywood blogger Perez Hilton (who, incidentally, happens to be the namesake of the Grimes Brothers' parrot...), both the song and accompanying video keeps the high-energy, frenetic pop vibe of "Lipstick" going strong.  The pair are currently touring the UK, Ireland, and Germany.


Jedward - Bad Behaviour (Official Music Video) HQ from xeaaasy on Vimeo.

San Marino's Senit has also released her next track, entitled "Through the Rain".  At this point, however, it is only available through the Italian version of iTunes.  This upbeat, danceable track seems to be more in line with Senit's previous releases than the sweet, subtle "Stand By", and it even clocks in at less than the Eurovision-standard three minute mark.  Could this have been the mysterious other track that SMRTV had considered sending to Eurovision?

Following "Rusinka", (FYR) Macedonia's Vlatko Ilievski has just released his next video, for "Moja Tamna Rijeko".  Call me crazy, but I prefer this softer side of Vlatko over the man we saw in Germany.  It might not be as catchy as "Rusinka", but at least we can hear him singing this time around!  What are your thoughts?


Last, but certainly not least, Finland's Paradise Oskar (Axel Ehnström) has released his second single, "Sunday Everyday". 

Axel took home the Marcel Bezençon Press Award from the accredited journalists in Düsseldorf after his performance of "Da Da Dam", and if you were a fan of his sweet, introspective, acoustic-driven style, his album "Sunday Songs" might be just your speed.  It's hit the Top Five in the Finnish charts, and he's touring actively throughout the summer. 

Catching up with Raphael Gualazzi

During my time at the Press Center in Düsseldorf this year, I had the great (and often surreal) pleasure to get to know a number of 2011’s Eurovision performers.  I sipped tea with the Greeks, chatted with the Icelanders, danced with the Armenians, practiced my Portuguese with Homens da Luta, and raised a few toasts with the Bulgarians.  However, one of my favorite artists to work with was Italy’s Raphael Gualazzi.  After having the chance to interview him for ESCKaz, we would often run into each other as he went from rehearsals to press conferences to interviews and back again, always sharing a quick smile and a “ciao”.  I sat in the second row during Raphael’s intimate showcase at “Jazz in der Alten Schmeide”, and saw firsthand how much he and his bandmates truly feel their music, a fantastic, soulful blend of old-school stride piano fused with modern blues, funk, and jazz.  When “Madness of Love” defied expectations and quietly climbed up the leaderboard on May 14^th, ultimately making its way into a surprising (to some, anyway) second place finish, I may have been celebrating louder than the Italian delegation itself.  I had the chance to catch up with Raphael this week before his gig at the Teatro Tenda in Vascon, near Treviso.  Despite an often-fuzzy cell phone connection, I was able to get a few questions in.

ESC Insider: It’s been over a month since we’ve last talked…how has life been since Düsseldorf?

Raphael Gualazzi: Well, we were very busy before [Eurovision]…a lot of gigs around Europe.  And now, after that, we are in a lot of different countries, so a lot of work on promotion. And at the same time a lot of concerts around Europe, like Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, France, Germany, all around.  You can check [the tour schedule] out on the Internet, for sure.  Also, there’s been some television in Munich, Hamburg, and Berlin, and we’ll have also a tour in October, from the 1^st to the 15^th in Germany that will start in Stuttgart, through Berlin, Hamburg, and it will stop in Frankfurt on the 15^th.  And now, I’m just doing a lot of work, touring around festivals in France…

Follow Up Single Time, Part 2

As the weeks progress, more of Eurovision's Class of 2011 are continuing on with their careers and releasing their next singles.

Bosnia and Herzegovina's Dino Merlin has followed up his 6th-place finish in Germany with his new single, "Undo".  Despite the title, the song is in Bosnian, unlike his ESC-entry "Love in Rewind".  Dino is actively touring this summer, and will likely release his next album in early 2012.


Albania's preeminent diva, Aurela Gaçe, has collaborated with local rapper MC Kresha to bring the world their new single, "Cash".   It might not harness Aurela's epic vocal prowess in the same way that "Kënga Ime/Feel the Passion" did in Düsseldorf, but it's still a fun listen, and any video that has echoes of "Tron" gets a thumbs-up in my book:

Jury vs. Televote...the Saga Continues

There’s been a lot of chatter from fans (both casual and obsessed) about the effectiveness (or lack thereof) of a 50% Jury, 50% Televote split at Eurovision.  Call me crazy, but I actually kind of prefer having the two sides.  A jury might be less inclined to vote for a song based on geographical or cultural distribution, while a public vote might be a better divining rod of what’s actually popular.  Juries also have the benefit of having a few hours to digest their thoughts and register their votes, while televoters have a smaller window to decide where to spend their hard-earned cell-phone minutes. (Granted, until the full votes from each nation are released by the EBU or by the broadcasters themselves, this is a lot of speculation.)

What *does* bother me a bit, however, is the fact that the juries and the public vote on two different performances.  The Juries give their scores based on the final dress rehearsal from the night before the actual event.  As many have said over the past few weeks, Blue's vocals simply didn't do the song justice during the Jury Final (which pains me to say, since I loved both the song and the boys themselves, as my readers knew). 

I think it all boils down to what makes a Eurovision Winner the "best" song.  Is it the composition?  The showmanship?  The personality?  The actual vocal performance?  The potential for a song to become a commercial hit?  The public will look for one thing, while the juries might look for something else.  When it comes to actual musical talent, I sincerely think that the juries got it right when they favored Italy.  In terms of showmanship, the Azeris put on a great performance that was visually stunning (with a bit of eye candy for all).  Was "Running Scared" my personal choice or prediction for the winner?  Not by a long shot.  After watching the semifinals and a slew of rehearsals, I was hoping for Rome, Reykjavík, Copenhagen, Athens, Sarajevo, or Tblisi, and I predicted it would go to London, Dublin, Paris, or even Belgrade.  But even though “Running Scared” wasn’t my personal taste, I can sit back and understand how it took the crown.  Düsseldorf was full of impressive songs and performances, and when enthusiasm is spread out over a number of different nations (a total of 20 nations out of 25 ended up with at least one “douze points”, with only Estonia, Russia, Switzerland, Germany, and Serbia missing out), an entry can easily fly under the radar and take a victory.

It’s possible to go on about this topic for pages and pages, and you might never come up with a true consensus of how to find an ideal winner.  My friend John Kennedy O’Connor wrote a really in-depth and incisive piece on this topic for ESCInsight.com, and I recommend that you all check it out, if you haven't already.

Ok, everybody...let the (hopefully civil) debate begin!  What would you like to see, in terms of the voting?

Follow Up Single Time!

As is customary in the days following Eurovision, many of the artists that we have come to know and love from their participation on the ESC stage realize that there is, in fact, life after the world's largest musical competition.  (Granted, the same can't necessarily be said about the bloggers you have come to know and love, who still cling to every fiber of their time in the Press Center!).  Whether an artist is a newcomer on the scene or a professional with an established career, it's only natural that new singles follow on the heels of the Grand Final.

Italy's representative Raphael Gualazzi released his album "Reality and Fantasy", and since its release in February it has reached #1 on the iTunes Jazz charts all over Europe.  (It's also available on iTunes in the US, and I give it my personal ESCInsider seal of approval!)  Raphael's keeping the momentum up releasing the follow-up single to "Follia d'Amore/Madness of Love", "A Three Second Breath".


We also have a pair of releases from Greece's artists.  Rapper Stereo Mike is currently working on a radio edit for his song "Μπορώ/Mporo (I)".  Taken from his new album "Ανέλιξη (Evolution)", Mike actually decided to release "Μπορώ" after asking his Facebook and Twitter followers what his next single should be.  He's currently in the studio remixing the track, but here's the full album edit: 



Not to be outdone, Loukas Yiorkas also has a new single out.  Teaming up again with composer Giannis Christodoulopoulos and lyricist Eleana Vrachali (the pair behind "Watch My Dance"), Loukas has unveiled his next track, "Για Πρώτη Φορά/Gia Proti Fora (For the First Time)".

::Drumroll please?::

And the winner is...Azerbaijan?!?!?



It's not a bad song by any stretch, but in my opinion, it benefited from a pretty good draw and the fact that Turkey wasn't competing in the Final that night.  It's too early to tell if I'm going to Baku next year or not; I might need a few days to decompress!  (Lucky for me, I fly to Israel tomorrow to board a cruise with my parents!  If you don't hear much from me over the next few days, that's why!)

On the happier side of the coin, I'm absolutely THRILLED that Italy's Raphael Gualazzi came in an incredibly respectable runner-up position.  It wasn't because of the fact that Eurovision fans missed Italy, and it wasn't because of some hyped-up production...I like to think that it was because the music was real, heartfelt, and well-performed.  I've met with Raphael a few times over these past two weeks, and, bar none, nobody else that I had met with here in Germany feels the music running through his veins as much as he does.  If someone asks him to sing acapella, he closes his eyes and moves his fingers as if a piano were in front of him.  He's fantastic, and he has an amazing career ahead of him.

Sweden came in 3rd, which is a pretty remarkable contrast from the train-wreck that his first few rehearsals displayed.  Early fan favorites Hungary and Estonia came in 22nd and 24th, respectively, and Jedward beat Blue in the scoreboard.

I don't know about you guys, but I'm exhausted, and I've got an early flight to catch.  My voice is gone, and my feet hurt from the three-inch stilettos I'm rocking tonight.  But I've never been happier.

I'll catch you guys soon!

Personal Highlights from these past 2 weeks

Well, like I've mentioned before, tonight's the Grand Final of the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest.  For the past two weeks or so, I've had the honor and the pleasure of writing not only for ESCInsider, but also for ESCKaz.com, the official website of the OGAE Rest of the World fan club.  My work with ESCKaz (and the press accreditation that comes with it) has afforded me the incredible opportunity to meet equally incredible people, from the fraternity of journalists here to the hardworking volunteers to the EBU staffers to the delegations and artists themselves.  I cannot express my gratitude deeply enough to the ESCKaz team for not only giving me the chance to work with them, but also taking me under their wing and helping me learn on the fly as I was tossed into the Deep End of the Eurovision world.

I had the chance to interview 20 of this year's artists, and I got to meet nearly all of the performers either at the Euroclub or one of the myriad other events here over the past few weeks.  I got particularly close to the Icelandic delegation, the Greeks, Raphael Gualazzi from Italy, Finland's Paradise Oskar, and the Sanmarinese staff.  Even the biggest divas here were sweet and welcoming; Albania's Aurela Gaçe always greeted me as we passed each other in the hall (especially after I told her that I was from New Jersey).

Raphael Gualazzi's Epic Showcase

I've mentioned before how much I love Italy's entry this year.  Raphael Gualazzi, who'll be performing "Madness of Love" on Saturday, is a brilliant jazz musician who takes his cues from both the old school beginnings of the genre as well as newer styles and techniques.  (His album "Reality and Fantasy" is already out, so definitely give it a listen!)  I had the chance to attend an exclusive press conference and showcase with Raphael and his band, with a special cameo from the boys in Blue (and France's Amaury Vassili was seen in the audience).  The venue was a tiny, intimate little space, and I was sitting close enough to the action to see the sweat dripping from Raphael's brow as he pounded away at the piano.  At times, his hands were absolute blurs (you should have seen his rendition of "Caravan"!), and there were a few instances where the sheet music sitting on the piano flew off of the rack and onto the keyboard, but he kept on playing with gusto.  Blue stopped by and performed "I Can" and "Sorry Seems to Be The Hardest Word" while Raphael tickled the ivories behind them...unbelievably cool.

Who knows?

Wow, Blogspot couldn't have crapped out on me at a more inconvenient time...

Anyway, as some of you figured out, I went 9 for 10 on the Second Semi's results, but I promise you that that is where my lucky streak will end.  I honestly have no idea who will take tonight's Eurovision crown, and I'm not the only one here in the press room who's up in the air!  People are guessing Azerbaijan, Ireland, the UK, France, Iceland, Denmark...I think Serbia might surprise us a bit and come up to the Top 5, but this year's draw really put a damper on the pundits' predictions.  Some of this year's strongest songs are being performed in the start of the running order, with former underdogs now in the sweet spots in the lineup.  Then again, there are many who say that with the re-inclusion of the Jury's vote and televoting now allowed throughout the entire show, running order matters less, but Dino Merlin still grimaced when he drew #2.  Only time will tell, my friends...

Semi 2 Predictions and Favorites...

Ok, I went 6/10 for Semifinal 1...let's see how Semi 2 turns out!

My Personal Favorites:
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Netherlands, Moldova, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Romania, Latvia, Denmark, Ireland. (Austria as honorable mention!)

My Predictions:
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, Romania, Denmark, Ireland, Ukraine, Estonia, Austria, Sweden, Israel.

...let's see what happens in a few hours!

Just a thought...

Supposedly, there have been numerous problems with the audio and commentary feeds from many nations' broadcasts last night.  Spain couldn't hear Norway, the UK heard an unbalanced Polish performance, and many commentators were forced to use their telephones to get their point across.

I'm pretty disappointed in this, considering the reputation that Germany has for their technical prowess.  This being my first ESC, I can't personally compare the issues here with things that have happened in the past, but this seems somewhat unprecedented.  The EBU and German Broadcaster NRD will have a joint press conference here in about 10 minutes to discuss what happened, and we'll go from there.

But, if this is all true, I'm happy to say that it might have disproven my theory that the Icelandic entry's success hinged on the commentary from the broadcasters currying a sympathy vote.  Hopefully, this means that "Coming Home" passed into the final through their own merit, which makes me a very, very happy Samantha. :-)

Wow...just...wow...

I mean...where do I start? I had the honor of sitting in the very first row, within spitting distance of the catwalk and the stage, and right in front of a group from the Icelandic delegation. I was proudly waving the Icelandic flag for a few reasons:
1) They have no OGAE Club of their own, so they fall under the auspices of the Rest of the World division.
2) Iceland is geographically closest to my home country, the United States.
3) They have a great song, simply put!
I was sitting close enough to the action that I could make eye contact with some of the artists and feel the heat of the exploding pyrotechnics. The venue felt vast and intimate at the same time, and I doubt I'll ever have another concert experience quite like it!

Ok, now on to the results:
Some of these winners are not a surprise. We all expected Finland, Russia, Azerbaijan, and Greece to make it through. Opinions were divided on Serbia, Iceland, Georgia, and Hungary. But Lithuania and Switzerland were complete blindsides, with most people expecting Norway and Turkey to possibly pass through to the Final. All bets seem to be off for the Second Semi...expect the unexpected, my friends!