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.
Showing posts with label Denmark. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Denmark. Show all posts
Friday, August 26, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
"A New Tomorrow" in Denmark
The last of Saturday's additions to the Eurovision 2011 Roster was Denmark. The Dansk Melodi Grand Prix was, as usual, chock-full of finely-crafted pop songs, as is standard for the Scandinavian/Nordic bloc's National Finals. After ten performances (including one by Jenny Berggren, the former lead singer from Ace of Base!), we have a winner! "A New Tomorrow", performed by A Friend in London.
Denmark seems to have cornered the market on upbeat pop with positive messages over the past few years. Especially in 2008 and 2009, when Simon Mathew and Niels Brinck took Denmark to 15th and 13th place, respectively...will a similarly-themed tune hover around that placement, as well? Another thing that the boys from A Friend in London will have to contend with is the possible conflict with Romania's "Change", another uptempo song with a message to send. Furthermore, Denmark will have to contend with Ireland in their semifinal...who's hair will reach the highest heights?
Denmark seems to have cornered the market on upbeat pop with positive messages over the past few years. Especially in 2008 and 2009, when Simon Mathew and Niels Brinck took Denmark to 15th and 13th place, respectively...will a similarly-themed tune hover around that placement, as well? Another thing that the boys from A Friend in London will have to contend with is the possible conflict with Romania's "Change", another uptempo song with a message to send. Furthermore, Denmark will have to contend with Ireland in their semifinal...who's hair will reach the highest heights?
Saturday, October 23, 2010
The Best of the 2010 Preselection (Part One)
I don't know about all of you, but all of this talk recently about the 2011 ESC season has really kicked my Eurovision appetite into high gear. It's sort of like how a person might say that they're not hungry when dinnertime is coming up, but once they walk past a kitchen and detect the tiniest wafting scents of meals cooking, they realize that they're absolutely famished.
Yep, that's me. Now that we know where Eurovision 2011 will be held, and we're getting a better picture of which nations will be participating and how their entries will be chosen, I'm getting really excited to see how Düsseldorf will compare to Oslo (and Moscow, Belgrade, Helsinki, etcetera, before it). But since it will be another few months before we get to hear the lion's share of candidate songs, I thought I'd give you all a blast from the not-so-distant past, and serve up a list of a few of my favorite Preselection songs from last year. These are the ones who didn't quite make it to Oslo, but they made a bit of an impression on me, at the very least. (By the way, I'm specifically skipping mention of the fantastic Albanian and Estonian preselections, as I had made pretty heavy mention of them in their nation's individual postings...but feel free to backtrack and check them out! Estonia, in particular, put on a fabulous National Selection this year, and there are about a half-dozen songs from Eestilaul 2010 on my iTunes right now.)
Anyway, in no particular order:
From Greece: "Enjoy the Day" by Katherine Avgoustakis.
Katherine, who is actually a Belgian citizen born to a Greek father, was strongly favored to go to Oslo with this danceable summer song, but a clause in the national preselection banned any of the candidate songs from being released to the public before a specified date, or else risk disqualification. A remix of "Enjoy the Day" was leaked to YouTube early, and Katherine was left out in the cold. There are rumors that she's going to try to represent Greece again, and if she can duplicate the popularity of her 2010 song, I wouldn't count her out of the running to go to Düsseldorf.
Fom Denmark: "Breathing" by Bryan Rice.
Coming in second place in this year's Dansk Melodi Grand Prix was this modern ballad, which always seems to remind me a bit of Leona Lewis's "Bleeding Love". I personally preferred this entry over Denmark's eventual winner, Chanée and N'evergreen's "In a Moment Like This", but since I can't vote, I can't complain! In a way, it's almost a good thing that Bryan missed out in 2010, as Denmark's 2008 and 2009 entry, Simon Mathew's "All Night Long" and Brinck's "Believe Again", respectively were both male-driven, mid-tempo numbers, and maybe it was time to switch things up a bit.
From Malta: "Save a Life" by Wayne Micallef.
Although I know that Malta is more or less obsessed with Eurovision, I am generally not a massive fan of many of the songs that the island nation submits (Sorry! Nothing personal, I promise!). However, I really liked Micallef's entry this year. It has the hopeful, positive message that many Maltese ESC songs tend to have, without sounding like a track ripped from a 1995 Disney film. His voice is strong, and "Save a Life" kind of reminds me of something that Snow Patrol or The Fray would come out with, and it might have stacked up pretty well against Tom Dice or Jon Lilygreen this year. He also gets points from me for performing his own song, as only three self-penned tunes made it to the Maltese final this year, out of 20 songs. Wayne came in 6th place in the 2010 preselection, and 7th the year before that. If he keeps writing songs like this one, we might see him on the big stage sometime soon.
From Moldova: "Amintirele Dor (The Memories Hurt)" by Leylla
When I first introduce Eurovision to my friends who aren't quite familiar with the contest, many imagine imagine a contest full of ethno-techno-disco pop like this. The Moldovan preselection this past year was packed, with over 80 songs vying for a shot at Oslo. Those 80-some-odd songs were all released to the public, but only 30 made it to the semifinal level (25 picked by a jury, and 5 by local SMS voting). When the dust settled, Eurofans from all over were stunned to see that Leylla had missed out, especially considering that crap like this went through.
But, on the bright side, if Leylla had gone to Oslo, the would never would have gotten to know the glory of the saxroll. Brings a tear to your eye, doesn't it?
From the Ukraine: "Emotional Lady" by Dazzle Dreams.
Ok, this one is a total guilty pleasure. I love it when songs in other languages randomly slip in a line or two in English, and combining that with Depeche Mode-inspired synthpop makes me a happy Samantha. Granted, though..."Dazzle Dreams"? The band name sounds a bit like something that a five-year-old girl would come up with while trying to name her pink My Little Pony. Great song, though...
From Russia: "Dlinnaya-dlinnaya beresta i kak sdelat' iz nee aishon (Long-Long Birch Bark and How to Make a Headdress From It)" by Buranovskiye Babushki (whew!)
This song is an obvious departure from any other tune in this year's contest (or almost any year's contest, for that matter). It's sung in Udmurt, which is a minority language more closely related to Finnish and Estonian than Russian, and was performed by the Buranovskiye Babushki (literally, "The Grannies from Buranovo). Believe it or not, this was a serious contender to go to Oslo, coming in third place in the Russian national final!
And I don't care what anybody says. This song makes me happy. Just try to listen to it and not smile! I dare you!
...Yeah, that's what I thought.
(More coming up in the next entry!)
Yep, that's me. Now that we know where Eurovision 2011 will be held, and we're getting a better picture of which nations will be participating and how their entries will be chosen, I'm getting really excited to see how Düsseldorf will compare to Oslo (and Moscow, Belgrade, Helsinki, etcetera, before it). But since it will be another few months before we get to hear the lion's share of candidate songs, I thought I'd give you all a blast from the not-so-distant past, and serve up a list of a few of my favorite Preselection songs from last year. These are the ones who didn't quite make it to Oslo, but they made a bit of an impression on me, at the very least. (By the way, I'm specifically skipping mention of the fantastic Albanian and Estonian preselections, as I had made pretty heavy mention of them in their nation's individual postings...but feel free to backtrack and check them out! Estonia, in particular, put on a fabulous National Selection this year, and there are about a half-dozen songs from Eestilaul 2010 on my iTunes right now.)
Anyway, in no particular order:
From Greece: "Enjoy the Day" by Katherine Avgoustakis.
Katherine, who is actually a Belgian citizen born to a Greek father, was strongly favored to go to Oslo with this danceable summer song, but a clause in the national preselection banned any of the candidate songs from being released to the public before a specified date, or else risk disqualification. A remix of "Enjoy the Day" was leaked to YouTube early, and Katherine was left out in the cold. There are rumors that she's going to try to represent Greece again, and if she can duplicate the popularity of her 2010 song, I wouldn't count her out of the running to go to Düsseldorf.
Fom Denmark: "Breathing" by Bryan Rice.
Coming in second place in this year's Dansk Melodi Grand Prix was this modern ballad, which always seems to remind me a bit of Leona Lewis's "Bleeding Love". I personally preferred this entry over Denmark's eventual winner, Chanée and N'evergreen's "In a Moment Like This", but since I can't vote, I can't complain! In a way, it's almost a good thing that Bryan missed out in 2010, as Denmark's 2008 and 2009 entry, Simon Mathew's "All Night Long" and Brinck's "Believe Again", respectively were both male-driven, mid-tempo numbers, and maybe it was time to switch things up a bit.
From Malta: "Save a Life" by Wayne Micallef.
Although I know that Malta is more or less obsessed with Eurovision, I am generally not a massive fan of many of the songs that the island nation submits (Sorry! Nothing personal, I promise!). However, I really liked Micallef's entry this year. It has the hopeful, positive message that many Maltese ESC songs tend to have, without sounding like a track ripped from a 1995 Disney film. His voice is strong, and "Save a Life" kind of reminds me of something that Snow Patrol or The Fray would come out with, and it might have stacked up pretty well against Tom Dice or Jon Lilygreen this year. He also gets points from me for performing his own song, as only three self-penned tunes made it to the Maltese final this year, out of 20 songs. Wayne came in 6th place in the 2010 preselection, and 7th the year before that. If he keeps writing songs like this one, we might see him on the big stage sometime soon.
From Moldova: "Amintirele Dor (The Memories Hurt)" by Leylla
When I first introduce Eurovision to my friends who aren't quite familiar with the contest, many imagine imagine a contest full of ethno-techno-disco pop like this. The Moldovan preselection this past year was packed, with over 80 songs vying for a shot at Oslo. Those 80-some-odd songs were all released to the public, but only 30 made it to the semifinal level (25 picked by a jury, and 5 by local SMS voting). When the dust settled, Eurofans from all over were stunned to see that Leylla had missed out, especially considering that crap like this went through.
But, on the bright side, if Leylla had gone to Oslo, the would never would have gotten to know the glory of the saxroll. Brings a tear to your eye, doesn't it?
From the Ukraine: "Emotional Lady" by Dazzle Dreams.
Ok, this one is a total guilty pleasure. I love it when songs in other languages randomly slip in a line or two in English, and combining that with Depeche Mode-inspired synthpop makes me a happy Samantha. Granted, though..."Dazzle Dreams"? The band name sounds a bit like something that a five-year-old girl would come up with while trying to name her pink My Little Pony. Great song, though...
From Russia: "Dlinnaya-dlinnaya beresta i kak sdelat' iz nee aishon (Long-Long Birch Bark and How to Make a Headdress From It)" by Buranovskiye Babushki (whew!)
This song is an obvious departure from any other tune in this year's contest (or almost any year's contest, for that matter). It's sung in Udmurt, which is a minority language more closely related to Finnish and Estonian than Russian, and was performed by the Buranovskiye Babushki (literally, "The Grannies from Buranovo). Believe it or not, this was a serious contender to go to Oslo, coming in third place in the Russian national final!
And I don't care what anybody says. This song makes me happy. Just try to listen to it and not smile! I dare you!
...Yeah, that's what I thought.
(More coming up in the next entry!)
Sunday, September 5, 2010
ESC Wish List: Nanook
Going from Thomas Holm, my next suggestion for Eurovision, while technically still citizens of Denmark, couldn't be much further from Holm's synth-pop sensibilities. Quite literally, in fact: there's a distance of over 2,200 miles between Copenhagen and Nuuk, the capital city of Greenland. That's about the distance between Los Angeles and Orlando, or Lisbon to St. Petersburg! Greenland is an autonomous nation that is still partially governed under the Danish crown. They have their own Parliament, but spend the Danish Krone and are protected by the Danish military. It is the world's largest island, and as a standalone nation, Greenland is the 13th-largest country (by area) on the planet, larger than Saudi Arabia, Mexico, or Indonesia. Despite their massive size, only about 56,000 people call Greenland home, making it by far the least densely populated country.
So, why am I telling you all of this information on Greenland? Well, that's because it's where today's ESC Wish List artist hails from. I don't quite remember how I came across Nanook, but I'm incredibly glad I did. They sing exclusively in Greenlandic (Kalaallisut), which is related to other Inuit languages like Inuktitut, Aleut, or Yup'ik. Being generally interested by foreign language, the moment I heard brothers Frederik and Christian Elsner singing in a tongue that I had never heard before, I was fascinated. Nanook (Greenlandic for "polar bear") released their first album, "Seqinitta Qinngorpaatit (Our Sun is Shining on You)" last year, and I've been pretty much hooked ever since. Luckily, it's available on iTunes here in the US. Here's the title track from their first album, with a translation available here:
The intimate, garage-band quality of the video, coupled with the rolling gait of the music...to me, this is absolutely beautiful. Sadly, it doesn't look like they have many other videos out (it's hard enough being an independent artist out here in the Twin Cities area, with a population of 3 million in the metro. Can you imagine being a musician in a market of only a little over 50,000?), but if you appreciate beautifully-written alt-rock, with echoes of Britpop, you might want to give these guys a listen. I was able to find a brief sampler of some of their other songs, including "Kisimiinneq", "Timmissat Taartut", and "Seqinitta Qinngorpaatit", among others.
Their chances of getting to the Danish Melodi Grand Prix are slim, sadly, even if they did decide to take the long trip to Copenhagen. But these guys are working their butts off, making beautiful music in one of the most starkly beautiful and desolate places on the planet. I feel like more people should hear Nanook, and have their sun shine on us, even if it's completely dark there from November through February.
So, why am I telling you all of this information on Greenland? Well, that's because it's where today's ESC Wish List artist hails from. I don't quite remember how I came across Nanook, but I'm incredibly glad I did. They sing exclusively in Greenlandic (Kalaallisut), which is related to other Inuit languages like Inuktitut, Aleut, or Yup'ik. Being generally interested by foreign language, the moment I heard brothers Frederik and Christian Elsner singing in a tongue that I had never heard before, I was fascinated. Nanook (Greenlandic for "polar bear") released their first album, "Seqinitta Qinngorpaatit (Our Sun is Shining on You)" last year, and I've been pretty much hooked ever since. Luckily, it's available on iTunes here in the US. Here's the title track from their first album, with a translation available here:
The intimate, garage-band quality of the video, coupled with the rolling gait of the music...to me, this is absolutely beautiful. Sadly, it doesn't look like they have many other videos out (it's hard enough being an independent artist out here in the Twin Cities area, with a population of 3 million in the metro. Can you imagine being a musician in a market of only a little over 50,000?), but if you appreciate beautifully-written alt-rock, with echoes of Britpop, you might want to give these guys a listen. I was able to find a brief sampler of some of their other songs, including "Kisimiinneq", "Timmissat Taartut", and "Seqinitta Qinngorpaatit", among others.
Their chances of getting to the Danish Melodi Grand Prix are slim, sadly, even if they did decide to take the long trip to Copenhagen. But these guys are working their butts off, making beautiful music in one of the most starkly beautiful and desolate places on the planet. I feel like more people should hear Nanook, and have their sun shine on us, even if it's completely dark there from November through February.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
ESC Wish List: Thomas Holm
As I'm basically killing time between now and when further Eurovision News pops up (which might start rolling as soon as next month, when we might have an official confirmation on next year's location), I figured I'd play a bit of "Fantasy ESC". As I've been learning more about pop and rock music from abroad, I've encountered quite a few great artists who I'd love to see on the Eurovision stage one day.
(Disclaimer: I'm NOT trying to start any rumors here...I'm just sharing a few great singers with you, my readers! Let me know what you think, or if you have any suggestions that you'd like to send my way; I'm always on the prowl for great new music to add to my collection.)
We start our tour in Denmark, home of Thomas Holm. This 31-year-old singer-songwriter recently released his first full-length album, "Middelklassehelt (Middle Class Hero)", and has been performing actively throughout his native country. His album is a mix of self-deprecating wit, soul-searching introspection, and head-bopping electronic pop, and I've been enjoying it thoroughly!
Here's his first single, "Nitten" (while it literally means "Nineteen", it basically translates to "The Short Straw"), which has become my go-to "bad-day-song", despite the fact that I don't speak any Danish. (Don't worry, English captions are available!)
Now, don't you just feel better about your crappy day after watching Thomas getting pummeled? I know I do...
His next single, "Selvmord på Dansegulvet (Suicide on the Dancefloor)" is another immensely catchy pop song, and while I can't find a video with the English lyrics embedded like I could with the video for "Nitten", I can say that this song speaks to the awkward partygoer in all of us...the clip is pretty self-explanatory (and a lot of fun!)
Even if he's not depending on electronic beats or high production values, Holm's voice is undeniably beautiful, and it pairs wonderfully with a single guitar, as in the case of this acoustic version of "Byens Bitreste Mand (The City's Bitterest Man)". It's in a performance like this that shows his versatility, that he's not just a comedian with musical ability, but a well-rounded singer-songwriter who's able to capture heartbreak just as effectively as exasperation or well-intended awkwardness. I have no idea if he's even considering entering Denmark's preselection, the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix, next year. If he is, however, and he enters an upbeat number like "Selvmord På Dansegulvet", he very well might be able to take it all the way to Germany in 2011. However, Thomas tends to sing exclusively in Danish, and no entry has been sung in that language since 1997, so the odds might be slightly stacked against him.
But a girl can dream, right?
(Disclaimer: I'm NOT trying to start any rumors here...I'm just sharing a few great singers with you, my readers! Let me know what you think, or if you have any suggestions that you'd like to send my way; I'm always on the prowl for great new music to add to my collection.)
We start our tour in Denmark, home of Thomas Holm. This 31-year-old singer-songwriter recently released his first full-length album, "Middelklassehelt (Middle Class Hero)", and has been performing actively throughout his native country. His album is a mix of self-deprecating wit, soul-searching introspection, and head-bopping electronic pop, and I've been enjoying it thoroughly!
Here's his first single, "Nitten" (while it literally means "Nineteen", it basically translates to "The Short Straw"), which has become my go-to "bad-day-song", despite the fact that I don't speak any Danish. (Don't worry, English captions are available!)
Now, don't you just feel better about your crappy day after watching Thomas getting pummeled? I know I do...
His next single, "Selvmord på Dansegulvet (Suicide on the Dancefloor)" is another immensely catchy pop song, and while I can't find a video with the English lyrics embedded like I could with the video for "Nitten", I can say that this song speaks to the awkward partygoer in all of us...the clip is pretty self-explanatory (and a lot of fun!)
Even if he's not depending on electronic beats or high production values, Holm's voice is undeniably beautiful, and it pairs wonderfully with a single guitar, as in the case of this acoustic version of "Byens Bitreste Mand (The City's Bitterest Man)". It's in a performance like this that shows his versatility, that he's not just a comedian with musical ability, but a well-rounded singer-songwriter who's able to capture heartbreak just as effectively as exasperation or well-intended awkwardness. I have no idea if he's even considering entering Denmark's preselection, the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix, next year. If he is, however, and he enters an upbeat number like "Selvmord På Dansegulvet", he very well might be able to take it all the way to Germany in 2011. However, Thomas tends to sing exclusively in Danish, and no entry has been sung in that language since 1997, so the odds might be slightly stacked against him.
But a girl can dream, right?
Monday, April 26, 2010
ESC 2010 Reviews: Denmark
Denmark, having entered the ESC back in 1957, was the first Scandinavian entry to enter the contest, and they were also the first Nordic nation to chalk up a win, with 1963's timeless and elegant "Dansevise", performed by husband-and-wife team Grethe (vocals) and Jørgen Ingmann (guitars). (And, just as a point of trivia, Jørgen's 1961 version of "Apache" hit #1 on the US Singles list, making him one of the few Eurovision stars to find success on the American charts. The song was later covered and/or sampled by The Shadows, The Sugarhill Gang, Fatboy Slim, Amy Winehouse, M.I.A., and The Roots.)
Despite Denmark's long history in Eurovision, they've only won once more, with 2000's "Fly on the Wings Of Love" sung by the Olsen Brothers (coincidentally, one of whom was also named Jørgen). The following year, they scored a respectable 2nd place with "Never Ever Let You Go", co-written by Søren Poppe. Last year, they sent a fantastic pop-rock song, "Believe Again", co-written by Irish superstar Ronan Keating (and later recorded in Dutch and Afrikaans, hitting the charts in the Netherlands and South Africa), but it only made it to 13th place. So, as far as I can tell, Denmark's key to success is the letter Ø!
Sø, if my theøry stacks up at all, Denmark may have already shøt themselves in the føøt by submitting a sadly "ø-free" søng, "In a Moment Like This", sung nøt by American Idøl-winner Kelly Clarksøn, but by Chanée and N'Evergreen.
Eurovision 2010 Denmark - Chanée & N'Evergreen - In A Moment
Uploaded by Esctube. - See the latest featured music videos.
It seems almost tailor-made for Eurovision, with familiar pop hooks that bring to mind The Police's "Every Breath You Take" and Tina Turner's "Simply the Best". Just add an appropriate key change, two good-looking singers, and a good stage presentation, and you may end up with a frontrunner for this year's title. It's not my personal favorite this year (although I'd definitely put it in my top dozen or so, and it's growing on me quickly), but the bookies seem to favor it, and ESC fan clubs all over the continent are definitely supporting it, with or without the Scandinavian Voting Bloc advantage. I'd be surprised if it didn't hit the Top 5 in this year's Finals!
Gøø∂ Lüçk, ∂éñmå®k!
Despite Denmark's long history in Eurovision, they've only won once more, with 2000's "Fly on the Wings Of Love" sung by the Olsen Brothers (coincidentally, one of whom was also named Jørgen). The following year, they scored a respectable 2nd place with "Never Ever Let You Go", co-written by Søren Poppe. Last year, they sent a fantastic pop-rock song, "Believe Again", co-written by Irish superstar Ronan Keating (and later recorded in Dutch and Afrikaans, hitting the charts in the Netherlands and South Africa), but it only made it to 13th place. So, as far as I can tell, Denmark's key to success is the letter Ø!
Sø, if my theøry stacks up at all, Denmark may have already shøt themselves in the føøt by submitting a sadly "ø-free" søng, "In a Moment Like This", sung nøt by American Idøl-winner Kelly Clarksøn, but by Chanée and N'Evergreen.
Eurovision 2010 Denmark - Chanée & N'Evergreen - In A Moment
Uploaded by Esctube. - See the latest featured music videos.
It seems almost tailor-made for Eurovision, with familiar pop hooks that bring to mind The Police's "Every Breath You Take" and Tina Turner's "Simply the Best". Just add an appropriate key change, two good-looking singers, and a good stage presentation, and you may end up with a frontrunner for this year's title. It's not my personal favorite this year (although I'd definitely put it in my top dozen or so, and it's growing on me quickly), but the bookies seem to favor it, and ESC fan clubs all over the continent are definitely supporting it, with or without the Scandinavian Voting Bloc advantage. I'd be surprised if it didn't hit the Top 5 in this year's Finals!
Gøø∂ Lüçk, ∂éñmå®k!
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