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.

New Videos/Versions for Bulgaria, Russia, Slovenia, Poland, and Belarus

Over the past few days, a number of official videos have been released for some of this year's entries (and we're still expecting ones from Israel, the UK, Armenia, Sweden, and Azerbaijan).  Plus, we've got new translations for a few entries!  Let's get right to it:

Starting off, Bulgaria's Poli Genova released the official clip for "Na Inat (For Spite)", and I must say that I'm really impressed!

This new video blends the anthemic pop-rock vibe of Poli's National Final performance with the universal message of "we can change the world together" that is all-so-prevalent in Eurovision.  Those who don't understand Bulgarian (like me, for example) will be able to hone into Poli's meaning pretty easily (if Miss Genova releasing a dove at the end doesn't hammer it home, you might need your head checked). 

It's Magdalena Tul for Poland!

As a Valentine's Day gift to Eurofans everywhere, the Polish delegation decided on their representative to Eurovision 2011 today.  After ten performances and a public televote (which, unlike many other national finals, was what the decision was entirely based on, rather than splitting the choice with a professional jury), the Polish decision was made, loud and clear.  With a full 44.47% of the vote (twice as much as the runner-up), the winner was Magdalena Tul's "Jestem (I Am)":


Magda, a 30-year-old Gdansk native, is an experienced performer (she's appeared in local productions of "Miss Saigon", "Cats", and "Grease", among others).

Now, I generally have terrible luck when it comes to having my favorite songs from a preselection actually make it through to Eurovision itself.  "Jestem", however, immediately stood out to me when I heard it for the first time.  Even though it's in Polish (a language I don't speak in the slightest), it's instantly catchy and memorable, with a great beat.  Poland's debut entry, "To Nie Ja!", came in second place back in 1994, but the nation has only made it back into the Top Ten once since then.  In my opinion, this is the best song that Poland has sent to an ESC in years, and if Magda keeps the energy high, this might just end up turning into 2011's "Shady Lady".

ESC 2010 Reviews: Poland

(Just as an FYI, as I'm running out of time to post my reviews, I'm going to hold off on my entries on Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom, as they have already qualified for the Finals on May 29th.  Thanks for understanding!)

Poland has been taking part in the ESC since 1994, which is also the year they had their biggest success in the competition, with Edyta Gorniak's "To Nie Ja (That's Not Me)".  Considered one of the best debuts in Eurovision history (both in score and in quality), Poland's been trying to duplicate that success for the past sixteen years, to little or no avail.  They've only had one other Top Ten placing since then, with Ich Troje's "Keine Grenzen-Żadnych granic (No Borders)", sung in German and Polish with a smattering of Russian.  The song, a call for peace, came in 7th place.

Poland has often rested on the laurels of "pretty girl + big song", and despite middling success, they've sent some pretty nice tunes.  For example, 1997's entry, Ana Maria Jopek's "Ale Jestem (But I Am)", was a beautiful folk-inspired number, but it only made it to eleventh place.  They've sent ballads the last two years that, while beautiful, have either scored in last place in the final nor not qualified at all.  They've also sent a few true clunkers.  I still wince when I think about 2007's "Time To Party" by The Jet Set.  I don't care how much money you spend on your stage show, you aren't allowed to rhyme "party" with "party".  It defies the laws of nature and music. 

After a few years of middling success, Warsaw's sending Marcin Mrozinski to Oslo with "Legenda".

Like the Moldovan entry, I feel like this song is trying to combine too many things into three minutes.  There's the traditional piece, sung in Polish in fits and spurts throughout the song, about a knight who kidnaps a princess.  There's the violin break, which might be trying to make listeners recall Alexander Rybak from last year.  Then there's the body of the song, sung in a Google-Translated version of English, that can't make up its mind if it's a ballad, rock, or somewhere in between.  Individually, I generally like those elements appearing in Eurovision.  But all in one song?  It's a bit chaotic, and even when the song draws to a dramatic climax, I'm left kind of cold.  He'll be in the first semifinal, so who knows if he'll pass through, but if he makes it to the finals, I'm not sure if he'll do any better than 15th or 20th place.