✨ BJSC 100 ✨

BJSC 100

Francis and the Lights - 'See Her Out (That's Just Life)'

 

 

The landmark 100th edition of BJSC kicked off last night with a grandeur entry showcase presentation in Unovia! It was announced that our pick for this contest is 'See Her Out (That's Just Life)' by Francis and the Lights. Do not be confused by the name, Francis and the Lights is actually a solo singer and not a band - this is American performer Francis Farewell Starlight. On 'the lights', he states that: "There are no "members" of Francis and the Lights. It is me and whomever else is involved. Including you." So this means that everyone this month simply must stan my song as y'all are a part of it. x Francis is a recycle as he was previously sent to BJSC 89 (the Jadaphonia contest!) by FKA π with 'I Want You To Shake'. Sadly this brilliant entry was a DNQ so it's time for us to give Francis some justice with a song that we deem even better. Those glowing synths are just undeniable! I (along with Bray) was lucky enough to see Francis open for The xx in Nottingham earlier in the year and his set was captivating. This was the strongest song of the bunch for me from his debut album 'Farewell, Starlite!' (yup, that is what my teaser was alluding to!). This evening was the best concert of my life so I thought this song would be something really special for me to unleash for the 100th contest. I hope you all enjoy this song - from the aforementioned striking synths, to the indistinguishable opening verse, to the subtle change of pace after that, to the commanding chorus. Oh and the music video is a one-take affair too, featuring Francis doing a bit of gymnastics across a zebra crossing after a lot of walking. *.* We have been drawn in slot 31/43 (mammoth contest alert) in semi 2, so c'mon semi 2 people - please rally behind this wonderful song and give Francis a second chance!

 

Edit: post 666 in this thread *_*

I will do a sad if this DNQs. Sounded just as wonderful as I remembered from Nottingham when you whored it out played it on plug just now. :heart:

I will do a sad if this DNQs. Sounded just as wonderful as I remembered from Nottingham when you whored it out played it on plug just now. :heart:

I feel like my entry would appeal to semi 1 people a lot more so I am preparing to DNQ this time :( Lmao, I promise that was just an outlier in my usual anti-whore plug stance :kink: glad it sounded great to your ears again second time round anyway <3<3 damn you random.org.

No farewells for Francis as he lights up the final!

 

We are shocked but thrilled to be able to announce that our entry for the milestone 100th BJSC contest has QUALIFIED for the final! It was touch and go really with our borderline predictions but 'See Her Out (That's Just Life)' becomes our 23th qualifier to date out of a possible 27. This also extends our longest qualifying streak to date further to 8 qualifications in a row *.* Not entirely sure how we did it when this seemed like a less than favourable semi for us but we shall not question it. Thank you to everyone who voted for Francis as JUSTICE has now been served following 'I Want You To Shake's DNQ. <3 please help us out in the final to round off the year with a good result. We have been drawn in slot #43!

 

As for our votes... well just look at this... so many that were all bunched together from semi 2 that we lost:

 

18 Q

15 Q

13 Q

12 Q

11 Q

10 PRoJ // Røyksopp - Electric Counterpoint: III. Fast - RYXPs Milde Salve

09 Q

08 Flynnonda // Mondo Grosso - Labyrinth

07 Varakë // Fhin - Quand On Arrive En Ville

06 Cadelicia // Tempura Kidz - I Like It

05 Thelonia // Lupa - Circus Game

04 Séyetana // Yuki Hayashi - You Say Run

03 Mezidinia // Gaby Henshaw - High Grade

02 Helgon // Sophia Somajo ft. Seinabo Sey - The Last Summer

01 Cumulonimbia // Lisa Lougheed - Run With Us

 

What a mess. But at least our top 5 are through! We also would have given points to Ambienta, Terra Avium, Deandria and Summericia in semi 1. </3

 

Thanks once again guys! :heart: also - look out soon for our double whammy of EOY countdown and a Jadakissnia recap video for 2017 that will be coming after 100 results.

BJSC 100 Results

Francis and the Lights - 'See Her Out (That's Just Life)'

 

http://artisticmanifesto.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Screen-Shot-2017-05-18-at-10.30.19-AM.png

 

The results of the landmark 100th edition of BJSC were announced in Unovia on Friday. To our amazement, we finished in 14th place with an excellent haul of 261 points for 'See Her Out (That's Just Life)' by Francis and the Lights! Not too shabby when we were almost certain that we were going to DNQ in what seemed like an unfavourable semi. Although it turned out that our semi wasn't unfavourable at all... because we finished as high as 6th place with 194 points. Lmao. This is our best semi points tally ever as the usual semi system was inflated to the 18 point system. Our 14th place finish in the final marks our 3rd and final top 15 hit of the year - following 'Headless' by Tearist (12th) in BJSC 91 and 'Waqqaberry' by BÖ (3rd) in BJSC 94. We're absolutely over the moon that a song like 'See Her Out (That's Just Life)' was only 12 points away from the top 10! We have definitely rounded off the year in style by giving Francis some justice after his DNQ in BJSC 89. We are very thankful for all the points we received this time, especially the medal positions! We received no 18s this time but 15s from Cadelicia and Persephonia + 13s from Deandria and Varakë :heart:

 

The great news does not stop there however! Aeroche scooped the coveted 100 crown with the stunning 'Capitol' by TR/ST... which means that our 18 has won for the second time ever after 'Habib Galbi' by A-WA (sent by Persephonia) in BJSC 74!! We really did not see this coming at all, but perhaps we should have as a year simply cannot pass without an Aeroche win, can it? We cannot wait to start off BJSC 2018 in Aeroche as they are reliably flawless hosts *.* Our 15 was then awarded to Kluminican Republic with the ultimate guilty pleasure that is 'Butterfly' by Smile. They finished just ahead of us in 13th! Our bronze finished pretty close to us as well - this was 'Part XIV' by Prequell feat. Rae Morris sent by Espen, which just missed out on the top 15 in 16th. We're flabbergasted that we were anywhere near the Klum Rep and Espen songs, especially when we had them pegged as certain top 10s.

 

Thanks to the following for giving us points this month: Summericia, Palmyra, N DNTN, East Rukahavian, Kingdom of Horanius, Umiiruka, Dobago, Kluminican Republic, Séyetana, ProJ, Tinnmark, Azure, Deandria, Fljótavík, South Danaelanda, Persephonia, Cadelicia, Singerpurear, Suedeonia, Jupiterdonia, FARC, Terra Avium, Varakë, Thelonia, St. Burbia, Medhelnia, Vülkyria, Ambienta, Skall, Ojnoj, Aelandor, Scherzland, Taahino + Republic of Adonia :heart:

 

POINTS GIVEN + RECEIVED TOP 10s UPDATE

 

GIVEN

 

01) 257 Persephonia

02) 152 Terra Avium

03) 130 Trifoski

04) 104 Espen

05) 97 N DNTN

06) 97 Singerpurear

07) 95 Kluminican Republic

08) 89 Quintessa

09) 88 Fljótavík

10) 81 #00274E

 

RECEIVED

 

01) 251 Persephonia

02) 199 Terra Avium

03) 166 Espen

04) 144 Deandria

05) 137 Quintessa

06) 132 Suedeonia

07) 118 Aeroche

08) 115 Land of DW

09) 113 Kylienips

10) 112 Skall

 

ADIOS BJSC 2017!

 

Now we bid farewell to competing in BJSC main contests and spinoffs in 2017! All that is left is the EOY celebrations of TBO and Rejects, so it's time to unleash our annual recap video of main contest and spinoff entries! Enjoy *.*

 

 

This is what our BJSC 2017 looked like in stats...

 

MAIN CONTESTS

 

BJSC 91

Tearist // Headless

Semi: 17/31 (53 pts)

Final: 12/41 (216 pts)

 

BJSC 92

SOLDOUT // Do It Again (feat. GOOSE)

Semi: 23/32 (41 pts)

Final: DNQ

 

BJSC 93

aYia // Ruins

Semi: 10/30 (67 pts)

Final: 21/41 (176 pts)

 

BJSC 94

BÖ // Waqqaberry

Semi: 04/33 (100 pts)

Final: 03/41 (290 pts)

 

BJSC 95

Hugar // Waves (feat. Arnór Dan)

Semi: 09/33 (77 pts)

Final: 22/41 (183 pts)

 

BJSC 96

KING PLAGUE // Ave Plague

Semi: 05/33 (95 pts)

Final: 17/42 (177 pts)

 

BJSC 97

MONOMOTION // Mango Bay

Semi: 15/31 (65 pts)

Final: 24/41 (173 pts)

 

BJSC 98

Moth Equals // Jiv

Semi: 09/35 (77 pts)

Final: 27/42 (165 pts)

 

BJSC 99

Zhanar Dugalova // Izin Korem

Semi: 14/34 (59 pts)

Final: 24/41 (180 pts)

 

BJSC 100

Francis and the Lights // See Her Out (That's Just Life)

Semi: 06/43 (194 pts)

Final: 14/47 (261 pts)

 

12-xx-21-03-22-17-24-27-24-14

 

SPINOFFS

 

Masquerade

Tame Impala // Let It Happen

Final: 08/43 (148 pts)

 

80s

Ryo Kawasaki // Hawaiian Caravan

Final: 23/38 (78 pts)

 

Japan vs. South Korea

BPM15Q // Daydream

Final: 03/26 (87 pts)

 

Schlagerfest

VIAN // Gå Der Vinden Blåser

Final: 09/24 (66 pts)

 

08-23-03-09

 

2016 was always going to be hard to beat for us when we took away 6 top 10 finishes including our best result to date of 2nd. But we feel like 2017 has still been a respectable year for success. We qualified 9 times out of 10 once again and advanced up the medal table with a 3rd place finish for 'Waqqaberry'. 4 top 20 hits will do us fine. Plus... we found our groove again in the spinoffs! We entered all 4 spinoffs this year and came top 10 in 3 of them so that is just brilliant. We have made so many stellar discoveries this year and also have no regrets about anything that we sent. Bring on 2018 BJSC as we have two absolutely incredible entries lined up for 101 and 102 already. But first... we couldn't see the year out without an EOY countdown! So look out for that soon. ^_^

have you made it? check back in due course (aka when I get a spare minute from Uni work) ...

CHRISTMAS MIRACLE

 

Yes lemme keep rambling to myself here and quintuple post because a true TBO miracle happened tonight. We were expecting 'Waqqaberry' by BÖ to be our best shot of advancing to the semis as our best result of the year. But of course, our 3rd places are apparently cursed as this follows 'Scope' by MssingNo in exiting before the semi-final stage. So, that didn't make it. But... neither did any of our other top 20 results of the year :o So what could it be?!

 

That's right...

 

 

MONOMOTION - 'Mango Bay'

BJSC 97 | 24th

 

An entry that merely came TWENTY-FOURTH for us has advanced! :lol: we're a bit flabbergasted as only three people who voted gave it a medal position in its original contest. But... we shall not question it and anticipate our last place in the semi :kink: seriously though thanks guys 'cause I never would've expected it and it's my favourite song that I sent this year <3 news in already that Hendinia are delighted that this qualified tbh xox

 

15/50 of our votes are through this year which is... double-figures, a marked improvement on last year. Yay! See y'all at the semis *.* #MangoBayToNotComeLast

:wub: your best entry of the year, slainnn at it defying the odds to make it through!! It to somehow get through the semi as well pls x

 

(a belated yasss for Francis doing so well too ofc, I apologise for me enabling your pessimism lmao x)

:wub: your best entry of the year, slainnn at it defying the odds to make it through!! It to somehow get through the semi as well pls x

 

(a belated yasss for Francis doing so well too ofc, I apologise for me enabling your pessimism lmao x)

You and me both :wub: that post announcing 'Mango Bay' and 'Hearth' through was just all kinds of incredible. Why yes, a miracle to strike twice ;o

 

:kink: that's quite alright, said pessimism gave me an opportunity to defy the odds and all *.* nu Seven x

So MONOMOTION finished 34th in TBO semi 1 with 74 points. Not too disastrous for a song that placed 24th in its original contest.

 

Moving swiftly on, today I would like to kick off my 2017 EOY top 100 countdown *.* but before we get to that commentary, here are the songs that just missed out:

 

150. D'yermak'er // Arrhult - Just Fiction

149. N DNTN // Charlotte Gainsbourg - Deadly Valentine

148. Cor Lupus // BGRZ - Agolo (feat. Angélique Kidjo) (Remix)

147. #00274E // Pogo - Data & Picard

146. Harmonica // Tall Heights - Spirit Cold

145. Unovia // Brooke Fraser - Kings & Queens

144. Azure // Gnučči – Finders Keepers

143. Varakë // Irina Rimes - Visele (DJ Dark & MD.DJ Remix)

142. Pupok // Julia Wieniewa - Na Zawsze

141. Cumulonimbia // Kevin Abstract - Miserable America

 

140. Terra Avium // Ravel Nightstar - The Drums and Bass of Flower Bless

139. Rolloland // Anathema - Untouchable

138. Bhangra // RÜFÜS - You Were Right

137. Caerfyrddia // Jennie Abrhamsson - Into Deep

136. Aeroche // Merely – Backdraft

135. Desbuanda // Sylvan Esso - Radio

134. Oslol // K.I.D - Taker

133. Ajanaeda // Hundred Waters – Xtalk

132. Skall // Jens Lekman - What's That Perfume That You Wear?

131. Terra Avium // Gjallarhorn - Konungen Och Trollkvinen

 

130. Trifoski // Lido feat. THEY. - Not Enough

129. Bøtanikkä // Age Of Love - The Age Of Love (Jam & Spoon Watch Out For Stella Mix)

128. Dobago // Sagi Abitbul – Mariko

127. Ultraviolenceland // Jaded - In The Morning

126. Desbuanda // Paper Route - Chariots

125. Bøtanikkä // Tsar B - Escalate

124. Kluminican Republic // Two Steps From Hell - Archangel

123. St. Burbia // Tasha Tah - Malang (feat. RaOol)

122. Espen // SXTN - DIE FTZN SIND WIEDER DA

121. FSR Rontvia // Kosmonova - Danse Avec Moi!

 

120. Séyetana // Hiroyuki Sawano & Cyua - Vogel im Käfig

119. Land of DW // N.O.H.A. - Di Nero

118. Cumulonimbia // Indian Wells – Cascades

117. Fljótavík // Wealstarr - Feria Festival

116. South Danaelanda // Vitalic - Tu Conmigo (feat. La Bien Querida)

115. Thelonia // Antony & Cleopatra - Dust

114. Beaverdonia // Touch Sensitive - Pizza Guy

113. Fljótavík // Kölsch - þema fyrir fljótavík

112. PRoJ // Röyksopp - Electric Counterpoint: III. Fast - RYXPs Milde Salve

111. South Danaelanda // DJ Mangoo - Eurodancer

 

110. Hendinia // Troll - Jimmy Dean

109. Fljótavík // Agoria - Up All Night [Fljótavík Edit]

108. Terra Avium // Marcus Warner - Africa

107. Summericia // Prince Rama - Fantasy

106. -π // CVL† SH‡† - ßƟd¥ ßΔgƵ

105. Kluminican Republic // Sofi Tukker – Awoo (feat. Betta Lemme)

104. Flynnonda // Charlotte – Pars

103. Hushkanukia // Vera Blue - Private

102. Tartford // Crystal Castles - Concrete

101. Deandria // AaRON - Blouson Noir

 

Stay tuned for more *.*

 

Countries who have at least one entry in the top 100:

 

♡ -π

♡ #00274E

♡ Aelandor

♡ Aeroche

♡ Alteria

♡ Altyr Muunilinst

♡ Ambienta

♡ Azure

♡ Beaverdonia

♡ Bhangra

♡ Bøtanikkä

♡ Buzzjack Mountain

♡ Cadelicia

♡ Cor Lupus

♡ Cowtermont

♡ Deandria

♡ Desbuanda

♡ D'yermak'er

♡ Espen

♡ Fljótavík

♡ Flynnonda

♡ Harmonica

♡ Hendinia

♡ Hushkanukia

♡ FSR Rontvia

♡ Kluminican Republic

♡ Land of DW

♡ Lotunia

♡ Medhelnia

♡ Mulgracia

♡ New Lexico

♡ Ojnoj

♡ Oslol

♡ Persephonia

♡ Pupok

♡ Quintessa

♡ Republic of Adonia

♡ Republique d'Ashton

♡ Rolloland

♡ Sandebörg

♡ Séyetana

♡ Singerpurear

♡ Skall

♡ South Danaelanda

♡ St. Burbia

♡ Suedeonia

♡ Summericia

♡ Taahino

♡ Terra Avium

♡ The Actual Republic of Bellamia

♡ Trifoski

♡ Yehesi

♡ Zanmatony

omg MUNA surely gonna be featured???

lmao I forgot you liked agolo, pretty sure you forgot to let it grow on you too

omg MUNA surely gonna be featured???

Understandable guess, will you be right tho? Watch this space x

 

lmao I forgot you liked agolo, pretty sure you forgot to let it grow on you too

Yess, it has stuck with me enough to make the top 150 *.* I'd say it has grown a bit, as it made it over a couple of songs that I gave more points to in its contest!

 

But of course you would better it by quite a lot a couple of times... :wub:

Soo close to having AaRON in your top 100 haha!! Well, I'm pretty sure I'll spot 'Ankara' somewhere at least <3 (I listened to that after quite some time the other day, it sounded just as good :heart:)

 

Your song choices and commentaries are always really great so I'll try and pop in to have a look from time to time!

Soo close to having AaRON in your top 100 haha!! Well, I'm pretty sure I'll spot 'Ankara' somewhere at least <3 (I listened to that after quite some time the other day, it sounded just as good :heart:)

 

Your song choices and commentaries are always really great so I'll try and pop in to have a look from time to time!

Gah I know!! The country at #100 = your new BJSC rival :kink: but yes you definitely have something in the top 100 so the journey does not end there, you shall find out in time where you have ended up! (okay... I did give 'Ankara' an 18 so yes, definitely echoing your love for it!)

 

Aww thank you, that's such a lovely thing to say :heart:

 

(btw guys I know I said I'd kick off the top 100 tonight but I've had a bit of an IRL setback that has left me deflated, so I'll postpone until at least tomorrow as I don't want my writing to suffer for it. So yes... coming soon <3)

The Age Of Love and Tsar B :wub:

 

I know for sure Noga Erez will be included in top 100 and perhaps Rednex :kink:

Omg... Persephonia flopping with zero appearances so far! :o x

Understandable guess, will you be right tho? Watch this space x

Well you basically hated all my other entries sooooo

Thanks guys for the comments so far <3 (omg tho... that Persephonia floppage x), let's get into the top 100 now!

 

~~~

 

100. Baxter Drury - Miami (Parrot & Cocker Too Remix) (Suedeonia)

99. Josh Pan feat. ABRA - Give It To Ya (Espen)

98. TĀLĀ & MssingNo - Tell Me (feat. WA$$UP) (Medhelnia)

97. Violet Chachki - Bettie (Hendinia)

96. Yaşar Gaga - Şahane Bir Şey Yaşamak (feat. Sezen Aksu) (FSR Rontvia)

95. Karpe Diem - Attitudeproblem (P3 Remix) (feat. Izabell, Bendik, Stella Mwangi, Silvana Imam, Julie Bergan & Christine Dancke) (Republique d'Ashton)

94. Yeasayer - Ambling Alp (Azure)

93. Mark Dekoda - Instance Of Time (Espen)

92. Driftmoon - Genesis (feat. DSharp) (Quintessa)

91. Moment - Indigo (Oslol)

 

We begin our countdown with a solitary scrape from Suedeonia! This nation regularly supports Jadakissnia, but shamefully our voting history appears to be so lopsided. I blame them often DNQing with their best entries. I was able to push my points given to Suedeonia up to double-figures at least when this came along this year! This is the second time that we have voted for them following the joyful 'Tripping The Luv Fantastic' by Where's The Beach, which also made the Jadakissnia EOY countdown last year. 'Miami (Parrot & Cocker Too Remix)' received 7 points from us in the recent landmark 100th edition of the Buzzjack Song Contest in amongst many other strong entries. This barmy offering was one of the most unique in a special contest where nations were vying to stand out. I was pretty shocked when this qualified as it is almost 9 minutes of nonsensical rambling, rife with expletives, courtesy of Ian Dury's son. The female led chorus is the one moment of sanity during the song so I blame that for some of its appeal. This chorus in question gets stuck in your head so effortlessly and is also backed with some wondrous electronic production. There are also string elements in places so that of course gets a thumbs up from me. The whole thing is rather infectious with its quotable lyrics. My favourites are "I'm Morgan Freeman", "I'm a salamander" and "I'm the sausage man". A+ lyricism. Next, we move from a surprising qualifier to an unfortunate DNQ, this one courtesy of Espen in BJSC 97! I was so excited to see josh pan turning up in the contest after 'The War' featuring Aileen Xu was one of my first ever BJSC potentials (definitely should have sent it over 'Luv w Luv' in retrospect), sadly the BJSC masses would underrate this hugely. 'Give It To Ya' features the lush vocals of ABRA who is apparently quite underrated in general this year as she also DNQed for Mezidinia the previous contest. Maybe people were turned off by the fact that she's signed to a record label called 'Awful Records'. :kink: In all seriousness, this is a gem that I hope can do quite well in Rejects. The most memorable aspect for me is the "give it to ya uhhh" refrain which is a satisfying climax after the build-up. I already touched on the vocals being a lovely element, but I also adore the electronic production with trappy flavours in places courtesy of josh pan. He is such an interesting emerging producer in general! I must also point out the fantastic futuristic visualiser that is also part of the package. No typical music video in sight as we instead have top notch computer generated animation created by French artist Quention Deronizer. The dystopian storyline features a character who performs rituals to bring light to her people. The dark visuals compliment the song perfectly. This is one of many appearances for Espen who were one of my favourite countries of the year.

 

At 98 we have another song with aesthetically pleasing visuals. This is of course the Jadaphonia recycle 'Tell Me' by TĀLĀ & MssingNo (featuring South Korean girlgroup WA$$UP on vocals), sent by Medhelnia! MssingNo seemed like a surefire recipe to success thus far after an Unknown Pleasures win for Leww with 'Xe2' and a 3rd place smash for me in BJSC with 'Scope'... but bizarrely this didn't quite take off. It seemed like a made-for-BJSC smash and was immediately receiving top 10 predictions. But it catastrophically underperformed in the BJSC 96 final even before a deduction was factored in. Maybe it was TOO obvious in sound which was off-putting for people? Perhaps a bit style over substance? Or... maybe we just felt unkind to acts with Pokémon-related names after Abra flopping as well x I'm not quite sure but I certainly took to it at least as I awarded it 6 points! I adore both TĀLĀ and MssingNo's production styles, so naturally this was an interesting match made in heaven for me. The production feels limitless as it incorporates quite a lot of sounds. My favourite element is the ethnic tinge of course. Then I feel like WA$$UP deliver an exciting chorus in particular. They keep their entire appearance fresh throughout however by constantly switching between English and Korean. This is the first of two appearances for Medhelnia, their next song to appear thankfully fared better in the final. Next up is a Brayfave from Hendinia. I am of course referring to 'Bettie' by Violet Chachki, the winner of RuPaul's Drag Race season 7. Drag Race music can be hit or miss for me, for instance I previously liked 'Sissy That Walk' but can't stand 'Your Makeup Is Terrible'. I feel like perhaps this noisy, ultra-explicit piece of music shouldn't be my thing on paper. But... somehow it just works! The electronic production duties are an absolute riot and I feel like Violet has a commanding voice. I am also a fan of 'Vanguard' as well for instance. I actually knew this song prior to its BJSC appearance because Jake used to play it on plug.dj back in 2015. So it already had that familiarity for me and still sounded pretty good second time around. I applaud Hendinia for bold entries such as this and 'Jimmy Dean' this year. But this was not quite my favourite as they still have another song to come!

 

At 96 is a Turkish banger from longstanding BJSC nation FSR Rontvia! 'Şahane Bir Şey Yaşamak' is a Turkish cover of Algerian singer Khaled's 'C'Est La Vie', which was a hit in France back in 2012. Marc Anthony's 'Vivir Mi Vida' also contains the same chorus, so this song apparently gets around a lot. Here we have a pretty accessible foreign language song as its chorus is so straightforwardly catchy and easy to attempt to phonetically sing. Also, the melody is not too dissimilar to 'Glad You Came' by The Wanted as Bray pointed out at the time of it being sent. So I can see why it was a top 10 hit. It is an instant pick me up with not only the joyous chorus, but also the summery instrumentation that features tropical elements, a saxophone and some frantic drumming. I feel like this has a pretty anthemic chanty feel at the core with some wonderful ethnic vibes to keep it even more interesting. I prefer it to the original as I feel like this version is more slick and has better instrumentation. This is the first of two appearances for FSR Rontvia in the countdown. Now we simply must go from one half of FSR Ashvia to the other, with another foreign language track at that from Republique d'Ashton! Here we have a stomping Scandi supergroup consisting of female singers who have come together to remake Karpe Diem's 'Attitudeproblem', this time billed as 'P3 Remix'. This group consists of all Norwegian artists, minus Silvana Imam who appears to be Swedish. Séyetana just said that they weren't keen on this song in their review of Ashton's songs this year, so now it's time for a more positive review from yours truly. Well, swiftly after the one negative for me... which is the opening of the video where it depicts Izabell being sick :kink: but she quickly redeems herself by using Donald Trump toilet paper as a big F U to the president *.* This is a super infectious feminist anthem where these girls are expressing their power, control and self love (thanks YouTube for having English subtitles for this one during the contest and now when revisiting it - Bendik 'makes a lot of Bendik cash' don'tchaknow?! x). The chorus is simple but the verses are fierce and laced with attitude, very appropriate for a song called 'Attitudeproblem'. Here we have a great video (I'd say best one in my countdown so far but there's only been two songs with proper music videos... so not much of an accolade :lol:) that goes alongside a fabulous nordic girl power anthem.

 

Next we have another song with a pretty weird and colourful video (does anyone else find the intro part straight after the horse very satisfying?). This matches up well with a striking and uplifting entry from Azure! This nation were brand new to the contest this year and have impressed me enough to have two entries in this top 100. I was really looking forward to this entry from American experimental rock band Yeasayer after previously loving 'O.N.E.' by them which was sent by Trifoski in the past. It was going to be hard to ever top that gem but this is another pretty damn good offering that isn't worlds apart from that! For instance, we have another song here with a bold chorus, interesting sonic elements in the production (that organ though *.*) and a falsetto segment. This one has a bit more of a reggae tinge though. Falsetto can often be hit and miss (*cough* ZAYN in 'I Don't Want To Live Forever') but it's so endearing from Yeasayer. I also love the title 'Ambling Alp'. It has stiff competition from 'Carry My Urn To Ukraine' and 'Standing Outside A Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand' however as the very best this year. Now at #93 we move back to both foreign language and also Espen as their second entry in this countdown crops up! 'Instance Of Time' is a Deutsch dance banger that we awarded 7 points to back in BJSC 94. The song appears to be about taking drugs and what that feels like. Also dancing. So I imagine this wouldn't be the most interesting song in the world in English. But the German impact definitely packs a strong punch and the dark (slight 3am seedy nightclub feels) production is exquisite. This annoyingly just missed out on the top 10 for Espen in 94 but I guess 11th is nothing to be sniffed at really. More from Espen later. Quite a lot more actually as they still have FOUR entries to appear :o what a year!

 

At #92 we have another BJSC 94 song and also the first of three entries sent by Quintessa this year to make an appearance! This one is the teaming up of Czech producer Driftmoon and American violinist DSharp. 'Genesis' is SO me on paper - a mixture of trance and strings?! Yes yes yes. Thankfully it is just as good as it sounds. The trance production that 'Genesis' opens with is very typical of its genre but that's a glorious formula so no complaints over here. Then a huge bout of tension paves way for the strings courtesy of DSharp to arrive and this is a spectacular transition. We soon get another trance breakdown and then a huge sounding chorus with a fantastic instrumental melody. And so on until it finishes at 6 minutes. So this song builds-up wonderfully and keeps you on your toes throughout rather than being at all stagnant. This is the first instrumental to appear in my countdown actually and what a great instrumental to begin with. Rounding off this section at #91 is Oslol! This nation is so hit-and-miss for me - I can go from absolutely stanning their entries like Findlay's 'Electric Bones' and Hopium's 'Right Now' to loathing the likes of Elle King's 'America's Sweetheart' and latest horror Miss Li's 'Aqualung'. Basically a thumbs down for the screechy songs. Thankfully they did send a tremendous entry this year in the form of 'Indigo'. I feel so silly for ever doubting that this would qualify when it ended up doing really well. Swedish trio Moment have delivered a fabulous electropop moment that almost sounds like it could be a Eurovision entry with its soaring feel-good chorus. I love how the song progresses, from the initial feeling of hopelessness with lyrics such as "I'm close to a nervous breakdown" to a feeling that the singer is enraptured in that is more like "...but I feel like dancing, head way over heels". A timeless chorus backed with 80s-esque synths.