23. LITHUANIA (10 points)



10 points - Ansel

Pabandom iš naujo! 2023 for me was near the same calibre than last year and I missed the late 2010s strong lineups tbf. As the NS progressed, it appeared that the representative would be either Petunija or Rūta Mur, but Monika Linkytė surprisingly came out on top, despite not finishing at the top of heat 2 and semi-final 2. "So Low" has gained the most traction and seems to have generated a bit of buzz, ultimately failing to climb out of bottom.

Personally, I am not a fan of this song and I am quite surprised to see this being the frontrunner actually. It has the synthwave vibe which is quite a popular vibe nowadays, and I think it would be accessible for the Buzzjack crowd. I am at least expecting a mid-table position for this. :o

So Low for Tones and I :( (also wasn't mad on it).

22. ALBANIA (10 points)



5 points - Cameron
3 points - Ansel
2 points - Alex!

Festivali i Këngës 61 was not as strong as last year. However, Fifi went into the competition as one of the more well-known names. Sadly, she did not come top 3 at all. "Duje" stood out as the selectioin began and it gained enough steam to put them to represent Albania this year.

I personally wasn't that fond of the song but it was at least a decent song. I certainly expected more from the performance, and I could see why this didn't win in the end. I also think this would not do quite well in this contest too, but great to see it receiving points from 3 users.

That one was okay. Surprised the Flamenco is still to come ddd.

21. ROMANIA (15 points)



8 points - !!!
3 points - uhsting
2 points - Yobnedor, Iz

Selecția Națională 2023 was perhaps one of the worst produced shows this NS season. From Windows 10 sounds broadcast live to TV error backdrop during a performance, everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong. :kink: It does not end here though, as this song generated controversy since it borrowed a Romanian folk tune, which was then revamped to a new melody. After all, it wasn't enough to represent Romania.

I personally really liked this song. The performance was not bad too. It was mind-baffling to see this lose out to Theodor Andrei but then Theodor Andrei appeared on X Factor, so maybe he was more popular locally. Folk entries can be a hit or a miss for the Buzzjack community. Sadly, I think it is a miss for them, and an undeserved one indeed.

20. ESTONIA (17 points)



6 points - Cameron
4 points - Roba, Iz
3 points - Alex!

Eesti Laul 2023 was a decent selection. I liked a couple of songs such as the eventual entry Bridges, House of Glass and Lighthouse. The production is pretty on point. The visual element is pleasing with 60 fps and glittery effects. It looks very polished. "Venom" is a strong fan favourite and was predicted to contend with "Bridges". The performance is fiery, and one would wonder whether this would be more appealing to the masses than "Bridges".

I didn't like the song at first, but the performance convinced me totally. It was full of energy and it was rousing. At first I thought the vocals were lacking but I started to get more into it. I thought this would at least do mid-table for the Buzzjack crowd and was pretty shocked to see this in bottom 5.

First of mine out then, really liked that one. Good use of rock vocals.

19. DENMARK (17 points)



7 points - gooddelta
5 points - Alex!
2 points - rafik4u, RobBot
1 point - Cameron

Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2023 was still pretty weak to me. However, they managed to invite one of the biggest popstars* recently, though he had to rely on the juries to win. From the entries, "I Was Gonna Marry Him" received the most hype, but it shockingly did not enter the superfinal. The performance was pretty good too, so I didn't know what happened here tbh.

Personally, I was not too fond of the song but it was still pleasant. "Freedom" would be a great winner but "Breaking My Heart" is alright too. I expected a bit higher for this song ngl.

*Tiktok

18. ICELAND (18 points)



10 points - Roba
5 points - Yobnedor
2 points - awardinary
1 point - RobBot

Söngvakeppnin 2023 couldn't reach the same heights as last year for me. I think any of the finalists from last year could have a good shot at winning. The show production is still pretty decent though. In the end, we have P-P-P-Power representing Iceland in semi-final 2, but will it be strong enough? This song on the other hand had a decent performance, and she nailed the high note too! Sadly, it finished last in the final.

Personally, I found this quite dated and it didn't really click with me. There is also a lack of discussion compared to last year. Could Iceland bring back their a-game next year? :thinking:

17. SAN MARINO (20 points)



10 points - !!!, awardinary

Una voce per San Marino 2023 was still pretty messy and we are all here for it! The abundance of interval acts during the final broadcast, the breaking voice of Emerique singing Titan, and the absolute "slayage" of Ronela, what more could you ask?? It all went down to Piqued Jacks, which received hate unfortunately that forced the broadcaster to release a statement. Nevertheless, LE DEVA has been preparing for Eurovision for a while, most recently appearing on Kenga Magjike 2022, an Albania music festival which has a couple of Eurovision acts participating. They were really close here, finishing 2nd.

This is a grand song and I think this would stand a better chance and even qualify from semi-final 2. They sing with passion. Also, seeing this finish 17th place with only 2 votes, BIG ones... ICONIC behaviour! :cheeseblock:

Oh that was fab (Sigga) for me. I get the dated but it was cute.

16. MOLDOVA (22 points)



10 points - uhsting
4 points - rafik4u, Cameron
3 points - Yobnedor
1 point - Ansel

Poor queen got sick on the audition day (previously rumoured to be stuck in traffic due to snow :kink: ). :( Nonetheless, realistically this won't be challenging Pasha Parfeni anyway. This song got quite a lot of early hype to the point where people were dubbing the song over Chanel's SloMo performance. :kink: The show was televised for the first time since 2020 after it was cancelled at the last minute last year due to COVID-19 outbreak. I am hyped about Pasha's performance ngl!

I really enjoy this song. It combines traditional elements with Romanian pop well. It is catchy and I can envision this song owning the stage with the right staging. If this passes the audition, I think this would be more well-received by the Buzzjack community, ultimately coming short in the bottom half.

15. PORTUGAL (23 points)



7 points - Cameron
6 points - uhsting
5 points - rafik4u
4 points - !!!
1 point - Roba

Festival da Canção 2023 continues their high-quality production with slick graphics, amazing staging, fabulous camerawork and charismatic hosts. The song quality is even better, with me saving as many as 7 songs for second listen, and 3 songs managed to come top 50 in my personal chart. I like the fact that Mimicat was essentially an unknown name in Portugal and she won with a song that was locked in her drawer 10 years ago. :cheeseblock: Cláudia Pascoal had a really fun song but the competition this year was so strong that it was not meant to be.

I enjoyed this song more than her Eurovision entry, as it has more energy and personality. The performance is pretty strong too. I think this would get her a better placement. Regardless, "Ai coração" is a great risky choice and I hope the crowd would get behind her. I'm a bit surprised this finished in the bottom half though.

My scrape in vote. A fun little bop.

14. SPAIN (24 points)



10 points - Yobnedor
7 points - rafik4u, Alex!

Benidorm Fest 2022 was a hugely successful national selection despite the hate surrounding Chanel and the voting method. There were big shoes to fill and fortunately Benidorm Fest 2023 maintained the high standard. I like the lineup this year even more, having 3 top 10 songs, and 4 top 50 songs. I also really like the graphics this year -- simple and geometric. Expectations will once again be high next year. This song had early hype and tipped to qualify in the semi-final, but it flopped.

Surprisingly, y'all voted for bloody "Flamenco" for the Rejects contest. <_< In the end, it only got 3 votes here, high pointers too. Some of the forms I received said they would've voted for Spain had it been a different song like "Quiero arder". I'd honestly love that. The performance was kinda mediocre but the final chorus got me.

13. IRELAND (24 points)



12 points - awardinary
5 points - !!!
4 points - gooddelta
2 points - Roba
1 point - rafik4u

Eurosong 2023 was unremarkable but this song was favoured in the Eurovision fandom. It was a heartfelt ballad which would be a dark horse if it were to be chosen. Unfortunately, the televoters and national jury went for the stadium pop "We Are One", and the odds were not looking good for them to get out of semi-final 1.

This song did not have a final version on streaming services until after the national selection ended. I believe she performed the final version in the NS too. I wasn't very fond of the song at first but it has since grown on me a bit. I was quite surprised to finish in the mid-table here, considering it wasn't something I expect to do well with Buzzjack crowd.

A nice song from Ireland!

12. CZECHIA (24 points)



12 points - Yobnedorica
7 points - Iz
2 points - Cameron, !!!
1 point - Alex!

There was not a lot of expectations surrounding ESCZ 2023 but they had one of the strongest artist lineups and I was quite excited about it, only to find out the songs were subpar. Regardless, they uploaded the national selection performances of all the acts and they had a unique staging. The most iconic part of the national selection is the announcement of the winning act, held at a small conference room and a host who fumbled with the script by announcing Maella as number one initially. :kink:

"ghosting" is a standout amongst the rest here. Personally, I find it even better than "My Sister's Crown" with its quirky instrumentation and vocals. I am pretty surprised this got pretty high in the top half, despite minimal discussion about the song.

11. SWEDEN (29 points)



8 points - Cameron
6 points - rafik4u
5 points - Roba, RobBot
3 points - gooddelta
2 points - uhsting

A lot of people were saying 2023 was a flop year for Melodifestivalen until Marcus & Martinus, Loreen and SiP came along. It was a stacked artist lineup in the end. However, the show was met with a couple of incidents -- stage invasion in Loreen's heat performance and smoke machine malfunction in Loreen's final performance. That being said, they still deliver us great performances and spectacular staging, such as "Air".

"Air" is decent enough as a song but the performance alone stood out for me. The laser show, the camerawork... immaculate! Marcus & Martinus also had great vocals too. Honestly, they would've won in 2020 or 2021. Maybe they should've waited for a year. :thinking: However, I was totally astonished at this finishing outside top 10, when Melodifestivalen was arguably the most talked about NS on Buzzjack and they finished just behind Loreen in Buzzfestivalen too. :o

Surprised that wasn't top 5 tbh! :o