10. UKRAINE (30 points)



12 points - !!!
10 points - Iz
4 points - uhsting, Ansel

Vidbir 2023 was a splendid selection given the circumstances. It was an amazing concept to have this held at a metro station too. You can hear the trains passing by during the national selection. Honestly, extra points should be awarded to Ukraine for pulling this off. The fandom was all in favour of Jerry Heil winning, but strangers things have happened and it was TVORCHI representing Ukraine. As with previous Vidbir editions, the winning artist was met with drama. The singer of this song KRUTЬ lodged a complaint about the use of doubled main vocal, which was refuted by the broadcaster. Another complain was launched about the distributor of the Ukrainian entry, which has ties with Russia, but again the broadcaster found no violations. This meant that TVORCHI will be the first Ukrainian participant since 2018 that won Vidbir.

"Kolyskova" is such an emotional song and the studio version is powerful. The live version was not as good, maybe due to mixing issues. I could see why "Heart of Steel" won though, as the staging was cool and the vocals are pretty decent. I wouldn't have predicted this to finish top 10 amongst the Buzzjack crowd, but glad that it did.

9. SERBIA (31 points)



7 points - uhsting
6 points - Iz, RobBot
5 points - Ansel
3 points - !!!, awardinary
1 point - gooddelta

Pesma za Evroviziju '22 was truly amazing. You have a big name artist Sara Jo with a pretty solid song and Zorja with a heartfelt Balkan ballad, and Konstrakta with art. This year seems to be quite a mountain for them to climb. Fortunately, they delivered again with arguably lesser known artists. The art style is extraordinary and it looks very professional. This song for me is a hit but it lifts off with a simple and effective staging. I was totally prepared for "Rumba" to be in Rejects 2023 as it was the most talked about, but glad people saw this gem.

"Novi plan drugi san" (not "Novi plan drugs san") is infectious. The synths create the atmosphere well. The performance is all about Filip Baloš and the chorus moves are epic. I'd love to see this in Eurovision but Luke Black's "Samo mi se spava" has more potential and would not mind him at all. Nice to see this in top 10.

That would have been one of my next votes I think. Good performance.

8. POLAND (33 points)



12 points - uhsting, Iz
6 points - !!!
3 points - RobBot

It is not TVP if it is ridden with controversies. Fan-favourite "Gladiator" was shockingly not chosen, which angered the Polish ESC community that saw streaming number battles on streaming services and social media meltdowns. There were allegations of riggery of jury as the members had connection with Blanka, and there were calls for transparent process. On the night, the visual production was pretty good with 60 fps streaming but gurl that mic quality was bad. Blanka sounded so out of tune there and her vocal performance in pre-parties was better. Jann sounded dubious too but delivered in Melfest pre-party. They should invest in sound production I fear *cough* hire SARAPATA *cough*.

"Gladiator" was already a highlight of mine back in 2022 when I first discovered the song. It was goth done well. Dark but mesmerising, this song is not something I hear often. This finishes in the top 10 with only 4 votes, joint lowest with Ukraine.

Can't help but see similarities to him and Maneskin performance and look wise here. Another one that would literally be next in line for me.

7. GERMANY (35 points)



10 points - gooddelta
8 points - awardinary
7 points - Yobnedor
4 points - Alex!
3 points - Roba
2 points - Ansel
1 point - Iz

Germany stepped up this year after being criticised for snubbing fan favourites last year. Like Electric Callboy, there were a lot of people calling for Patty Gurdy to be included in the final lineup, and so she did. Then, we had a band signed by Napalm Records appearing in the national final, which is the biggest surprise this year, and they smashed the NS! Poor Frida Gold had to withdraw due to sickness. :(

"Melodies Of Hope" is an alright song for me and I was expecting something more fancy here. The performance is kinda underwhelming, maybe because Patty Gurdy was quite nervous on the day. Nevertheless, nice to see this in top 10!

6. ITALY (38 points)



10 points - rafik4u, RobBot
7 points - Ansel
5 points - gooddelta, Iz
1 point - awardinary

Sanremo had a pretty meh year and the most talked about is probably not the song but Blanco losing his temper by kicking flowers on stage as his in-ear was not working. What's even worse is that RAI didn't even upload the full performance of every entry to YouTube, which meant I had to resort to the studio version in the YouTube playlist. :kink:

Shockingly, this year's Sanremo garnered little attention from the Buzzjack community and I was not sure which song would be the most liked by the Buzzjack community. "Furore" came out on top and got a respectable top 6 finish. I wasn't a huge fan of this but could see why this has appeal with the retro throwback.

Knew that'd be one of Rich's top pointers re Patty Gurdy :lol: a lovely track indeed.

5. MALTA (39 points)



10 points - Alex!, Cameron
8 points - uhsting
6 points - Roba
4 points - awardinary
1 point - Yobnedor

MESC had a pretty awesome stage this year. Again they had a lot of fillers in the selection but perhaps the incident that garnered the most attention is Aidan's disqualification due to "misuse" of social media for promotion. Ironically, the broadcaster invited him to perform as an interval act, to which Aidan accepted. "Checkmate" was heavily tipped to win the selection as it was partly produced by Lukas Meijer and it probably had one of the most expensive staging. Sadly, it came 5th.

"Checkmate" is a well-produced pop song with a memorable hook. The hand gestures are also distinctive. I do fear it may be a tad generic for Eurovision, especially when it is in a strong semi. The Busker seems to stand a better chance. I certainly didn't expect this song to finish in the top 5 but glad it did.

4. CROATIA (55 points)



12 points - gooddelta, Ansel
8 points - Iz
7 points - !!!, Roba
5 points - uhsting
4 points - RobBot

Dora 23 defied expectations by having a surprisingly good lineup. There were 5 songs that were saved for second listen, and 2 of them got top 50 in my personal chart. "Mama ŠČ!" was not one of them. "Nevera (lei, lei)" had early hype with an ethnic banger and there were a lot of expectations for Harmonija disonance to deliver on the stage. Sadly, the staging was pretty off, not because of the vocals but the visual part.

The studio version of "Nevera (lei, lei)" was truly wonderful. I totally enjoyed the interplay between the synths and violins. The use of white voice adds a lot of personality and uniqueness to the song. It would serve Croatia really well in Eurovision. Unlike Romania, this is a folk-like song that is a hit for the Buzzjack community, with a big jump from the 5th place to get a respectable amount of 55 points.

3. NORWAY (55 points)



12 points - Alex!, Cameron
8 points - Roba
7 points - awardinary, RobBot
6 points - gooddelta
3 points - rafik4u

Melodi Grand Prix 2023 was another strong selection, possibly the strongest in the NS season for me, with a whopping 6 songs that ended up in the top 50 in my personal chart. "Attention" is not one of them though. Ulrikke returned to Melodi Grand Prix with a pretty similar song as Attention, hoping to go to Eurovision and experience the competition in person. Surprisingly, it was "Queen of Kings" which won the selection, and is one of the favourites to win Eurovision 2023.

I personally found "Attention" quite cheesy but the performance convinced me and it has grown on me a bit. It is a pretty beautiful nonetheless and I can see this loved by the Buzzjack community, and it finishing in the top 3 proves this point.

24. LATVIA (8 points)

 

 

8 points - Yobnedor

 

Supernova 2023 selected Sudden Lights to represent Latvia, who tried in 2018 but came up short to Laura Rizzotto. "Hush" is one of the two favourites to win the competition and the performances of both are pretty solid. Sadly, it is another weak year for the NS, though Sudden Lights seems to be favoured by fans. Can they defy the odds and qualify from the tough semi-final 1?

 

This song captured my attention instantly with the industrial sound, but it has since grown off me as the song seems to vary little. The performance is iconic though. I am a bit surprised that this finishes last but then it has received little attention on the forum, so probably I should have seen it coming.

 

My taste, unmatched as ever!

 

Wasn't mad on that Paola and Chiara one either. Much preferred the song Jade sent to BJSC!

 

The top 5 are all great so far. Ulrikke has such a strong vocal!

2. BELGIUM (58 points)



12 points - rafik4u
8 points - Alex!, gooddelta, Ansel, RobBot
4 points - Yobnedor
3 points - Iz
1 point - !!!

Belgium returned to national selection this year and it was one with a lot of twists and turns. Nobody saw Gustaph coming and the juries weren't rating them too. It was the televoting which gave them just enough to edge The Starlings by ONE single point, and his reaction to the win is just priceless. The song was at first disliked by the ESC community but it started to gain more traction over time. "Ça m'ennuie pas" was one of the favourites to win the NS but that NS performance was somewhat catastrophic, especially the final chorus which was extremely pitchy.

I personally don't quite get the hype and find it pretty mid. I much preferred "t'inquiète" which was pretty edgy. I do get the sound being a Buzzjack favourite, so there is no doubt why this almost won Buzzjack Rejects 2023, but they did not win, and it is...

LOL @ “pretty mid”

Catchy pop song but those VOCALS in the live performance. Ouch.

1. HENDINIA FINLAND (61 points)



12 points - Roba, RobBot
8 points - rafik4u
6 points - Alex!, Yobnedor, Ansel
5 points - awardinary
3 points - Cameron
2 points - gooddelta
1 point - uhsting

Finland is highly acclaimed for a diverse and robust lineup this year. There is room for everyone. Any entry would have done decently for Finland, expect maybe Robin Packalen. Benjamin's "Hoida mut" is a contender but the performance on the night was a bit of a let down as the vocals were a bit off. The staging concept is pretty cool and erotic though. I'm quite delighted to see this generate a lot of conversation, on par with Melodi Grand Prix and Melodifestivalen. If Finland can keep up with this standard, I'm sure they will win in the near future.

It is Hendinia who wins the contest! Congrats Rob! I mean Finland! I enjoy the studio version of "Hoida mut" quite a lot and I gave 18 points to Hendinia in BJSC 153. The retro throwback again is a hit to many Buzzjack voters (except Lithuania) and I expect this to contend for the win. Glad it is Finland who won in the end!

I did give it only a point in BJSC but it looks better live to me and gave it a nice lift.

Ah, sad to see Gladiator as low as #8, I thought that would have been a much stronger contender! and 'So Low' being second last, whut

 

Hoida Mut's a great pop song, wasn't in my top 10 of this contest - though I think I did chuck it a point in BJSC, so this contest must have been stronger x UMK's on a roll though.

 

Would have been great to have Croatia win, but great organisation and commentary Uhsting.

Oops thought I had more time left to vote in this.

 

Excellent top 3. Feel bad for Marcus & Martinus as they missed out on the top 10 due to my oversight. Estonia and Denmark both deserved a lot better. Slay a little bit for Flamenco even without my help :o