Greetings all!

So yes as the title implies this month celebrates 10 years since I started participating in BJSC so I thought why not have a little look back at the annals of (recent) history. To make the task feel somewhat manageable I will be listening back to and giving my thoughts on a) my own entry, b) the winning entry and c) my 18-pointer of all of my first 100 contests. Loosely inspired by King Rollo's thread a few years ago reviewing every single BJSC winner which was a very enjoyable follow, I thought it would be fun to kinda do something similar to roughly pick up from where he left off (there'll be a little bit of crossover at the start of course) and cover the more recent winners along the way too as well as reflecting on my own entries and what I still like or indeed now dislike! All comments are very much welcome of course and due to the criteria selected I should be covering at least 1 entry of most currently active participants. Please feel free to also share your own thoughts about the contests in general as I relive them.

I will not be sticking to any sort of regular schedule with this (as that never pans out as planned anyway) but let's see if we can get it done before the end of the year at least. By then I should be up to 101 entries assuming no hiccups in the next 2 contests! And a few technicalities to mention before I commence:

• Where the winning entry was my 18-pointer I will also review my 15-pointer, although this has only happened about half of dozen times from memory

• The 2 contests I didn't participate in during this timeframe (82 & 171) I will give very brief mentions to

• This is all assuming the data is still available for me to go back and utilise, I certainly haven't checked prior to starting this!

With all that being said we'll get things off the ground by rewinding back to the infamous BJSC 78 in September 2015...

BJSC 78

Host Countries: Aquafina & Cor Lupus

Summary

Wow at the fact this is over TEN years ago now. After several months of friendly pestering to join the contest I conceded to mostly see what all the fuss was about. I was already branching into less mainstream music at this point having started posting personal charts a year prior and it had been noted I was charting songs that were entrants into earlier contests. So after umming and ahhing over something random to throw out I made my debut and have to say, was hooked immediately on all the friendly competitiveness, song hyping/sharing and statistics. I think this was a hobby I could stick with (so it has proven thus far!) Of course, for those competing at the time this particular contest has gone down as one of the most controversial of all time, with the original winning entry being disqualified due to what I believed was points tampering by the host (who now goes by -0-0 apparently). As someone new to it all at the time it seemed very perplexing and dramatic but it certainly made for an engrossing spectacle as a bystander. I'm sure some others still competing have a better recollection of it all than me!

Dobago's Entry

Result: 36th

Well, what to say about this one now? It was very much a testing the waters kind of entry as I hadn't really a clue what the BJSC "sound" was then (arguably I still don't have now given I'm still yet to win a contest!) but it was a song I enjoyed a lot at the time, being pretty much a cheaper soundalike version of I'm An Albatraoz (a HUGE fave of mine in that year). Certainly wouldn't be something I'd consider nowadays and that's before we even get into the lyrical content. Johnny Guidetti is a pretty bang average Swedish striker, still playing today but spent 7 years at Man City although only ever played one competitive game for them. As some of you know I'm a Man United fan so even entering this should have resulted in an immediate ban! But anyway the song is relatively free-spirited, relying heavily on the AronChupa-esque beat, yet it managed to defy the blanket DNF predictions and qualify, going on to place 36th once the initial winner was disqualified. So a reasonably successful start and once the dust had all settled it was time to consider how to follow it up.

Winning Entry

Country: Mulgracia

First off, I have to point out that the original winning song (Mz. 007 - Important) was and still is a banger and personally a lot better than this one #justiceforetcetc. Now I can definitely appreciate the artistic merits of this song with its dreamy, minimalist production but I can't get over those grinding vocals. Sounds like he's singing with his throat (and not in the Mongolian way). But aside from that, I just don't find it all that interesting. Very meh.

18-Pointer

Country: Triangledonia

Vocal trance has had a bit of a bumpy ride in the years I've been competing but back when I started it was almost always a shoo-in for high points from me. This has fantastic, stomping production and a very serviceable vocal delivery. Still a great listen now. We miss you Triangledonia!

Looking forward to following this - happy 10 years *.*

I remember you joining quite soon after me but OMG I forgot that you debuted in that contest what a dramatic start to BJSC competing indeed!

Dobago made a positive first impression on me as I remember giving 'Johnny G (The Guidetti Song)' a medal *.* maybe a bit of its time now haha but a memorable debut. Quite a lot of the 2015 songs are still heavily imprinted on my brain.

'Fuel to the Fire' ended up being a big post-contest grower for me!

Thank you! ^_^

Sure was haha and yes I remember you being quite a fan of my entry at the time. I gave Virtual Paradise 11 points so some strong point swapping going on right off the bat.

Many congratulations on 10 years, Dobago and @Dobbo

Really good to see a retrospective thread, it's felt like too long since the last one and a good range of contests to cover. Plus Dobago being a consistent presence for so long, very well done on getting to that 10 years - you definitely hit on a good first song with your debut, I remember enjoying it a lot.

Not saying anything about the hosting of this contest (I think this happened because Lee was last-minute called away for work) but the first thing that springs to mind for me is not the disqualification malarkey, but that I was drafted in (along with Cody) to host the semi-final results completely out of the blue.

Outside of random host pressganging not really being a thing anymore, the notable part of that was that it was one of the few times in BJSC history (and possibly even the first?) where someone announced their own DNQ. Which I was proper gutted about by the way as I was really invested and loved that entry (Scandal - STAMP!) and thought it'd be a hit but a small taste of hosting, and finding out a few hours before everyone else, helped soothe the blow a bit.

had nothing to do with the hosting in the final though; that was a... 'fun' one. They don't make BJSC controversies like they used to. Will have to reread some of those old threads now.

Congratulations to Dobago!

19 minutes ago, Iz 🌟 said:

Really good to see a retrospective thread, it's felt like too long since the last one and a good range of contests to cover. Plus Dobago being a consistent presence for so long, very well done on getting to that 10 years - you definitely hit on a good first song with your debut, I remember enjoying it a lot.

Not saying anything about the hosting of this contest (I think this happened because Lee was last-minute called away for work) but the first thing that springs to mind for me is not the disqualification malarkey, but that I was drafted in (along with Cody) to host the semi-final results completely out of the blue.

Outside of random host pressganging not really being a thing anymore, the notable part of that was that it was one of the few times in BJSC history (and possibly even the first?) where someone announced their own DNQ. Which I was proper gutted about by the way as I was really invested and loved that entry (Scandal - STAMP!) and thought it'd be a hit but a small taste of hosting, and finding out a few hours before everyone else, helped soothe the blow a bit.

had nothing to do with the hosting in the final though; that was a... 'fun' one. They don't make BJSC controversies like they used to. Will have to reread some of those old threads now.

Yes I agree it's been a while, I also kinda miss when people used to do their top 10/100 entries of the year etc. or indeed when I recall you yourself one year ranked every song by country in reverse alphabetical order or something like that! But I understand the time/effort usually involved in such an undertaking. I took it upon myself to get something like this off the ground after considering it for a while!

I wasn't aware of the hosting drama of 78 actually but I do recall at the time a lot being made about you announcing your own DNQ and I think it may have indeed been the first occasion, ouch!

Congratulations @Dobbo I will be following this thread <3

I always wanted to do something similar as well, maybe when I hit my 200th entry

BJSC 79

Host Countries: Mulgracia & Jadakissnia

Summary

After the fallout of 78 it was quickly time to move on although this contest didn't come without its own smaller spat of controversy (more on that below). Now I'd experienced a full contest and all of its inner workings I was eager to get involved once again and see if I could improve upon my debut's performance. This contest was the first one in which my 12-pointer from the semi didn't qualify (that being the out-there stomper that was Alesha Thunderf*** - This Is My Hair, indeed back in an era where Hendinia actually didn't always qualify!) but alas, there were still plenty of strong tracks in the final to throw support behind.

Dobago's Entry

Result: 35th

Plucked from my personal charts at the time, this was a quirky, electronic number with soft, angelic-like vocals over a harsh, thumping, quasi-dubstep beat. It was a pretty sharp change in sound from my debut but to me felt a little more wider appealing despite once again the predictions suggesting a surefire DNQ. Now here's where the controversy mentioned above comes in. Despite advancing from the semi and performing almost very similarly to Johnny G in the final, it transpired shortly afterwards that it should never have qualified in the first place as another entry's points total had been incorrectly calculated at the semi stage. Quite the reprieve indeed. It's a song I really enjoy listening to even now and I still can't get over how much the singer looks like a female version of Skrillex.

Winning Entry

Country: Aeroche

It didn't take long for me to experience the winning power of Aeroche! Whilst I did point this at the time, it's not one I've ever revisited. I've liked quite a few Shaun Frank and KSHMR songs over the years but this one falls a little flat in comparison. Decent vocals and a fun, bouncy beat but certainly nothing standout to me.

18-Pointer

Country: Terra Avium

Whereas this certainly was standout! I'm a bit of a sucker for Eastern European vocals and beats, having sent a fair number of entries in that bracket myself. I didn't actually realise until just now that this is sung in Bulgarian and by an artist with a similar-ish name to one I would send a year later. The explosive drum and bass production is what really elevates this song. Actually don't think I'd listened back to this even once since the contest which is a crying shame as it's right on the money. As it happened the song I listened to the most post-contest was one I didn't even point! That being Lost Kings' Bad, a dramatic grower in the following weeks.

Argh yes of course the Koo fiasco! So another contest with some sort of drama but working out well for you then

James mostly hosted that edition but he asked me to help out with one of the semi finals (the one without the error but oops, these things happen I guess) so that was my first taste of hosting BJSC in any capacity. My lasting memory of that experience is James falling asleep when he was supposed to be hosting his semi final results and me having to spam him on Facebook messenger until he appeared, lmao. That's what friends are for

One of the best dance-pop songs from KSHMR, but his festival tracks are much preferrable!

8 minutes ago, CowTzy said:

One of the best dance-pop songs from KSHMR, but his festival tracks are much preferrable!

Power & SHIVA are ones I was listening to a lot in 2017/18.

1 hour ago, Dobbo said:

Yes I agree it's been a while, I also kinda miss when people used to do their top 10/100 entries of the year etc. or indeed when I recall you yourself one year ranked every song by country in reverse alphabetical order or something like that! But I understand the time/effort usually involved in such an undertaking. I took it upon myself to get something like this off the ground after considering it for a while!

I wasn't aware of the hosting drama of 78 actually but I do recall at the time a lot being made about you announcing your own DNQ and I think it may have indeed been the first occasion, ouch!

As evidenced by my frequent memory problems at listenthroughs where I don't recall top 10 hits from as little as three contests ago (often in the context of the entry history of the incoming winner 👀), trying to do something that involved every entry of the year these days would break me. What you've got here is nice and sensible.

Koo was a bit of a banger now I go and listen to it, as with 'Heaven', both kinds of dance that do the euphoric joy of electronic music very well.

'Heaven' being evidence that the phenomena of artists winning shortly after finishing top 10 isn't a new thing too as it came only two contests after I'd sent Kshmr and landed at 10th

Happy 10 years @Dobbo , always cool to revisit past triumphs, failures and favourites!

Love this thread Dobbo! Will try to follow it as you go along

13 minutes ago, dandy* said:

Love this thread Dobbo! Will try to follow it as you go along

An entry of yours may be coming up very soon indeed 👀

Great to see a retrospective BJSC thread, mine was quite the task so I always appreciate seeing others try too, and you seem to be going for quite a bit more than I was with the winner of the contest (I don't remember some from this year lol)

Had to cast my mind back to see if you ever gave me top marks, but didn't have to wait long! Great to see you still like DIA. It's one of my more unique entries in the sense I've not really sent anything like it since, I was just quite captivated by the Bulgarian Futurepop tag and the distinctive array of genres.

26 minutes ago, Dobbo said:

An entry of yours may be coming up very soon indeed 👀

Intriguing! I don’t think I won one for quite a while so looking forward to seeing what it is…