Colm

I've only had 20 something entries so a lot of them are part of my general listening experience.

14 - Albania 2012 Rona Nishliu - Suus The original screaming Albanian woman entry. I remember when I first heard this, I couldn't quite understand how someone could continue to rise up a scale, seemingly interminably. You might think it's the vocals that stand out here, but it's sweeping piano and orchestration that makes this so wonderful. Best bit: 2.55 the begging of the end.

15 - Malta 2020 Destiny - All of My Love It's odd that 2020 threw up more than a few entries that were the best chance that those countries ever had at a victory. All of My Love is one of those songs. From the pen of, amongst others, Borislav Milanov who was a regular songwriter in the 10s, but oddly hasn't written any entries since 2020 when he was involved in three. It would quite likely not have set the televote alight because Malta never does - it is however, my favourite Malta entry. Best bit: 2.47 which might just be the best gospel inspired part of any Eurovision entry.

16 - Italy 2019 Mahmood - Soldi One of the best produced Eurovision entries ever. It just drips with coolness - his vocal tone, the crackling percussion, the repeated cycling through various movements, that middle 8. Best song Italy ever sent. Best bit: 2.17 the middle 8.

17 - Armenia 2022 Rosa Linn - Snap Yeah - so I jumped on the bandwagon. Or maybe not. Other songs in the past have grown on me hugely long after contests. Her harmonies are magnificent. I do wonder how the televote didn't appreciate this, instinctively. Best bit: 2.32 the start of extended harmonies.

This 'should' is opinion. I'm Irish and I can't think of a single example of when we should have qualified but didn't. Not even Brooke.

could you elaborate on this please?

Have I missed the deadline?

Astonishing 1 Austria (my favourite entry this decade) Great 2 Malta - full of pop hooks, great vocals, great stage show 3 Greece - if this was Ukraine we'd be talking about a potential winner 4 Sweden - My favourite ever Swedish entry, right now. I listened to it again this morning and it's so gloriously irresistible. 5 Switzerland - if this was France we'd be talking about a potential winner Very Good 6 Denmark - so what if it's dated, her vocals are amazing, and like Malta, there's plenty of pop hooks to entertain. 7 Albania - huge improvement during the semi-final, I really want this to win because Albania need to be rewarded, also, the odds/models/analysts would be proved wrong and a Balkan win would do wonders for the contest. 8 Lithuania - I'm sure people are baffled by this being so popular, the melody is very hypnotic and I'm sure not everyone gets it. 9 Spain - judging the studio track, this would be a few places higher but the performance is a bit of a chore to watch. She makes it look like hard work and overdoes the whole thing. Good 10 Poland - dramatic and seductive 11 Luxembourg - big jump up for this, based on the semi-final performance. If her vocals were a little cleaner I'm sure this would be a huge hit with the jury. 12 Germany - I'm conflicted here. It's a great studio song but I don't like a performance when the vocal hook is playback. If feels like cheating. Ok 13 France - if this was Switzerland we'd be talking bottom 5. 14 United Kingdom - original, fun, enthusiastic. It's a fine listen but not one I am always in the mood for. Hardly ever want to listen to these but when I do they're fine, I guess. 15 Finland 16 Iceland 17 Netherlands These do nothing for me 18 San Marino 19 Norway 20 Armenia 21 Latvia 22 Italy 23 Portugal 24 Ukraine Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. 25 Estonia

18 - Bulgaria 2018 Equinox - Bones So, received wisdom is that there's zero chemistry between these people who were put together to sing Bones. It's true. They do behave like they are singing this song almost against their will. This actually works. What I think makes it work are the wardrobe choices. They look like they've found themselves together in a sci-fi movie and are compelled to perform this song by whoever it is that is controlling the whole situation, The melodies are quite alien too. Ghostly and alien. Here, Bulgaria were in their golden age, which ended before they got the win that they were so clearly after at this point. I miss them in the competition. Best Bit: 2.47 Zhana's chilling wail.

Abstain. I can't even come up with 5 songs in each semi that are vote worthy.

19 - Serbia 2012 Željko Joksimović - Nije Ljubav Stvar Serbia is one of my favourite countries in Eurovision, especially this decade. They had plenty of success before that and a considerable amount of that was due to Željko Joksimović. For me her perfected the Balkan ballad and definitely surpasses Johnny Logan as the King of Eurovision. This song, like most of his songs, is an exercise in restraint. Who says you have to have vocals before 40 seconds have elapsed? I remember Graham Norton commenting during the jury results that he thought it was a forgettable song that he was surprised was doing so well. Best bit: 2.45. The delayed backing vocals.

Spolidifestivalen 2 shock announcement. 2025.05.09

20 - Lithuania 2018 Ieva Zasimauskaitė - When We’re Old I'm quite sure some people find this sickly sweet and twee. For me it's fragile, delicate and gorgeous. It reminded me of Stina Nordenstam at the time and I like her a lot. I sometimes feel manipulated by the ending of the performance. Damn feelings! I also feel that much of the appeal is the delay and reverb on Ieva's voice during the chorus. It's effective. As usual, the addition of native language brings an extra layer of poignancy to it. They know how to press my buttons. Best Bit: 2.05 The Lithuanian lyrics.

Yeah. I know.

With 20 songs to go - there's 8 countries that we haven't seen so far. Four countries will appear twice each. There's still 3 winners to come.

Sending votes soon

Tomorrow is fine too. I just have less do this evening 😊

Would prefer today for the listen through

21 - Switzerland 2019 Luca Hänni - She Got Me Another one that grew on me after the contest in 2019. This was one of several Fuego inspired entries that year - the others being Malta and Cyprus themselves trying to replicate their success the year before. It helps that he's nice to look at too. 😍 Best bit: 1.05 the drop

The second half of semi 2 was much stronger than the first half.

Semi 2 tonight. I'm away until Sunday.

22 - Bulgaria 2010 Miro - Angel Si Ti Still baffled as to why this didn't qualify. It's easily my favourite song from 2010. While the chorus wasn't very compelling. the exciting, dramatic strings all over this and the melodic verses are pure class. Best bit: 2.02 the punchy orchestra hits.

Disc 2 is solid gold. But the whole thing is a great listen with top quality sequencing (I am seeking professional help about my unhealthy obsession with good sequencing).

23 - Italy 2018 Ermal Meta e Fabrizio Moro - Non Mi Avete Fatto Niente This is so good. The guitar. The double time vocals. The plaintive chorus. Italy were starting to bulldoze everyone else out of the way on their way to a well deserved victory in 2021 - this being the first of 3 consecutive contests where they were top 3 in the televote. Best bit: 2.43 - the first chorus after the bridge.