[LMBTO] Eurovision 2nd Rehearsals - SF2 Twisters And Shakers...

Now this was the guy that impressed me the most during the second rehearsals for SF1, Isaiah from Australia.  Up to then, this entry really did very little for me - a song with lyrics more for someone twice his age, sung extremely well but it all seemed a little bit one dimensional.  The full length version totally changed my impressions on him as he gave loads of emotional connection with the listener, had a simple but effective prop to work with (the revolving disc) and interacted nicely with the numerous images of him on the backdrop (the eye entry imagery being top notch).  I can now see how bookies put this in the top ten - will anyone in SF2 impose themselves in such a way?  It all finished off on Saturday - how did I view all the eighteen artist's efforts?

Again, I've got the EBU official video and a full version of each to play with - let's see how they all did...


Serbia



Oh dear!  Yet another candidate for the Barbara Dex award by the looks of it - her casual trouser suit at the first rehearsal had so more class than this pearl studded corset with see-through dress.  It all shows off her legs with the light behind it  (very nice view) but that doesn't hide the rest of this performance which, to be frank, wasn't very good at all.  The full version highlights all the flaws:



For a start, Tijana looks very nervous and not her usual confident, effervescent self that she appears to be in 1-2-1 interviews.  Now whether that is because she realises that nothing is going to plan, I don't know, but her facial expressions shout out 'HELP!', her actual movements around the stage are fairly stilted and forced, with the sole dancer comes across as a distraction, rather than adding anything to the show.  Added to all of that, her vocals weren't that strong throughout the three minutes.  From what the show's producers were hoping was going to be a solid uptempo start to SF2:


There really wasn't any redeeming features here at all and if this is repeated on the jury and live shows, we might have a new candidate for 'last in SF2'.  Hopefully it was all a bit of stage nerves and 'bad day at the office' but everything here was slightly off.


One for Eurovision Beauty maybe but not one to burn up the Kyiv stage...


Austria



Okay, so the money's been spent on the crescent moon now so ORF have to persist with it!  It's still not my favourite imagery to go with this song and singer and there is something all very "Dreamworks" about it (I suspect that if Eurovision was huge in America that Amblin Partners' lawyers would be giving Nathan a call right about now) but it still works for this song.  What doesn't work is the naff attentions to detail:



The rest of the outfit is clean and simple, just get rid of those wings on your shoes because that draws attention away from your singing and your amazing charisma.  I assume that we will get a decent amount of smoke on the stage floor to simulate clouds again (and hide the shoes) which did look superb, and even I am warming to the moon as a way of starting his show and allowing the camera to focus on him from the first second.  This is still a wonderful song, he continues to put this across to the viewer amazingly well and "Running On Air" is a definite qualifier.  I still think this would have worked better as a straight performance without the cloud imagery but what do I know as a keyboard warrior?


This has dropped slightly for me, not so much because of this staging but more do to others upping their game and moving ahead...


FYR Macedonia



Are we going to lose yet another Radio 1 friendly entry due to a poor stage show and lack of studio effects?  It has become obvious whilst watching all the live performances that a lot of the attraction of this entry was the vocal wizardry and the official video, neither of which are on stage in Kyiv.  The EBU footage shows Jana off the best, her great figure, her wonderfully long legs in knee high boots, along with some moves that look okay if a little forced.  It's only when I watched the full three minutes that I realised that there are lots of problems with this entry that are not likely to be fixed before next Thursday:



All of Jana's moves looked as though she's marking where she needs to be at any one time - nothing looks graceful or natural.  It's as if she has been told to move in a provocative, sexually alluring way but doesn't know how to do that herself and no-one has taught her.  All of the leg kicks look like those from a poor candidate on Strictly Come Dancing/Dancing With The Stars - no real effort or conviction with any of them.


As for her connection with the camera, she does look at the lens but she doesn't connect, if that makes any sense - no real charisma or acting at all, a real disappointment.  Finally, the singing itself - it is obvious that a lot of the appeal was with the electronic manipulation of her voice and that's not allowed live on the Kyiv stage, so it all now sounds almost childlike, nothing like the temptress she is meant to be.  Overall this is now a massive fail for me:


Both "City Lights" and "Dance Alone" have not converted from the superb studio pieces to the Kyiv stage at all...


Malta



As I have said in the past, Claudia does 'exactly what it says on the tin', she is a superb singer and she just stands there, sings out loud and proud, with the requisite emotion that is needed for a basic power ballad performance.  Yes, it still  better suits a Contest twenty years ago but this is an impressive show in 2017:



Something has just clicked here with me - Claudia looks stunning in her simple white classic dress, fitted as she doesn't need to move with a song like this, she has an amazing voice and "Breathlessly" is now absolutely a listener's dream.  Her emotional delivery of these lyrics is now spellbinding and watching this three minute footage actually made me choke up slightly.  If the Maltese delegation go for an old-style Eurovision presentation of staying focussed on her mainly in close-up, showing off her facial expressions as she delivers this song, I can imagine that this entry is no longer the 'SF filler' that it once was but it will now be:


Times where there was no need for pyros, for manic dancers, for synchronised pop movements, for outlandish costumes.  Times where jurors appreciated damn good vocals and beautiful lyrics, times where viewers fell for a singer that exuded class and emotional frailty - times where a straightforward power ballad sprung a surprise on the Eurovision fandom.  I think we may have all of that with Claudia Faniello and "Breathlessly":


Wow, that was totally unexpected but in a wonderful way...


Romania



Oh, make it stop!  I am going to have to start watching this act with the sound off, it goes through my head so much.  There is now some light at the end of the tunnel though - whoever decide to throw the staging 'kitchen sink' at this entry may be doing me a favour, as this now looks in danger of hitting 'novelty song' territory (if it wasn't already there vocally):



Childlike drawings on the backdrop?  The numerous glittery cannons?  The two huge cannons on stage that are 'rode' into view by Alex and their backing singer?  It is obvious that they are going to go off with a huge bang at the end of the routine so that will be a lovely surprise for us all - NOT!  The plus points are still that Ilinca still looks absolutely stunning in that short red dress (although I am starting to get a little uneasy with my feelings about that, given she is just 18) and the interaction between her and Alex is spot on.  There are things starting to unravel with this entry though - Alex's voice seems a little off at times now and her vocals now aren't as clear as before and anything that isn't yodelling is hard to decipher.  I think now that there is SO much going on with this entry now, what with the yodelling, the rap, the cannons, the riding of said cannons and the amateurish backdrop that:


The other thing I have noticed is that all the Eurovision fans and press who were raving about this before Kyiv as a potential winning entry have all suddenly gone quiet - the hot mess on stage putting you all off, guys?  As a pleasant gift to me, I hope that we might be lucky enough to only have to hear this in SF2 and not the Final but it will still be a close run thing:


My ears are praying that this doesn't make the Final but it is Romania and they always get there...


The Netherlands



Simple imagery, minimal special effects because this is all about the Vol sisters and their singing.  Some fans have mentioned that some acts seem a bit lost on this stage (although compared to Copenhagen this stage is like the size of a recording studio) but there is no question that OG3NE will suffer that fate - it appears that the camera will be tight on them all the way through:



It is still all about the power and magnificence of their vocal range and harmonies but there is some individuality going on there, with each sister having their own section of the song and still producing a perfect performance.  There are some nice effects going on but like Cyprus, we won't get to see that until SF night.  This looks as though it will polished to an inch of its life, which will annoy the same set of fans who don't like the slickness of Sweden's entry:


This for me is still the best entry in SF2 - their singing, their stage interaction and their connection with the camera, all of that should make this an easy qualifier and I am convinced a potential dark horse entry for the win:


If the 'X Factor' backstory becomes wider known by televoters, this could build up a head of steam by Saturday night...


Hungary



Another act that has decided that their NF performance was so spot on that there is no need to change - Joci has gone with the dancer, the violinist, his look and the jug on a stand from A Dal and simply transferred it to the Kyiv stage.  "Origo" sounds and looks as good as it did in Hungary:



In fact the only difference is that the violinist is out front on the satellite stage, one of the few entries this year to use it.  And the backdrop, which doesn't appear to add much to the staging, as all eyes will be on the singer and dancer, their interaction and their passion, which is everything about this entry.  The vocals are always on point, her dancing and facial expressions are a delight to watch and there is really nothing that can be criticised.  I would go as far to say that:


If the camera angles are used to their best, we could be looking at one of the surprise packages of this Eurovision.  It is always a positive thing for a country to send an entry to Eurovision in their native tongue and Hungary are one of the few remaining nations who are prepared to do that.  That, along with the fact that your eyes cannot leave the action on stage, will see Hungary sail into the Final:


I only hope that the watching voters will marvel at the ethnicity and beauty of the piece...


Denmark



The red dress is back!  Anja and her delegation were listening - fans liked her DMGP winning outfit and not the twirly tasseled jumpsuit from the first rehearsal.  Hooray I say - she looks superb in it, really elegant, classy and it seems to give her more confidence during the singing of "Where I Am".  She can even kneel in it, for some reason she likes doing that (remember "Never Alone" last year with the flares behind her?) - perhaps there's a staging effect we're yet to see or it's purely to highlight the golden curtain that triggers as she does so.  It looks as though this will be yet another entry sticking to its NF staging:



Back to the crowd as this starts but staring straight down the camera, I fully expect a bank of lights behind her and the lovely touch as she rotates around with the steadicam operator on stage is still there.  She has always knocked this out of the park vocally every time she has sung it and her emotion and passion as she delivers this is not diminished in the slightest.


This is where this song works so well - it's a power ballad but a very personal one and one of the best things about this was during DMGP, where Anja got choked up for a split second.  That wasn't a bad thing - it showed the emotional involvement she has in this entry and that is why it works brilliantly.  For me, this is another definite qualifier as it ticks so many boxes for jurors and public alike:


This will be one that gain momentum in this final week, just you see...


Ireland



Has this got any better at the second rehearsal? Not really, although the hot air balloon makes a bit more sense, given what is on the back drop and Brendan does appear to be enjoying himself:



Unfortunately it does look as though the balloon he is in (don't they normally have wicker baskets?) does ditch into water as they travel along but the reason for having a balloon on stage?  I don't really get that nor really want to find out.  He now sings this very well and there are no duff notes, no moments where you would cringe about his singing - both good things.


He's a nice guy, he's got a nice smile but the whole staging and concept doesn't make you want to watch or listen it for very long.  I suspect that this will be a toilet/beer/wine/food break for a lot of people, as I cannot imagine all but the most dedicated wanting to sit through the full three minutes.


Back to the drawing board Ireland - at least try to get to the Final next time, eh?


San Marino



Okay, you know how an official video shows how an entry could be superb if they could mimic it on the Eurovision stage but that's impossible because of the rules?  Enter exhibit number one, where San Marino's video was set in a nightclub with loads of dancing party goers, a night with a great vibe and somewhere you'd want to be.  Unfortunately this could never be found on the Kyiv stage:



Valentina and Jimmie, singing apart for most of this song, with three backing singers to the side, with no-one else dancing in sight.  How is this DISCO?  It is as if Valentina has a tv show and her guest is Jimmie, they then sing a duet together but there really isn't any emotional connection between them.  That's how it appears here and apart from the song itself:


There are coloured lights changing in the background but wouldn't it have been great to have a backdrop of party goers dancing to this some, bulk it out a bit?  Valentina and Jimmie aren't even wearing clubbing or disco gear so that's another juxtaposition for me - the lack of relevant staging simply astounds me.  Yet another entry this year where the studio version is great and could have been developed so much better for the Kyiv stage - going retro or kitsch would have been totally the best thing for this entry:


This was my 13th favourite song overall pre-Kyiv, so much potential lost...


Croatia



Now the big story for me with "My Friend" was - how was this going to be staged?  The full 'Tommy Cooper' two outfit gag?  Using the back screen to show Jacques off as two separate singers?  Or just him 'changing voices' for each part of the song?  What we got was something that touched on all of those, the 'two outfits' part unintentionally I feel:



Of all the songs this year, this is possibly the one that will be most often labelled 'hot mess' but it is not without its charm.  I have to admit that I am enthralled and entranced by how Jacques changes his vocal range for each 'singer' and it is an intriguing lesson in how one singer can accommodate two styles of singing, just by changing something about him that I haven't worked out yet.  The staging borders on the ridiculous but doesn't actually get there - I like the start of the song where the back screen has two images of him, one opera singer, one pop and that will point out straight away to the viewer that this IS the same man singing, which might blow their mind straight away!  It is not dwelt on too long which is a good thing - the other part of the staging I think is actually unintentional, as Jacques jacket front appears to be in two halves, one leather and the other the cloth that the rest is made of.  It appears that he points to one of his strings whilst singing the pop side with his leather side on view, then turns to the other singing opera with the other half - I think that it is just the lighting or the cut of the jacket that makes it appear that way.


As for the rest of the song, the vocals are spot on all the way through from him and his backing singers and the strings aren't as mad sounding as I thought they would be.  This is more an 'interesting' entry than a good one in my eyes but it is not quite the number 41 I had it down as pre-Kyiv.  Still not qualifying for me but this won't be down the bottom of SF2 by any shakes - there is enough memorability and class here to garner some votes.


I am still intrigued to see the whole three minutes as the camera sees it on 11th May...


Norway



It appears that this entry will be groundbreaking, possibly heralding a new age of technology for Eurovision but in itself I don't think that this will now be 'burning any bridges' in Kyiv.  Another that looks and sounds exactly like the NF version but unlike the other entries that have done this, I think that this has left Norway's entry standing still:



Parts of this LOOK great - the lit mask is particularly effective, as does the lit mic stand and the back drop.  The main issue is that the vocals and the message of the song aren't particularly inspiring compared to a lot of the other entries in SF2 and that is where this entry is likely to fall down as far as Final qualification is concerned.  The lyrical content is very intriguing and:

but the show and the vocals do not a great show make.  It's all an interesting sound but this is likely to be another entry where the jurors and public don't care enough to vote for it.


We'll all remember this one but not for potentially the right reasons...


Switzerland



Timebelle have decided to stick with that staging from the first rehearsal which for me is a tragedy.  When I compare this to the cleanness of the Swiss NF when Miruna was in red and stood still most of the time, with the rose petal 'party popper effect' at the end or even the Ukrainian NF, with the classic green strapless gown, I really feel that the staging and look hear has pulled "Apollo" from a borderline qualifier to a borderline DNQ.  The music and the vocals haven't changed that much, although Miruna's attempt at the high note at the end didn't really stand out as much as it could have done:


The issue is now the staging and the question really to be posed is:


Maybe we are missing something here.  Maybe on SF2 night, the camera angles will explain why Miruna is up atop a podium, why everything is in canary yellow, why she has bizarre fringing, why she has to walk down from the podium whilst looking down to make sure she doesn't fall BUT the camera is still on her as she does so.  So many unanswered questions for a routine that looked good enough to repeat from the NF.  There are now so many ifs and buts that it is no longer a coherent performance for me and by the time we reach the end of the song, I have lost interest in it all which is a massive shame.


I felt that Miruna could just about take Switzerland into the Final but the new staging has made that very, very unlikely...


Belarus



Now we have an entry where for once a nation appears to be having their best year ever.  A song in its native tongue, artists who are a delight to watch and see on and off stage, a hypnotically infectious set of lyrics and music and the love of every Eurovision fan they encounter, Belarus have everything in one wonderful package.  Even their version of 'flying through the air' works marvellously well:



Superb, absolutely blooming superb!  From the nice touch when the lights were out but you could see the revolving fans against the blue at the start, through the imagery where the animation behind them flies away to make it look as though they are really flying, to the actual mini stage itself which the pair utilise to its tiny fullest, the staging is spot on.  But that isn't the best part about this entry:


Their singing is superb, the enthusiasm and joy they exude is irresistible, the wonderful chemistry between them I have not seen in a duo for years, the almost ad libbed whoops and clapping works perfectly rather than detracts and overall this is looking a nailed on certainty for qualification.  I'd go further than that now - I had Belarus as my number ten overall pre-Kyiv, I think that this is a decent bet for top ten in the Final.  Better than their 6th in 2007?  This could do it - it's definitely got everything you need to be a televoters favourite and I think that the jurors will appreciate this as well, as a well constructed piece of folk-pop that's in a language other than English.  I love this song and whoever designed Naviband's staging deserves a big juicy bonus!


This deserves every success, if for no other reason than the joy and happiness that this pair supply every day...


Bulgaria



Now this is still the FW that it ever was and he is a great guy and says all the right things wherever I have seen him being interviewed.  I have to say that this still does nothing for me personally - the lyrics are obviously still the same and that was the main attraction for me with this song, a wonderful piece of prose but the studio version lacked the passion and the power.  The three minute live version sort of changed my mind slightly:



Unfortunate thumbnail freeze there - reminds me of the old 'Eric Morecambe hiding a bottle behind his arm' gag.  That said, Kristian is giving this his all, vocally and visually.  His voice is superb, he sings this beautifully and the emotion he adds to those words send this into qualification territory alone.  My issue is still with the look of this live performance - he doesn't have the assistance of the numerous actors and animals he had in the official video so he has to act out this song.


It is also clear that his seemingly odd hand and arm movements hint at something being put on screen for him to follow, Dami Im stylee.  That I won't be able to comment on until SF2 night but he really needs to calm his visual acting down - this is television, not theatre.  All of this is really only an issue when you consider his current second favourite status that, based on these rehearsals, would be unwarranted.  This will be a safe qualifier but I cannot see this at present getting into the top five:


It will be interesting to see if there is anything to come staging-wise with this one...


Lithuania



At least they are consistent - the same stage show and the same set of vocals that Fusedmarc have had from the Lithuanian selection process, all the way through to the second rehearsals.  Normally what would win in your NF is a reasonably safe bet for Eurovision - that's what several other acts have done this year, right?  Not the right choice for this entry though:



I have to say that the music for this entry is actually really good - fusion jazz could work well at Eurovision but not with these lyrics, this vocal nor this singer.  To be fair to Viktorija, she speaks very little English so this is a pretty good stab at singing in the "world's second language", but whereas normally:


All that repeated performances seem to show is that this is a hideous form of "Groundhog Day", where you have to listen to this poor visual and vocal show over and over and over again.  Apart from the music itself, the catherine wheel effect on the backdrop for the last 60 seconds of this is a nice effect but neither of those things make this an entry worth watching or listening to.  The question is not 'will this qualify', it is 'will this avoid being 18th'?


Maybe Donny Montell could have another go next year, Lithuania?


Estonia



Ah, the nation apart from the UK that I know the most about this year!  Now the big question with this entry has been


I think that they are somewhere near a workable compromise but it still needs something extra:



Laura is actually the star here, she looks the part in her beautiful dress, she sings this superbly well and is spot on with her emotional delivery.  Koit appears a bit shaky here vocally and visually, some of his parts aren't as on point as they would normally be vocally and he still seems to be smiling in the wrong places.  There doesn't appear to be a lot of back drop visual effects but I would still be expecting to see the holographic pixel versions of them both behind them as per Eesti Laul and the first rehearsal.  Koit and Laura are still two of the best singers in Kyiv and I fully expect that alone to take Estonia into the Final - as for where they finish in the placings on Saturday night will depend on how their acting and the special effects all come together during the live shows.


A potential top five or a mediocre mid table finish - the jury's still out...


Israel



And another party song from Israel, this time to tie things up nicely in SF2.  Now this has always had that feel-good factor, that uptempo kick that will please everyone in the hall and lift all the jurors and viewers before the recap.  Having the pimp slot means that this shouldn't fail to qualify - should it?



Most of this entry is fine - the coordinated dance moves, IMRI's on-stage charisma, the figure breaking into pieces on the backdrop and that cute backward handclap.  There has always been one slight doubt in my mind about this entry -  his ability to hit the high notes at the end of the song.  It can be a bit hit or miss as to whether he hits it perfectly, if he does then this will be a clear qualifier, no problem.  If it is missed then being the last act of the SF might lead to every juror and voter marking this down as 'that song with the duff note'.  This is fun to watch and listen to otherwise and should give Israel yet another decent Eurovision placing - nothing spectacular but a safe mid table finish.


It's all about the note...


There we go, my thoughts about SF2 after all the rehearsals.  There is a fair bit of movement from my pre-Kyiv list - San Marino go crashing out of my points whilst Bulgaria, Malta and Romania move into my top ten.  It's amazing how some live performances can really change your view on a song - I didn't have Claudia Faniello anywhere near my points until her second rehearsal rendition of "Breathlessly" really moved me:
So we have quite a lot of special vocal performances here rather than visual extravaganzas - my top three include two like that, plus the most adorable duo in Kyiv this year (sorry Koit and Laura, that's not you):