[LMBTO] It's The Most 'Eurovision' Time Of The Year - FiK 57...

The people you meet at the Eurovision in Concert After Party, eh?  Eugent Bushpepa had an amazing Eurovision season for Albania, winning Festivali i Këngës (FiK) 56 and then providing his nation with one of their best ever results at the Contest.  In the big scheme of things, 11th is his nation's third best ever result and being one of the most popular performers amongst the fandom can't be a bad thing!  For me, Eugent was the best male vocalist in Lisbon and from the moment I heard the initial release of "Mall" in its 270 second form, I knew that this was going to win FiK and so it proved:



Unfortunately for all the other artists there, as we had the 'UK bus' scenario last Christmas - you wait years for a cracking tune in Tirana and then three all come along at once!  Inis Neziri gave us the stereotypical Albanian entry with "Piedestal" (big voiced female power ballad) whilst this lady would have won most years at FiK and probably would have gone to Lisbon if she had been any other nationality:



Orgesa Zaimi is, like most singers in Albania that go for the Sanremo-lite event, an excellent live singer but she brings a quirky stage presence too, whether it be 'bohemian librarian' as here in her initial studio video or 'going to a posh event' as she did elsewhere.  Orgesa also has the charisma to engage us foreign fans who have no clue as to what she is singing.  Personally I was crossing my fingers that she would give it another go this year, having finished third behind Eugent.  Was I that lucky?  Have a look at the running order of the first night's entertainment:

FiK 57 starts with the veteran performer that is Bojken Lako and finishes with Orgesa herself - as it was a random draw for who would be singing when, the Gods have done a very good job as far as the running order of show one are concerned.  There is a difference this year to how things pan out for the artists - whereas in the recent past FiK had two SFs and then the Final, this year we have:


So in a way there are 'SFs' but there is possibly more emphasis on finding a Eurovision song from FiK than ever before.  It is noticeable that most of the entries are near three minutes in length, suggesting that songs have been written with the Contest in mind, rather than being an afterthought when the winner realises that they have to hack into their winning Festival entry.  I've listened to 21 of the 22 entries as one has only been presented so far in a one minute preview with the artist chatting over it - there were six of those 21 that I feel could do the business for Albania at Eurovision (I'll look at them as they appear on the first night's running order...



Mirud has a very theatrical voice, almost operatic in tone and he will have one of the entries that will stand out on night one with the orchestral backing, something that "Nënë" is perfectly tuned to.  This is a really nice listen, a ballad that is slow paced but makes you sit back and take in each note sung and played - there appears to be lots of emotion in his delivery and a real storyline being told.  This is perfect for FiK - as for Eurovision, it would probably stand out as there aren't huge numbers of male balladeers sent in the recent past.  One of my favourites in the preview list...



Wow, "Ktheju tokës", what an entry!  A powerful song where music and voice blend perfectly, initially very dark and foreboding but then gradually brightening as this progresses.  Jonida Maliqi has a wonderfully mystical feel to her vocals and she provides part of the perfect construction of the story being told here, the ethnic feel to the whole adding to what is a perfectly constructed pop song.  "Ktheju tokës" is about encouraging Albanian migrants to return back to their homeland - a bit like Voltaj for Romania in 2015.  Will that sentiment be repeated here for Jonida, with a Eurovision place?  One of the strongest entries at FiK 57, that's for sure...



Yet another ethnic sounding entry but this has Middle Eastern influences to my ear, that flavour blending nicely with the dynamic and catchy music of "Mbrëmje e pafund".  Klodiana Vata has a voice that suits this mid tempo track perfectly and she hits and holds all of the difficult notes really well.  It's not quite the killer tune that perhaps the start of the song promises but it is definitely one of the best of the FiK list, the only issue being that she and Jonida might be competing with a similar style of entry.  One of the youngest artists this year, perhaps we'll be seeing her in future FiKs...



Now this was almost not on the list of 22 for our listening pleasure!  It is only because of a late drop out that Artemisa Mithi & Febi Shkurti have the opportunity to sing "Dua ta besoj" in Tirana later this week and I have to ask myself why this wasn't on the original group of songs?  It is current, it combines pop and hip hop skilfully and it sticks in my head more so than most of the others!  Artemisa has a wonderful voice and even Febi's rap works, something I don't often say for that genre at Eurovision.  Perhaps it is because this is quite the laidback track and yet the music has an infectious thumping beat that underlies the singing, giving that memorability that might see this as a dark horse at FiK.  A pleasant surprise for me and I suspect for this duo too...



Now this sounds more like an FiK entry of old but I love the drama and intrigue of "100 pyetje" and that it almost sounds French, not sure why.  Eranda Libohova gives this entry so much texture and emotion, that in turn providing a nice build up in the story telling, even though it is a steady rather than a powerful delivery.  I'm old enough to think that part of the song is Mary Hopkin-esque and I love the spoken bit at the end too - this will appeal to the judges and me as well, although that is because of its quirks, not necessarily because of its chances at a future Eurovision...



And so my finger crossing did the trick - Orgesa IS back this year!  Not quite the dead cert that “Ngrije zërin” would have been if that particular track had been her offering this year but "Hije" has its own path to lead.  This is a really interesting song to listen to, so many differing styles and changes of pace within, slow and fast, Albanian and English, all of which challenge you to listen throughout.  Yet again, Orgesa gives a vocal masterclass and that chorus has a massive hook, even though the music is competing with her all the way through this song.  If the jury have the bravado and guts to go with an entry that will stand out a mile at Tel Aviv, Albania could yet again have a Eurofan favourite on their hands...



Now I have included this guy here because he has been doing FiK for years - he finished runner-up in FiK 56 - and he always produces music and songs that appeals to the Albanian jurors.  Elton Deda is back again with "Qetësisht" but he has yet to put up a preview video in the same way as the other 21 acts.  Looking, and more importantly listening, to his original one minute interview, the song itself sounds promising, like an easy listening ballad.  Because of that and due to who it is who has yet to upload a video of his full entry, I'm keeping my options open about how well Elton can do at FiK...
So by this time next week, we will know which Albanian will be at Tel Aviv and what they will be singing, assuming they keep the faith as Eugent Bushpepa did and stick to keeping their entry in their native tongue.  Personally I would be going with the lady above, purely for the inventiveness, vocal prowess and stagecraft that Orgesa Zaimi always brings to the show.  If the Albanian jurors play it safe, Jonida Maliqi might get the nod purely because Albania can never resist a female soloist singing a song with a story that shows off expert vocals.  But those are my thoughts on what might happen at FiK 57...