Eurovision 2014 Semi Final 2 airs Thursday at 3pm ET. Watch for Mataja’s live blog!
Hello again! This is Cyprus calling, once more!
If you have missed my previous post about the first Semi-Final, want to find out a bit more about the first semi-finalist, the qualifiers or even me, please click HERE! Also, Check out yesterday’s semi-final live blog HERE.
Here are some of the things I need you guys to know before we get going:
First of all, this list is not solely based on my personal taste in music, but a wide range of factors, such as the overall public view on the songs, the live performance, the studio recording, and perhaps, some politics. Which brings me to the second thing. As you probably know very well, Eurovision is famous for its biased voting. Each country is known for voting for their closest neighbors, which goes to show that this list, however objective it might be, may end up being extremely inaccurate due to the wide range of factors affecting the outcome.
Lastly, don’t forget to check back for a quick recap of the results, the accuracy of my guesses etc. on my next post, the GRAND FINALE POST!!!
To start off, let’s talk about yesterday’s show.
Before the results were annouced:
I’m not going to try and change my rankings but contries like Russia, Ukraine and Portugal (and maybe Montenegro – a very charismatic guy singing a song beautifully) definitely moved up 3-4 steps in my list. Although, some like Albania (and maybe Moldova –though not sure, I still like it)perhaps fell drastically, as the performances fell flat. I’m not too sure about Armenia either now, as the performance felt a bit stunted, but it was still OK, so I think it still has a good shot at top 10 in the finale. Hungary is still one of my favourites. Had he been just a bit more likeable he’d win hands down as the song is REALLY good. In other news, Sweden may have a hard time as I heard that they messed up during the Jury performances.
After the results:
7/10 – considering my initial guesses. Not that bad, to be honest. Most of the people who got into the final kind of deserved it. I’m slightly surprised about Azerbaijan and The Netherlands, but I guess they DO stand a chance now at a top 10-15 spot.
Generally speaking, I thought the show went OK, but it definitely was NOT the best semi-final ever in the Eurovision history. I’m not disappointed.
Now let’s talk about tomorrow!
15- Georgia – Three Minutes to Earth (The Shin and Mariko)
AWFUL. Absolutely horrendous. One of the worst Eurovision songs I’ve heard in a long time. Everything is so random in this song, that you’d think it’d work, it just doesn’t. The song makes no sense at all. Not musically, not lyrically. Why do they even bother to enter the competition?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lqoX6kKRsE
14- Belarus – Cheesecake (Teo)
Remember that I called ‘Bake a Cake’ (Latvia) from the 1st semi-final ‘the prequel’ of another song? This is that song. And the prequel is times and times better. This dude is so unlikeable that I’m sure that people will want to punch him in the face. He’s trying to be a Robin Thicke copy, but I guess you can figure that it didn’t work. No. This really IS awful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZFkSAkG2tE
13- Lithuania – Attention (Vilija Mataciünaite)
No. I won’t give you my attention. This is bad. Annoying as hell. Way too repetitive, way too bad. I really hope this doesn’t get into the finale.
12- Poland – My Slowanie – We Are Slavic (Donatan & Cleo)
This is awkward. Kind of reminds me of the grandmothers from Russia two years ago. There’s not much to say about this one, it’s just below average. It really is fun though. It’s more like a parody than the real proper song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is0a9ow96po
11- Macedonia – To the Sky (Tijana)
The song is good. A bit too mainstream maybe. Her hairstyle is kind of weird, and she can’t move on stage. If she can pull it off, she might have a shot at the finale.
10- Malta – Coming Home (Fireflight)
Doesn’t this remind you of Phillip Phillips? I find it REALLY similar to most of his material, especially until the chorus. The song has a specific sense of friendliness, but at the same times, there is a strong feeling of monotony and it really is not that impressive. Eh.
9- Israel – Same Heart (Mei Finegold)
Quite a manly voice she has, doesn’t she? The song is decent, nothing special. She has a tendency to sound out of tune, but apart from that, it’s kind of a solid entry from Israel. The definitely has the looks, and will probably attact some viewers. If not staged properly, the song will fall flat and be extremely boring.
8- Greece – Rise Up (Freaky Fortune ft. RiskyKidd)
Without making any comments on the song, I can say that the song will 80% make it to the finale. Greece has always been able to pull off a top 10/15 with even the weirdest songs. Now, the song is not awful, but it is NOT good. Very memorable though. The rap is bad, and I’m not sure how well this will click with the audience.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uK0AJurBWEA
7- Norway – Silent Storm (Carl Espen)
Norway is one of the most consistent countries in the competition. They always send pretty good songs. Not always winners, but they are almost never the worst. This year, I feel like this is one of the weakest Norwegian entries in a long time. He has absolutely no stage presence, he doesn’t look invested in the song, his vocals are okay, but the song never goes anywhere to deserve any sort of praise whatsoever. Having said that, Noway is probably again a lock for the finale. At least the guy is somewhat charismatic, and the song is like it’s unbearable. It’s just slightly boring.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYAfB1P28ec
6- Austria – Rise Like a Phoenix (Conchita Wurst)
Dat beard. First of all, he would make a gorgeous lady if he got rid of the beard. Also, I need to admit, this is one of the better songs this year. Now this says something about the quality of the music for this year. Anyway, she knows what she’s doing with her voice, she has a great voice, and she will most definitely make it to the finale.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A687Vj7q9IQ
5- Slovenia – Round and Round (Tinkara Kovac)
Everytime I see a flute this year, the only thing that goes throught my mind is that they were ‘inspired’ by Only Teardrops. For a change though, she’s playing it herself! And I REALLY like this song! Being bi-lingual also brings a fresh perspective to the song. I will be disappointed if this one doesn’t make it. The flute is REALLY cool.
4- Switzerland – Hunter of Starts (Sebalter)
Cool song. The whistling is fun. The better ‘silly’ kind of song, but still, it’s not silly. It’s actually pretty good! Catchy and VERY likeable! I do think that the crowd will like it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO0WuC8hpQg
3- Romania – Miracle (Paula Seling & Ovi)
I was a BIG fan of ‘Playing With Fire’, the first song that Puala and Ovi. They ranked third in the finale, and they deserved it. Now, they have returned with Miracle, and admittedly, this one is not as good as Playing With Fire. Paula has an AMAZING voice and uses it pretty well. And I do think that the song will qualify but have a hard time doing well in the finale.
2- Ireland – Heartbeat (Can-Linn ft. Kasey Smith)
Gorgeous girl singing a very cool song. The song is pretty good, very Eurovision-esque. I’m positive that this will be in the finale. On the side note: doesn’t the violin part remind you guys of ‘Only Teardrops’?
1- Finland – Something Better (Softengine)
Finland is another country that is almost always pretty good. Again, this year, the Fins send a handsome guy to sing a pretty good song. A very safe bet for the finale. Are we looking at a top 5 entry? Perhaps.
General Thoughts:
This is probably better than the first semi-final. Majority of the songs are at least decent. There is not much to say, really. We just need to wait & see for ourselves!
On a side note, I still can’t see a clear winner at this point in the competition, which is a shocker. Every year, we’d have a frontrunner or two, but this year, not really.
To wrap things up, I just want to remind you that if you have anything to say, don’t be shy! Comment!
I’ll see you again before Saturday’s grand finale!
