Eurovision Semi Final 1 Review

Eurovision Semi Final 1 Review

After months of promo tours, press meet and greets, and hours and hours of rehearsals, the Eurovision song contest officially began in the International Exhibition Centre in Ukraine, and what a night it was.

The show was kicked off by Monatik a apparently famous Ukrainian rapper performing the English version of his song "Spinning". In the nicest way, Ukraine aren't exactly known for their vast musical talent, but that doesn't mean they don't have any. I enjoyed Monatik's performance, showcasing the traditional clothing and ethnic music of Ukraine, yet still interesting a pan European audience through the means of rap, which is steadily gaining momentum as being a mainstream genre.

I can't say personally that the hosting so far is really working for me, as they seem a bit stiff and too scripted, which although every line is, a good host makes it look seemless and natural, as Petra and Måns did last year. Regardless of this, it is fair to say they are following a tough act, and are not anywhere as unbearable as Ben Camille and Valerie Vella of Junior Eurovision fame.

Song wise, I do believe that semi final 1 was the weaker of the two semis, and I have been feeling a little cocky about my Qualifying predictions, which were:

1) Portugal
2) Sweden
3) Finland
4) Azerbaijan
5) Armenia
6) Latvia
7) Belgium
8) Moldova
9) Cyprus
10) Australia

This isn't necessarily who I wanted to qualify, but It was who I thought had the best chances going into the semis. As you can see, I got 8/10, which I'm pretty pleased about, but I will be talking a bit about which predictions I got wrong.

The first prediction I got wrong was Finland not qualifying. I wasn't personally a fan of the song going into the semi, however it is fair to say that they were well and truly robbed in Ukraine last night, after a stellar performance with tasteful staging. I can understand and attribute their non qualification to the song itself, which is just to slow and repetitive to attain a first time viewers attention, but I would have thought the juries would have saved an entry like this, which is essentially what their job is.

I honestly did not see a Greek qualification this year after last years bad luck with the masterpiece that is "Utopian Land" (my mum still loves it!), though I'm guessing that extra performance in the prized last spot after "technical problems" in the jury performance must have paid off, as well as best friends Cyprus also voting in semi final 1. Overall I thought it deserved the final, though a change to camera angles on the part where she is floating seems could really elevate this.

Shockingly, Latvia failed to make the final with Triana Park slaying the song "Line", making the fist injustice of this Eurovision season.

How does this not qualify, and a man with a horse mask does?

The jury must have obliterated this, as I can't see this coming any less then 6th with the televote. It had light, it had wind, and it had colour, what more can you want?

Another shock to me was Poland qualifying not only over Finland and Latvia, but also over (in my opinion) stronger entries such as Montenegro and Georgia. Televoters must have really bought into the message of the song and strong vocals by Kasia, but I am surprised the song managed to stand out with such minimalistic staging (which isn't always a bad thing). My guess is that voters wanted the near nip slip to become a reality in the final..

#Freethenip

Speaking of minimalistic staging, a mention must also go to Salvador Sobral, who I would happily put money on to win the contest this year. From start to finish I was astonished by his powerful and expressive performance. I don't speak Portuguese, but also don't need to to understand and appreciate the meaning of this song.

The face of a winner?

For me, Semi final 2 is going to be a bloodbath, which so many amazing songs and genius staging. I'm crossing everything for Belarus!