I listened to the summary of the 40 songs to weed out the awful ones. Fortunately, that seemed to be a lot of them this time (I wrote something similar to this for 2021 and also looked at every winner since 1956).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrOaYo3I-9A
Here are the ones that seemed at least vaguely interesting…
8 Serbia – In Corpore Sano – Hmm… this one is mightily odd. The subtitles were on by default, so unlike many other non-English songs I did have an idea of what it’s about. There’s a clinical craft to this one… that initially doesn’t work until the theme becomes clear. It loses this sterility and gathers pace, mixing talk about health with an almost ecclesiastical chant. “Health” dogma as a religion to the exclusion of life itself? Does that sound in some way familiar? A concept song taking you on a journey to a point where we have sick minds in healthy bodies, sad souls in healthy bodies, desperate minds in healthy bodies, frightened minds in healthy bodies. Perhaps what the song misses out on is that the bodies aren’t healthy either, because they need to be exercised and to live, just like the mind. But who cares, because all in all each of us is just another brick in the wall. This song is ten years ahead of its time, and that is if speaking plain fact that contradicts the talking points of the day is taken off the growing list of thought crimes and terrorist acts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po7HDHTBBE0
7 Netherlands – De Diepte – I like this one. It sounds very familiar, but it’s a nice, simple song, well paced, gentle, slow, rising, and with a heartfelt performance. No idea what it’s about but it seems more than a little derivative of the excellent Netherlands 2019 winner (Arcade), particularly the chorus, which I like all the same. All of the parts of De Diepte are well-crafted and put together into a lovely, coherent whole. Out of curiosity I looked up what the song is about and that’s worth knowing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sL6t82HGkE
7 Ukraine – Stefania – Should Ukraine win because of the invasion? I would say “no”, but it should win because the is by far the best all-round song. Catchy and well-crafted in every way, with a unique, fresh sound and plenty of spectacle and variety. Far more accessible than the first song, and with more spectacle and variety than the second which I have now promoted above this on repeat listening. The top three here are deserving winners. I find it hard to separate them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfm8hVNZt8g
6 Georgia – Lock Me In – A trove of curiosities, both weird and wonderful. Starts strongly, but loses steam from the first refrain. Too bad!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgukml7zDAA
6 Latvia – Eat Your Salad – This has everything a pop song needs and sounds great. Full of spurious claims about vegetarianism and organic food being definitely better for the planet, but then the most effective propaganda hooks you in some way! Its colourful childishness is deliberate as it addresses children directly in an attempt to brainwash them. I cycle over 8,000km per year, but I’m not a smug sanctimonious bastard like these guys are. At least, not all the time! Being green should be good, but not a reason to be smug. Think on it and you will see, ways to be green that suit you may not be what’s right for me. Let’s not parade about pious and intolerant. Live and let live, live our lives by example. Don’t patronise me or you’ve made an enemy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TM0_0WfuxSk
6 Lithuania – Sentimental – I thought James Bond had died? Loved the start, but it petered out somewhere.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6uEWHrr6fM
4 Israel – I.M – An almost delightfully disjoined mess of things. Sometimes derivative, other times catchy or even funny. I really don’t know. Could see a lot of people liking this one. Would mark it higher but I found it a little annoying on balance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNFeohWlA20
4 Slovenia – Disko – Plenty of sounds I like to hear but too derivative – inject some life into it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1tFqoflsT8
4 Iceland – Með Hækkandi Sól – One or two nice sounds buried in too much mediocrity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx__3r5uKRo
3 Ireland – That’s Rich – One funny bit in the summary (burning flowers), but the complete song is emblematic of why Ireland has become a vacuous, soulless joke country where unthinking fools follow the latest trend no matter how idiotic it is. This is nasty stuff that’d make you feel sorry for the man in question, even if he was also an arsehole! Fake and insincere.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkHzvy-Pscw
2 Bulgaria – Intention – The next post-Megadrive Sonic The Hedgehog theme tune?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwZTI5AoTg4
1 Moldova – Trenulețul – Makes Cotton Eye Joe look like a transcendent masterpiece. Moldova may be about to be invaded but this song still deserves null points from even the most sympathetic “non-political” Eurovision fan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93mpIFeQ4f4
The following songs didn’t pass the initial filter from watching the summary video but I thought I’d listen to them anyway. In a way, perhaps it shows that such a filter is crude and I should really listen to all of the songs. Not sure if I will… did I miss anything special?
5 Spain – SloMo – There’s some good dancing here. Could do well beyond Eurovision as it’s catchy enough; I don’t like it that much, though.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mYBiIO0pfY
5 San Marino – Stripper – It’s an assured performance and the band know what they’re about. Almost a carbon copy of Italy’s song from last year, but the song isn’t anywhere near as good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-RloZ-Fv38
5 Norway – Give That Wolf a Banana – It does have great spectacle and I do like the bizarre, but I also speak English and don’t think it’s catchy enough to get more than a decent mark.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FW_WgHLgvM
Writings 