Eurovision Winner .Com
1st Semifinal: Tuesday, 20 May 2008
2nd Semifinal: Thursday, 22 May 2008
Final: Saturday, 24 May 2008
Belgrade (Serbia)
 
  Forget about the political voting Terry! The winner every year is the one that gets some points from all of the participating countries rather than 12 points from only a few. Here is the formula for creating a Eurovision Song Contest winner, i.e. something that appeals to all 43 nations that participate.       How-To GuideThe SongProductionPerformer
             
  ESC 2008

24 May 2008 - And the top 8 are:

1. Russia (272 points)
2. Ukraine (230 points)
3. Greece (218 points)
4. Armenia (199 points)
5. Norway (182 points)
6. Serbia (160 points)
7. Turkey (138 points)
8. Azerbaijan (132 points)

So 7 of the 8 countries I picked for the top spot were there. And in terms of the order, I was expecting Russia to come fourth and Armenia first, so that came in as a surprise. For the fifth spot, Europe chose Norway's entry instead of Poland's. But there you go; 87.5% success rate and it is all very simple.

BBC's commentator Terry Wogan once again sounded bemused at the results and blamed political voting for UK's position. When will he learn?

23 May 2008 - I'll give you some insight into my thinking and marking. Firstly, I group the songs.

  • 9 countries have upbeat tunes. UK, Germany, Armenia, Iceland, Sweden, Ukraine, and Latvia 's songs are club/disco style, while Denmark and France participate with more poppy tunes.
  • 7 countries ( Romania, Albania, Israel, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, and Russia ) are participating with ballads.
  • Finland, Turkey and Azerbaijan are participating with Rock songs. Georgia 's song wants to rock but it can't.
  • Bosnia & Herzegovinian and Croatian entries are suffering from MMD.
  • Finally there is Greece, Norway and Spain, which don't fit into any of these categories.

For a ballad to win, it would have to be better than the 6 others. Similarly, if an upbeat song is going to win, it has to be better than 8 others. So the next step is to further sort these songs among themselves.

From the upbeat category, Armenia is my favourite, followed by Ukraine and Sweden. From the ballads, I like Serbia, Russia, and Poland and amongst the Rock tunes, Azerbaijan's entry. Ignore the MMDs; although Europe loves weirdoes, they shouldn't win! From the others, Greece definitely has a chance in the top 5 while Norway has a top-10 material.

Then I take away the typical Eurovision entries like Sweden and Norway, and for sentimental reasons add Turkey. So now we are left with 8 countries: Armenia, Ukraine, Greece, Serbia, Russia, Poland, Azerbaijan, Turkey.

Ukraine, Greece, Serbia, and Turkey have won within the last 10 years. That's why Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan and Poland would be good options to win. Now you know how I end up choosing unexpected entries among 40+ songs year after year.

22 May 2008 - Below are my comments for this year's finalists. But first, here is a legend for the chart:

  • MMD - Multiple Musicality Disorder (The song doesn't have a persistent style)
  • B - Ballad (Something slow)
  • C - Club/Dance/Techno/Disco/etc (Something upbeat)
  • Pop - Radio material (Still upbeat)
  • R - Rock / Metal / etc (Individual or band)
  • ? - Means I've no idea how to categorise the song in question

#

Country

Performer(s)

Song title

Ekin's Comments

Cat

01

Flag of Romania

Romania

Nico & Vlad

Pe-o Margine De Lume

Nico & Vlad are characters from Grand Theft Auto IV. What are they doing here, singing a duet at Eurovision? J Not bad though.

B

02

Flag of United Kingdom

United Kingdom

Andy Abraham

Even If

Why does UK keep doing this? Another mediocre song. I don't think even all the sympathy points for Andy's past would be enough to get the UK out of the bottom half.

C

03

Flag of Albania

Albania

Olta Boka

Zemrën E Lamë Peng

Now this good old power ballad, sung by a cute little girl, is much better! Is she Avril's Albanian cousin? I wish I could understand what the lyrics said.

B

04

Flag of Germany

Germany

No Angels

Disappear

The refrain is too monotonous. Boring!

C

05

Flag of Armenia

Armenia

Sirusho

Qele, Qele

This sounds like something Greeks would do. Fits in perfectly with this year's formula: beautiful female singer, male dancers, and ethnic touches in the song.

C

06

Flag of Bosnia & Herzegovina

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Laka

Pokusaj

Simply weird! Not a chance! Also suffering from major MMD!

MMD

07

Flag of Israel

Israel

Boaz

The Fire In Your Eyes

The throat sounds make Israeli ballads hard to listen to; they could have been better of with English lyrics.

B

08

Flag of Finland

Finland

Teräsbetoni

Missä Miehet Ratsastaa

Nice metal song but the Finnish should understand that Lordi won the contest because they were different! This song is even Eurovisionised with a key change! Weak.

R

09

Flag of Croatia

Croatia

Kraljevi Ulice & 75 Cents

Romanca

Does Romanca mean I will Survive in Croatian? Gosh, so many pieces of this song is ripped off from others that my head hurts thinking about where I heard them all!

MMD

10

Flag of Poland

Poland

Isis Gee

For Life

Cute blond, strong voice, excellent performance, nice song. What else do we need? Will Europe have a new Celine Dion?

B

11

Flag of Iceland

Iceland

Euroband

This Is My Life

This could have been a club anthem in early 90s if the chorus was catchier. It's not for the Eurovision though.

C

12

Flag of Turkey

Turkey

Mor ve Ötesi

Deli

This song has one of the best refrains I heard this year! But the broken rhythm of the 2 long verses and the Turkish lyrics may be off-putting. Still top 10 material.

R

13

Flag of Portugal

Portugal

Vânia Fernandes

Senhora Do Mar (Negras Águas)

It ain't over until the fat lady sings. And how wonderful she is at that. Take away the key change and the song is great!

B

14

Flag of Latvia

Latvia

Pirates Of The Sea

Wolves Of The Sea

The lyrics say "pirates are all [they] can be" but if I were them I would also consider a career in entertaining 8 year olds during the day on a cruise ship (their costumes are ready) and 80 year-old rich businessmen at nights (we wouldn't want the implants to go to waste now, would we). Watch out for the key change!

C

15

Flag of Sweden

Sweden

Charlotte Perrelli

Hero

Nice effort by 1999's Eurovision winner, but I wonder if I'll remember this song in half an hour.

C

16

Flag of Denmark

Denmark

Simon Mathew

All Night Long

I would listen to this song in my car if the lyrics weren't so tacky! Simple, easy to digest, but if a solo male singer will win ESC after 17 years, Simon has strong competition in the form of Russia 's Dima.

Pop

17

Flag of Georgia

Georgia

Diana Gurtskaya

Peace Will Come

First 10 seconds, I thought this could have been another Love Shine A Light. It isn't - in fact far from it. If only they hadn't commissioned a 10 year old to write the chorus! Piss will come. Especially if you drink lot's of beer! Anyway, I hope Georgia didn't play the blind card in their PR.

R

18

Flag of Ukraine

Ukraine

Ani Lorak

Shady Lady

Kylie wannabe puts on an excellent show! By no means it's unique but at least it's much better than Iceland and Sweden.

C

19

Flag of France

France

Sébastien Tellier

Divine

80s pop. Not a chance.

Pop

20

Flag of Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Elnur & Samir

Day After Day

Elnur and Samir must have read this web site - they've got the rock elements, ethnic elements, etc without suffering from MMD. Now this is what I'm talking about!

R

21

Flag of Greece

Greece

Kalomira

Secret Combination

Following in the footsteps of Helena Paparizou with the song and Beyonce with the dancing. Nice!

?

22

Flag of Spain

Spain

Rodolfo Chikilicuatre

Baila El Chiki Chiki

It's a rip off from Daddy Yankee's Gasolina! How the hell did they get away with this?

?

23

Flag of Serbia

Serbia

Jelena Tomasevic feat. Bora Dugic

Oro

It's one of the best ballads this year! Ethnic touches make the song perfect. If only we could understand the lyrics! (I haven't missed the Vangelis claps in the chorus.)

B

24

Flag of Russia

Russia

Dima Bilan

Believe

Dima finished Eurovision second in 2006 and because of his experience, this song is everybody's favourite. Not mine! Yes it is top-5 material, but can Dima be a solo male winner after 17 years? Probably not. By the way, the bridge is a rip off from "You are everything, everything is you".

B

25

Flag of Norway

Norway

Maria

Hold On Be Strong

A good old Eurovision tune. "There's always someone out there" line is quite catchy. Is the song unique enough to win?

?



Second Semifinal (22 May 2008)

#

 

Country

Performer(s)

Song title

Ekin's Comments

01

Flag of Iceland

Iceland

Euroband

This Is My Life

This could have been a club anthem in early 90s if the chorus was catchier. It's not for the Eurovision.

02

Flag of Sweden

Sweden

Charlotte Perrelli

Hero

Nice but I wonder if I'll remember this song in half an hour…

03

Flag of Turkey

Turkey

Mor ve Ötesi

Deli

This song has one of the best refrains I heard this year! But the broken rhythm of the 2 long verses and the Turkish lyrics may be off-putting. Still top 10 material…

04

Flag of Ukraine

Ukraine

Ani Lorak

Shady Lady

Kylie wannabe puts on an excellent! By no means it's unique but at least it's much better than Iceland and Sweden …

05

Flag of Lithuania

Lithuania

Jeronimas Milius

Nomads In The Night

This chap is in dire need of some vocal coaching and a decent haircut! Simple slow song. Too simple…

06

Flag of Albania

Albania

Olta Boka

Zemrën E Lamë Peng

Now this good old power ballad by a cute little girl is much better! Is she Avril's Albanian cousin? I wish I could understand what the lyrics said…

07

Flag of Switzerland

Switzerland

Paolo Meneguzzi

Era Stupendo

It's a very sweet ballad and its remix all in 3 minutes! It's got MMD (multiple musicality disorder)! Sorry Switzerland , not this year…

08

Flag of Czech Republic

Czech Republic

Tereza Kerndlová

Have Some Fun

So close!!!!!! If the girls were in tune, the melody was less predictable, and the style was persistent throughout the production, we could have had an early winner!

09

Flag of Belarus

Belarus

Ruslan Alehno

Hasta La Vista

Hasta la vista baby, I'm gonna miss you. Not! Dancers with big hooters will certainly score some points but that's as far as it goes…

10

Flag of Latvia

Latvia

Pirates Of The Sea

Wolves Of The Sea

As their own lyrics say “pirates are all they can be”. I'd also consider a career on a cruise ship entertaining 8 year olds during the day (the costumes are ready) and 80 year-old rich businessmen at nights (we wouldn't want the implants to go to waste now, would we). Watch out for the key change!

11

Flag of Croatia

Croatia

Kraljevi Ulice & 75 Cents

Romanca

Does Romanca mean I will Survive in Croatian? Gosh, so many pieces of this song is ripped off from others that my head hurts thinking about where I heard them all!

12

Flag of Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Deep Zone & Balthazar

DJ, Take Me Away

Bulgarians do this every year. It's upbeat yet still unique – again! Well done to them. But where did I hear this tune? Where???? Burning turntables are a great idea by the way.

13

Flag of Denmark

Denmark

Simon Mathew

All Night Long

I would listen to this song in my car if the lyrics weren't so tacky! Simple, easy to digest, but remember that a solo male singer didn't win ESC for 17 years.

14

Flag of Georgia

Georgia

Diana Gurtskaya

Peace Will Come

First 10 seconds, I thought this could have been another Love Shine A Light. It isn't – in fact far from it. If only they hadn't commissioned a 10 year old to write the chorus! Piss will come… Especially if you drink lot's of beer!

15

Flag of Hungary

Hungary

Csézy

Candlelight

“A bold pianist and a flat-chested singer is bound to deliver something good” I thought. At least a song without a key change… Slightly disappointing, yet it's the most elegant song of the night so far. Not top 5 material though.

16

Flag of Malta

Malta

Morena

Vodka

How many times did I see this formula tonight; a good looking girl singing techno with 4 male dancers? Her good voice can't save the bad composition.

17

Flag of Cyprus

Cyprus

Evdokia Kadi

Femme Fatale

Another song with MMD but at least the Broadway musical quality makes it fun to watch.

18

Flag of F.Y.R. Macedonia

F.Y.R. Macedonia

Tamara, Vrcak & Adrijan

Let Me Love You

If the guys didn't distract the cameramen from zooming in to the cleavage, which Tamara was obviously so desperate to show, by repeating “let's go, let's go”, they could have a chance.

19

Flag of Portugal

Portugal

Vânia Fernandes

Senhora Do Mar (Negras Águas)

It ain't over until the fat lady sings. And how wonderful she is at that… Take away the key change and the song is great!

First Semifinal (20 May 2008)

#

 

Country

Performer(s)

Song title

Comments

01

Flag of Montenegro

Montenegro

Stefan Filipovic

Zauvijek Volim Te

Mediocre. Sorry Montenegro , not this year.

02

Flag of Israel

Israel

Boaz

The Fire In Your Eyes

The throat sounds make Israeli ballads hard to listen to; they could have been better of with English lyrics. The song is suffering from minor MMD.

03

Flag of Estonia

Estonia

Kreisiraadio

Leto Svet

Who thought 3 fat men in colourful suits supported by 3 women in bikinis would be interesting? Horrible song – Novelty songs don't go through in Semifinals!!!

04

Flag of Moldova

Moldova

Geta Burlacu

A Century Of Love

Slow jazz, ethnic pop, hmm, interesting…

05

Flag of San Marino

San Marino

Miodio

Complice

Nice ballad but the minute you're flat, you're out. The singer was flat at least 2-3 times.

06

Flag of Belgium

Belgium

Ishtar

O Julissi

Hahahaha, what were they thinking??? No way!

07

Flag of Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Elnur & Samir

Day After Day

Elnur and Samir must have read this web site – they've got the rock elements, ethnic elements, etc without suffering from MMD. Now this is what I'm talking about!

08

Flag of Slovenia

Slovenia

Rebeka Dremelj

Vrag Naj Vzame

Cute girl, poor production!

09

Flag of Norway

Norway

Maria

Hold On Be Strong

A good old Eurovision tune. “There's always someone out there” line is quite catchy… Is the song unique enough to win? I don't know yet.

10

Flag of Poland

Poland

Isis Gee

For Life

Cute blond, strong voice, excellent performance, nice song. What else do we need?

11

Flag of Ireland

Ireland

Dustin the Turkey

Irelande Douze Pointe

No! Irlanda null points!

12

Flag of Andorra

Andorra

Gisela

Casanova

Cheap dance track from an Abba-wannabe. Not a chance.

13

Flag of Bosnia & Herzegovina

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Laka

Pokušaj

Simply weird! Not a chance! Also suffering from major MMD!

14

Flag of Armenia

Armenia

Sirusho

Qele, Qele

This sounds like something Greeks would do. Fits in perfectly with this year's formula: beautiful girl, 4 male dancers, and ethnic touches in the song.

15

Flag of The Netherlands

The Netherlands

Hind

Your Heart Belongs To Me

Arabic strings from the Dutch? I'm impressed! Unfortunately for them there are much better upbeat songs this year.

16

Flag of Finland

Finland

Teräsbetoni

Missä Miehet Ratsastaa

Nice metal song but the Finnish should understand that Lordi won the contest because they were different! This song is even Eurovisionised with a key change! Week…

17

Flag of Romania

Romania

Nico & Vlad

Pe-o Margine De Lume

Nico & Vlad are characters from Grand Theft Auto IV. What are they doing here, singing a duet at Eurovision? J Not bad…

18

Flag of Russia

Russia

Dima Bilan

Believe

Top 5 material but the bridge is a rip off from “You are everything, everything is you”. Would Europe let ballads win twice in a row? Can Dima be a solo male winner after 17 years?

19

Flag of Greece

Greece

Kalomira

Secret Combination

Following in the footsteps of Helena Paparizou with the song and Beyonce with the dancing. Nice!

 

 

   

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