Eurovision, top and flop of the second semi-final. And Angelina…
The second semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest is that of Angelina Mango's debut, even if she is out of the competition. Maionchi is Sembre while Gabriele Corsi is from Sweden and they talk to each other at a distance: in fact, the evening begins with Mara disappearing and then reappearing. For the original audio you have to go to YouTube, but you will miss the unmissable anecdotes overlayed. Business as usual… even in the show, which begins with a nice parody of Loreen's song, which she won last year. Then after the very fast sequence of songs it goes back to being a bit normal and loses rhythm. But the musical number about Sweden that always wins Eurovision is textbook: self-deprecating, written and sung very well.
Angelina Mango: top
He promised an upgrade compared to Sanremo, and here we are: performance, staging and direction by the book, with ballets, use of screens and a throne of thorns. Even too much, compared to the Festival, but this is Eurovision.
When he sings, just his voice, without music, the roar of the Malmo Arena arrives. Excellent, couldn't have done more than that.
The songs in the competition: top(?)
The “most” award is won by the Greek Marina Satti with “Zari” (starts vertically like a TikTok video and transforms into a horizontal TikTok ballet – 7) and the Armenian folk of Ladaniva: with “Jako” ( 7) it seems to be May 1st, not ESC.
The best songs are Norwegian folk metal: Gåte with “Ulveham” (8) are musically the most interesting thing heard so far, complete with hurdy-gurdy (that instrument that is also used in Italian Occitan folk).
The Czech Republic isn't bad – Aiko with “Pedestal” is a straight pop-rock without too many effects (7), even “Hollow” from Latvia gets a listen – Doms is moved at the end, it's endearing. “Zarra” by Nebulossa is fun (the Spanish Jalisse?), sung in chorus by the audience (7).
The most nonsense things are the Netherlands with the techno-zarra of Joost Klein and “Europapa” and above all the Estonians 5miinust and Puuluup who with “(Nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi” (longest title in the history of Eurovision) raise the already very high bar of the underwear with fireworks of the Finnish Windows95man. You have to see to understand
The songs: flop
The favorite Nemo actually doesn't seem like much, neither for the song nor for the award for the performance of “No code”: a line from a musical sung by Mika on a swinging platform (6) – for this reason it will work.
France, after “Voilà” (remember the controversy with Mankeskin?) brings a lament entitled “Mon amour”: as if we were going with songs like “Pizza” and “Ciao”: it is one of the ugliest songs of this Eurovision (4) but goes to the final by right, together with Spain.
Kaleen's Austrian EDM “We Will Rave” (4) is also terrible, not to mention the Spanish metalheads representing San Marino, Megara with “11:11” (saved only by a scenography that looks like a Tim Burton film – 5).
The finalists
They go to the final:
- Latvia – Dons, “Hollow”
- Austria – Kaleen, “We Will Rave”
- Netherlands – Joost Klein, “Europapa”
- Norway – Gåte, “Ulveham”
- Israel – Eden Golan, “Hurricane”
- Greece – Marina Satti, “Zari”
- Estonia – 5miinust ei Puuluup, “(Nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi”
- Switzerland – Nemo, “The Code”
- Georgia – Nutsa Buzaladze, “Fire Fighter”
- Armenia – Ladaniva, “Jako”
