Well, finally, after months of anticipation the contestants for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 have almost all been decided on. And, post this weekend, the frontrunners are emerging.This weekend saw the finals of the Swedish National selection Melodifestivalen which was always going to be a showdown between the kooky Loreen and the crowd-pleasing Danny Saucedo. Loreen’s “Euphoria” was always the better song but Danny’s Tron inspired performance made up for some slightly dodgy vocals – so it was up to the Swedish public to send a great song or a great performer.
“Euphoria” triumphed and Loreen is off to Baku, Azerbaijan for the finals in May and Saucey Saucedo is left to rue a 2nd place for the 2nd year in a row. Not to fret though as Loreen’s victory immediately thrust Sweden to the top of the betting to take the entire competition.
See Loreen's winning performance of "Euphoria" here...
"Euphoria" has it all – wind machine, fab vocals, catchy chorus you can ear worm your colleagues with, weird jerky dance/ martial arts moves and in the last 1/3rd a full snow storm and a death drop. Of course it should be at the top of the betting! It’s my early pick to take home the top prize.
However, this is the year of the ladies! Incredibly nearly half of this year’s winning participants are female solo artists – which leaves groups and solo males with a real shot at upstaging Sweden’s Loreen. But even with that said some of the other females are really strong. France’s entrant the stunning Anggun sings the simple yet catchy “Echo (You and I)” and Denmark’s quirky Solona Samay goes indie-lite with “Should’ve Known Better” and both will poll well.
See Denmark's indie-lite Solona Samay here...
Dark horses are already grazing in the field too – Cyprus’ perky Ivi Adamou’s bouncy entry “La La Love” is ridiculously infectious and Malta’s representative the not-too-hard-on-the-eye Kurt Calleja’s “This is the Night” is a gay anthem waiting to happen. However, it’s Norway’s answer to Eric Saade, Sweden’s bronze medallist from last year’s competition, Tooji with “Stay” which will not only sail through to the final but will find itself well within the Top 10 come the voting.
See Norway's answer to Eric Saade here...
And I’m not ruling out the Ukraine, Spain or Italy at this stage as all three ladies have a great set of pipes and some catchy tunes that may surprise come finals night.
So much to look forward to…including the unveiling of Engelbert Humperdinck’s entry for the UK. And where do I start with Ireland’s Jedward? Or, the Babushka bunch from Russia!
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