Eurovision 2020

Published on by James O'Brien

Most years there’s two or three songs I really, really like, and “meh” is my usual reaction to most of the remainder. But this year, there were half a dozen songs I really liked, including one I’ve put on permanent repeat.

You know how when you’re a teenager you play the same song over and over and over and over again? Imagine, if you would, a 54 year old man dancing around the lounge room. I’ve become a teenager again! I hope the neighbours don’t mind.

This is the song I have on permanent repeat. You can hear his voice has gone through some significant audio processing, but what the hey. This song is very catchy, even if the title and lyric is a little bit creepy!
Sweden always produces the goods.
Iceland often puts forward some of my favourites in Eurovision. This is a great song, with a fun performance, and a lovely lyric. The lyric is he and his wife speaking to their newborn child about “the first time they met”. BTW, he’s impossibly tall, and his wife is the shortest member of the group (on the left).
This guy from Switzerland has a terrific voice, and the melody is strong too.
A terrific soulful dance number from Malta.
Maybe twenty years ago, the Belgian band, Hooverphonic had an awesome song called “Mad About You”. Ever since then, I’ve had a soft spot for them. It was awesome to see them turn up in Eurovision.
Something fun from Russia. Don’t you think the male “vocalist” looks like the Robert Carlyle’s character of “Begbie” in “Trainspotting”? If you’ve made it this far, the dancer in this clip probably demonstrates what I look like in the first song featured.

Even though we didn’t have a “proper” Eurovision this year, there were lots of countries conducting their own specials. I watched the SVT (Swedish TV) special on Friday, and then the SBS (Australian TV) on Saturday, both of which I enjoyed. Iceland topped for both countries. I also watched the “official” “Shine A Light” special which, though well intentioned was a bit of a yawn. “The world is terrible, but there’s a light shining through…” Yeah, yeah, got it. Play me the songs!

It was interesting to watch these specials with mostly video clips, instead of live performances. The live performances can sometimes be a little dodgy. Though authentic, you hear a few bum notes, crazy choreography, and weirdly imagined creative interpretations of the songs. With the video clips, the imagery is generally flawless, and there’s also no doubt a few of the songs / vocals have done with a bit of “enhancement”. But, what the hey? What’s the alternative?

2 thoughts on “Eurovision 2020”

  1. “You know how when you’re a teenager you play the same song over and over and over and over again?”

    You mean there are people who stop doing this when they become adults?

    Reply

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