Jen and Chris discuss Kátya Tompos's "Magányos csónak," Hungary's entry into Eurovision 2009.
Chris: "What decade is this from?"
Jen: "The 1970s. It sounds like a Carly Simon song."
Chris: "Only... ploddier."
--
Jen: "But she can sing. Seriously."
Chris: Nods.
--
Chris: "It's there."
Jen: "Yeah."
If you want to know how memorable Niels Brinck's Eurovision number "Believe Again" is, just watch how well he knows the song himself.
Oops! Denmark is a lot more forgiving than Simon Cowell, though, and it voted this one through. Of course, as Eurovision Blog notes, this was co-written by Ronan Keating. Bloody traitor. I mean, I know Lord Andrew was writing the U.K. number this year, but still, Ronan...
Per Jen: this one is an early contender, a very catchy and widely accessible pop song. Note - the force of Ronan runs strong in this one.
A lesson on why I should not be allowed to use a video camera when I'm overtired.
This is not pop culture-related, Sweeney Todd reference in the title notwithstanding. The person we bought our house from walled off the back half of the house to create an apartment that she could rent out for extra income. When we moved in, we had every intention of renting it out while Chris was in grad school. We never did, so it ended up serving as a guest suite.
Now that we've got a wee little baby on the way, we decided it was time to knock down the wall separating the front of the house from the back. So, here's what the inside of our house looked like before:
And here's what it looks like now:
Chris: Did you hear the story about East Germany's porn?
Jen: East German porn? Who collects that, Eliot Spitzer?
Jen here live-blogging the Russian broadcast for their Eurovision entry. This is a must-not-miss of the qualifiers because Russia is one of the big players on the Eurovision circuit. They have the talent, the capacity, and, let’s face it, the interest to put up good songs year after year. 27 songs are vying to represent Russia in the contest this May. Hope we’re in for a good time. All times EDT.
1:53 Do I spot Evgeny Plushenko in the audience? That’s awesome.
1:57 We open with Marija Serifovic, last year’s winner, singing last year’s winning song “Moltiva.” Oh yes, we’re in for some fun tonight. We are amused by the show of solidarity with Serbia that the Russians are demonstrating by having her open the show.
2:03 01 - Assorti. God-awful Pussycat Dolls knock-off, with half the talent. Anna is a naughty librarian. I can tell because her outfit is backless. 6 women, 2 part harmony. Obviously going for 3 part harmony would be a bit complex given their “complicated” dance moves.
2:06 02 – Polina Smolova. Not bad, although I not sure the storytelling that appears to be happening in this song will play well with an audience that doesn't understand Russian. She totally dissed the dancer with the brooding Russian soul. Makes sense, she needs to focus on her career right now.
2:10 03 – Alsou Zainutdinova. Atrocious vocal. Major warble problem. The costumes and choreography are suggestive of someone who became interested in Indian culture exactly one month ago.
2:13 04 - Zhenya Otradnaya. Best vocal on the night so far, but she needs to rethink the wedding dress. And I just don’t know if “porque, porque porque. Amor, amor, amor” is going to cut it with Russian voters.
2:15 05 - Andrei Mararenko. Wall of Voodoo sings Rick Springfield. A silly song, but it amuses. “Siberia Ba-ba-beria.” The camos make them dangerous.
2:23 06 – Anna Mushak. They’re trying to force rhyme “middle” and “needle”.
2:26 07 – Nora Adam. This sounds like the Minnie Driver vocal from “Golden Eye”. “Gotta let it go.” Indeed, she gotta let her mike go.
2:29 08 – Natalia Terehova. Cute and catchy. I like this one.
2:35 09 – Evgenia Rasskazova. Why can’t they give us a medium shot of her? I’m curious if she is going to fall out of her unbuttoned wedding dress. Ev gives her mild applause.
2:41 10 – Dima Bilan. You do start to gain an appreciation when the English is good. Dima has sprouted roots from his feet planting himself into the stage, and he grows like a flower. That said, a powerful vocal and a relatively non-stupid English lyric.
2:46 11 – Elena Gorskaya. Are the backup dancers dressed like priests? Why yes, and we even get Christ imagery during the bridge. Christianity and Islam “Somewhere on the edge of the world.” Is this a statement on the Russian stance on the war on terrorism?
2:50 12 – Aleksandr Panayotov. Prop work! Big disco balls, and, wait, DIFFERENT SIZED disco balls now! “The crescent and the cross in the sky…” I see we are now entering the political section of our show with another statement on the war on terrorism. Can’t we all just be friends and love each other? Kumbaya, bitches. C’mon people, Eurovision hates politics, and this one puts the “pain” in “painfully earnest.”
2:52 C: this is what happens when you don’t make it into the Bolshoi. Dancing. Holding balls.
J: I’d put it as rhythmic gymnastics rejects.
2:56 13 – Pier Narciss and Jam Sherif. “Are we ready to rock a bit?” Well, yes. Actually, I’m ready to rock a lot. Oh, “a beat” not “a bit”. Well, yes, that too. The rough beginning is forgiven because this track has a nice groove. One guy is American and the other, French? (Actually, they're from Nigeria and Cameroon.) Possibly the only 2 black folks in Russia.
2:59 14 – Yulia Mihalchik. Has this chick been making a living playing funerals? Cuz, you know, you don’t want anything that rocks hard at a funeral.
Eurovision Lesson #1.
Eurovison likes:
* Slow songs if accompanied by a powerful vocal; or
* Upbeat songs.
This song fails because it is neither.
3:08 15 – Granat.
“The other side of midnight.
No sign of love.”
The good news is they’re trying a more sophisticated harmony than we heard in #1. Of course the bad news is they really shouldn’t be attempting it if their tuning is off.
3:11 16 – Sabrina.
“I see you, in my rear view.”
“Got a vision, it’s a premonition.”
Maybe it’s just a Russian/American culture clash, but in my world R&B does not involve the presence of an accordion.
3:14 J: This will be a test for the coveted horndog vote.
C: This one is for the old Commies seeing the permissiveness of an open society.
3:16 17 – BK. AC/DC called, they want their wardrobe back. Truly, this vocal, this song, everything, is terrible. I haven’t heard vocals this bad since Kiss.
3:19 18 – Asia. Contrary to how she describes herself (or maybe her influences, my Russian is nonexistent), I don’t hear Sarah Brightman or Mariah Carey. I hear flat.
This is really terrible. She’s sitting on her notes like someone who is trying to make a square become a trapezoid. Too bad she wasted money on collagen injections just for this broadcast. She can’t even moan in tune. Low point for vocals so far tonight, and that’s saying something, because #3 was bad.
3:28 19 – Tamila Bloggy.
C: Boy, this is… uh…
J: Boring.
C: Yeah.
Evgeny wants his haircut back.
3:32 20 – Rime Minister. Uh oh, boy band alert. Seriously, the Backstreet Boys went out of fashion after 1999. Of course, what’s worrying is this stuff has been known to make it through. It’s also kind of a catchy song. Oooo, and they close out with competent 5-part harmony.
3:36 21 – Anatoliy Aleshin. I sense earnest.
3:37 J: The long lost and estranged Olsen Brother.
C: Are you sure it’s not an Olsen father?
3:38 We’re going a little Meatloaf now, and there’s the telltale Eurovision Key Change (EKC). What’s sad is it’s not a bad Eurovision song, it’s just not executed well.
3:45 22 – Aleksei Vorobiev
“I can’t believe it’s true
I will sing for you
To find a modern sound
That we will sing aloud.”
3:46 YES!!!! KOSSACK DANCERS! On kitsch value this is unsurpassed. And the thing is it’s really catchy. The audience is getting into it too. I have to say, looking at those red costumes, I was not taking him seriously at first but well played, sir. Well played. My favorite on the night so far. This is the first song I’ve heard that felt like an affirmative “yes” as opposed to “eh, that’s not bad.”
3:49 23 – Roman Bezhin. Master class lesson for Roman: sing where you speak. I can’t understand a damn thing he says, and he is singing in English.
3:53 24 – Sergei Lazarev.
“The fly is on the move
You know I’ll get you into the groove”
Oh. The FIRE is on the move. Whatever.
Fireballs. So Wizard of Oz.
3:59 25 – Natalia Astafeva. Influences are Barbara Streisand and Bjork. I don’t see that. I see Christian Siriano. A train wreck of a song and a performance.
Eurovision Lesson #2. The problem with using a mike stand when it’s just you on stage is it creates a static visual picture and roots you to one place. Eurovision doesn’t like that.
4:03 26 – Satsura and Maks Lorens. With all these candles, is he making a ritual sacrifice? The lighting makes it look like it’s raining, in his heart, but not so much that it puts out the candles. I hear the gospel influence and the R&B pop. The harmonies are really nice and the vocals are pretty powerful. Will we get a EKC? Why yes we will! Don’t hate this one.
4:06 27 – Olga Varvus. And we close out the evening with “King of Seduction.” As if Taylor Dayne didn’t look enough like a drag queen.
J: Is the one male dancer in the back the King of Seduction?
C: Yes. I was hoping he’d wear a crown on his fedora, but it was not to be.
4:15 So now we begin voting for our favorites. It seems as though the judges have some say, and the voters have some say. I guess the judges are like superdelegates (we do have superdelegates on the mind these days). Voters are asked to call or SMS their vote, picking among all 27. That seems like a steep task, but ultimately, more “democratic” than the juried vetting, such as we saw in Britain for example.
In my opinion there are 3 contenders here (#22, #8, and #26), and 3 additional songs that didn’t suck (#10, #13, and #4).
4:22 Now we hear the Belarusian entry, Ruslan. Clearly adopting the Koldun model of touring prior to the Eurovision contest.
4:30 And now the Ukranian entry, Ani Lorak, “Shady Lady”. Goody! It’s a good song, and she can really sing. She could win this thing in May.
4:34 We review our performances one last time. And when voting, we should ask ourselves, who’s good enough to compete with the likes of the Ukranian entry?
4:43 Our voting window is now closed.
4:40 The tallies come in… (Obviously, they all received vote counts, but these are who stood out to me and I managed to write down)
#3 2 points. Ow! Is it possible to get less than 2 points?
#4 50 points. Ooooh! Wedding dress girl did good!
#7 4 points. Ow!
#10 54 points. Nice going!
#12 52 points. WTF?!?!?
#13 16 points. Ow!
#14 43 points. What?! Waaay better than she deserved.
#16 19 points. We don’t play for booze and whores around here.
#22 46 points. Good showing, but sad for what was our and the audience’s favorite.
#23 7 points. Roman did poorly.
#24 48 points. But… but… he was terrible!!!
#26 26 points. Disappointing finish.
4:53 And our winner is … #10 Dima Bilan. I can live with this. He was ok.
4:54 Ev gives him a standing O.
4:57 Wait, is this the guy who went 2 years ago? Sure looks like it. Finished 2nd behind Lordi.
4:59 And the show closes out with us hearing from our winner yet again. Nice falsetto work.
While watching Hardball during the Iowa caucus coverage:
Pat Buchanan: "Hillary's got that woman thing going."
Jen: "It's called a period, Pat."
A conversation while listening to the Chieftans' "St. Stephen's Day Murders" from their Christmas album The Bells of Dublin:
Jen: "That's Elvis Costello [singing], right?"
Chris: "Yes. It might be the best thing he's ever done."
Jen: "It is. And I include Diana Krall in that."
A conversation while listening to "The Windmills of Your Mind," the hit song from The Thomas Crown Affair, from Jack Jones Sings Michel Legrand...
Jen: What does this song have to do with The Thomas Crown Affair?
Chris: What does this song have to do with anything?
Jen: This is true.
Chris: That's the problem with French composers, though. You tell them what your movie's about and they do they opposite. "Michel, we've got this movie..."
Jen: "Stop right there!"
Trey Parker and Matt Stone should kick back and enjoy a fine glass of red wine.
As a television series, "The Simpsons" is a legend, the longest running sitcom on television, which amazingly, has generally retained its high quality. It's the gold standard; a benchmark by which other sitcoms, especially animated sitcoms, will be measured for a long time. The boys from South Park even did an episode a few years ago decrying their creative frustrations with writing for animated television - "Simpsons Did It!". But when it comes to full-length feature adaptations of their series, South Park got a leg up on the Simpsons. "The Simpsons Movie" is no "South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut".
The Simpsons Movie has some (very) funny gags. One of the best ones is an aerial shot of Springfield that reveals the church is next door to Moe's Tavern. The faithful emerge from the church onto the streets, and the drunken emerge from Moe's onto the streets. They see the end of the world is coming. Both groups do a collective "eek" and run headlong into the other building (i.e. churchgoers into tavern, and taverngoers into church.)
Jokes like this are the sparks that keep the plot engine going, but unfortunately, the engine itself has problems. The movie starts with a strong premise: a prophesy, environmental pollution in Lake Springfield, and a pet pig. However, each of these points lose energy through the picture, and the film gets sidetracked with new plot points. The new plot points are events in the Simpson family lives that we always assumed would happen in the series but hadn't yet (Marge Leaves Homer, Maggie Kicks Ass, Lisa Gets a Boyfriend, etc). By the time we arrive at the third act, all the original plot points are either resolved or forgotten and none of these character arcs are given the treatment they deserve.
The movie retains its biting political satire that the sitcom was known for, but, in today's political climate, some of it is not funny, just depressing. Images of a Springfield turned by the government into an urban wasteland are reminiscent of New Orleans post-Katrina, and the scenes in the White House, with President Schwartzenegger boasting "I'm paid to lead, not read" to his former-CEO made government crony cut a little too close to home.
The Simpsons has been animated well and adapts ably to the big screen. There are sweeping establishing shots that take you through the entire town, where you get to see all of the town's inhabitants. These are gloriously animated, as are some of the crowd movement shots. For some reason, Disco Stu often stands out in many of these wide shots. But why? Disco Stu doesn't need to advertise.
Finally, it is gratifying to note there are a couple of song parodies that are very much consistent with the Groening spirit - taking you back to the "Life in Hell" bits when he would rewrite song lyrics like kids would do. "SpiderPig" and the Springfield Anthem (if you sit through the closing credits) are both awesome.
All in all, a pretty good year I thought. A couple of strong songs, and the winner is an able singer with a song that, while Eurovision-y, also improves upon multiple hearings.
Very pleased that Russia, Turkey, Hungary, and Bulgaria finished so strong. They did great and totally deserved it.
Georgia finished 12th overall, and considering it was their first year, that's a nice showing.
Germany, not so hot in the end, a lot of bridesmaid points, but never a bride, never the big points. but again, I don't think ROGER CICERO was really expecting the win anyway, just the exposure. And if that's indeed the case, then, HEY, he already is a winner. However, I must say that I don't think Frank would smile upon that kind of attitude.
Also very pleased that Ireland finished last. It really was an abysmal song and an abysmal performance.
Ciao darlings. Kiss kiss.
Jen's commentary, based on notes, continued.
13. France
Wow, this seems pretty disrespectful, like they're mocking other Eurovision countries. And, wait, is that in the opening riff a sample of the Belarus song? Sheesh. They come off like total assholes.
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14. Latvia
Let's bring it boys, the contest is ripe for the picking. Their performance has benefited from the extra rehearsal time. They sound much better than in the semis.
All of them are holding white roses. Except the Italian. He gets the red rose. You know, like the flag.
At least I now have the answer that nagging question: what does it sound like when 6 opera singers sing Leo Sayer.
Dangerous. They sounded good.
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15. Russia
Doesn't pretend to be anything anything other than what it is - barely legal eye candy singing a dance confection. And they work it. I love it, and so does the audience.
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16. Germany
It's hard to follow Russia. But he's a pro - sounds good, looks good (although maybe a tad too much like Jack Black for my liking), and has a 5 piece jazz combo complete with upright bass. There's some sensitivity in the vocal - he knows exactly how to sing to a big crowd like this.
On the backdrop is only a giant ROGER CICERO in BIG ASS LIGHTS. That suggests to me he doesn't think he's got a shot at this and is only here for the exposure. Eh, so be it. He's the best entry Germany's had in years, and I dig it.
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17. Serbia
I see we're in the heavy artillery section of the draw. She's got a great voice, and sings with great musicality. And, unlike Georgia, knows not to oversing. I'm very impressed by the amount of support she's got on the really big notes.
Really good - I think she' s got it.
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18. Ukraine
He's dressed like a giant disco ball, with a communist star on his head. On his back is a "69", like a ballroom dancing competition number. The backup singers are dressed in silver lame 40s-GI-inspired outfits. To me, it really does remind me of WWII. And cartoon mice, like when they're "making the dress for Cinderellee", except in this case they're mocking Germans. "La la lalalala la la..."
But, hey, the performance has good energy, and is well sung even though there is a lot of movement. This is the better performance compared with Denmark. Of course, it doesn't change the fact the song goes nowhere.
I don't get it.
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19. United Kingdom
It rough placement for the UK to follow Ukraine, especially with this fluff. It's like having a 5 year aged blue cheese, followed immediately by mild cheddar.
They're dressed like flight attendants, and clearly the song isn't strong because they have tons of props. Utter theatrics.
Miserable. An embarrassment.
I guess they deserve points
1) for their commitment; and 2) for being in tune.
Bottom line: it's Saved By The Bell comes to Eurovision. I'm so excited... so excited... so... scared.
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20. Romania
Like Latvia, this act is 6 men. Except each one is singing in a different language. And, aw, it's at Eurovision... like we should all come together. Kumbaya, my lord, kumbaya.
They have better choreo than Latvia, but not better singing, and it's not a better song.
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21. Bulgaria
Sigh... 3 more left. Rock it, kids.
I like that the intensity of this song is driven by percussion. By drums, not by backup dancers or by singers trying too hard.
This builds nicely - it's really good, they look relaxed and like they're having fun. They did better than the semis. They might place top 10 after all.
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22. Turkey
Good placement for Turkey here, the last song of consequence. He too looks comfortable, better than the semis. He's also playing to the crowd - nice touch. I'm digging it.
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23. Armenia
Someone TP'd his tree. Probably the Turks.
Who's strangling the cat?
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24. Moldova
Over singing in a big way.
Sheesh, she's pitchy, screechy.
Moldova could learn a lesson from Bulgaria.
Notes taken during the show but not posted...
1. Bosnia & Herzogovena
Natalie Portman isn't known for her singing. Dressed like a chartreuse ballerina, and I don't know why she has on her hand a giant postage stamp with a grasshopper in it. But, hey, at least all the dry ice means I don't have to see how she's dressed anymore. The backup singers are white figure pottery.
Started rough at first - but got bettter as the song went on. Boring song - closing credits to a Bond film.
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2. Spain
Well, now the competition begins, and Spain comes on with a high energy performance. All dressed in white, they look like 98 degrees. Probably could've won 5 years ago - except it's not 5 years ago. Tight, though cheesy choreo. I HEART YOU MI VIDA E A O. Huh?
Plus, there's a giant rotating triangle on the lights. Shameless plug to the gay contingent. But it sounded like it got a good reception.
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3. Belarus, again 3rd up.
Aw, he's so dreamy. And the rock pose, feet planted 4 feet apart from them is so very well rehearsed. Seems to me he could take a lesson from Darren Romeo, at least is able to sing in tune and do his magic moves at the same time. Dunno about this one, I picked him to do well, but... it feels a little safe to me.
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4. Ireland
Oh, god, Ireland - this is gonna be death. Man, she is really flat... terrible. Kill me now.
She sits on every note. Like a fat woman crushing a big tuffet and her ass cheeks are hanging over. Like when a square is sat on and becomes a trapezoid.
Giving the mp3 isn't going to help them get votes with as crappy a performance as this. And whipping out the bodhran isn't going to help either. I stand by my haiku.
England may have competition for 0 points this year.
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5. Finland
She's stolen Slovenia's outfit.
Feed issues - but I don't really feel I've missed much.
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6. FYR Macedonia
She's in better voice tonight. Impressively, at one point she's lifted up by a dancer and doesn't miss a note. She looks comfortable up there.
Doesn't change the fact the song isn't good. But if performances were the only thing that got them into the top 10, she's in.
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7. Slovenia
This song is like an Olympic theme, I can see the torch being lit... no, wait, that's just her hand.
The crowd loves her, especially when she goes into opera voice. Some pitchy with some pretty simple intervals, but overall pretty strong performance. Big voice, and it works well in a big arena.
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8. Hungary
It's rough to follow Slovenia with a gritty blues song. Most singers would feel a temptation to oversing at the outset to overcome a big operatic number right before, could be trouble. I'm worried that song order could ultimately hurt her. It's tough, you spend 1 minute of your 3 minutes winning the crowd over.
I get chills on "why did you leave me," and it leaves the crowd cheering.
I think she won them over, but I don't think she'll win.
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9. Lithuania
Yawn. Too many women in a row, and, honey, you do not compare.
Pixie haircut, the rest of the band only gets to be a big shadows on a scrim. She looks nervous.
Again, I have problems with the name and the image. A group with a name "4Fun" should not dress all in black, have shadows, and in general, present a visual image only of black. Drab.
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10. Greece
Wow, Greece has the same staging as Turkey. But it is nice to see him being backed up by the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, and then turned into a maypole.
The song, however, ain't no Turkey tune. "No lies, she's the bomb" Do people use that slang anymore?
The choreo ain't nothin to write home about either. I haven't seen choreo this bad since DJ Bobo.
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11. Georgia
Sopho save us!
But, sadly, she's totally running on adrenaline, and seems to be having less fun than she did in the Semis. She's trying too hard to project, and it's too much. Pulling back just a little would've helped. I'm hoping, but not sure that top 10 finish I want is possible.
I still don't care, I love the song.
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12. Sweden
Ah, good timing for some fluff. However, the lead singer has the same problem as Blake Lewis - dead eyes. Also he's playing too much to the camera. Again, a lot of black staging this time. Although having him sit and spin on the spiral is a nice touch. Funny, "sit and spin" is about where my thoughts were at.
This performance reminds me of the Scissor Sisters. A LOT.
Right. In order of placement. This is my story and I'm sticking to it. I am NOT putting Ukraine on this list. I won't give it the satisfaction.
1. Serbia - I think it's a heated battle between Serbia and Hungary for the win. Both women are great singers and can bring it home. I give the edge to Serbia because of the neighborly voting. She generated tons of buzz from the semi-final.
2. Hungary - Great song. She's in it to win, and I'd love to see this upset. I'm just not sure she'll be able to derail Serbia.
3. Spain - I actually think this is the strongest of the non-semi finals. Besides they're dreamy.
4. Belarus - Another one for the dreamy vote.
5. Sweden - Hey, it's Sweden.
6. Germany - This is wishful thinking that it'll be this high, but I'm a fan of the song.
7. Latvia - It ain't my cup of tea, but Il Divo sells a lot of records, so clearly this is up the alley of a lot of other people. And, man, they did have a good reception at the semifinal.
8. Russia - I can't articulate why I'm putting this here, just a hunch. The song is cute, the girls are hot.
9. Turkey - SHAKE IT!
10. Georgia - Again, I just generally like this song, I like the vocalist. I like swords.
OH, THERE'S A SUMMARY.
Missed the first one...
Israel - looked pretty darn amusing to me.
Cyprus - sounded pretty good.
Belarus - cheesy. who cares, he is doing magic.
Iceland - There are big eyes in the background. He not only sounds like Meatloaf, he looks like Meatloaf.
Georgia - cool. Go girl! Is it me or does she looks a little too happy?
Montenegro - eh?
Switzerland - I love the guy with the mohawk.
Moldova - well, she's in tune
Netherlands - sounds just like anastacia
Albania - wow, he's old
Denmark - pitchy. But that's some headdress.
Croatia - pitchy. Painful.
Poland - I don't have time to start.
Serbia - she looks like Lea Delaria. sounded ok from what I could tell.
Czech - yes, they rock. lower case rock.
Portugal - she's pretty. weak singer. much quieter than all the others.
FYR Macedonia - heh heh she said douche
Norway - she's old
Malta - there's a gong in the background
Andorra - ARROWS!!!! Wow, they're totally out of tune.
Hungary - tight, she sounded good. I love the tank top and jeans, totally stripped down look which is a nice contrast to the glammed up other acts.
Estonia - sorry, I missed it. Dave came in and needed cash.
The rest I already did.
YES!!! I'm stepping in just in time to see all the awesome ones. This one is a laugh riot. People in the office have no idea why I'm roaring.
These guys are wearing tophats, tails, and blue jeans. It's a strange look to say the least. Like they're have Italian tenors, but the other half had to pick their outfit out of a dumpster. Incredibly un-hot singers. Most of which are horribly pitchy. It's all I had hoped it would be from the recording.
The background lights look like a big cross when looked at from an establishing shot. Damn Christian propaganda.
Seems to have taken his costuming inspiration from Kylie Minogue's latest tour. I hadn't expected him to be so gay. There's definitely a drag queen thing going on this year between Denmark, Ukraine's entry and this one.
OHH!! I get it, an AIDS ribbon.
GET ALIVE. I see we have another act in the vampire theme.
Still Austria is making an active effort to engage the Helsinki crowd. That's good. Also, he's in tune.
SHAKE IT! SHAKE IT!
Oh, awesome, I'm here in time to catch Turkey's performance!
Why is he dressed like a ringmaster? Oh, I've got a good feeling about this one, totally dancable. A good time. Besides, he ended with fire.
She's feeling her inner smile. It makes her smile on the outside. I have no idea why she's dressed like a vampire. Doesn't she know that's Switzerland's thing this year? But I have to admit, having Torino's Olympic logo all in lights and on her hand is pretty cool.
Finally signing on here for a moment or two.
Man, Belgium sucks. Pitchy. Uninspired performace, 70s style sunglasses, and off white silk pajamas are not the sign of hip. Really shows up the weakness of the song.
