I finally bought the album for this year's Eurovision. I listened to it on random today while sorting papers ( Read more... )

This year's Eurovision song contest features a ridiculously large number of videos with very gloomy visuals, some justified, some not. Over half were filmed with a very limited grey or brown color palette, many in full darkness with limited lighting. Some of those were even happy songs, such as Greece's, which is in grey with some color highlights ( Read more... )

This year features lots of long curly-haired singers and very little scruffle, so that's good. Lots of outdoors cinemetography, and even more people inspired by last year's winner to do something with VR interactions, to variable success. There's a sad lack of dancing in the videos overall this year; hopefully the stage shows will do better ( Read more... )

There were fewer pieces I felt strongly about in the second semi-final, even if one more country was competing for the same number of places as on Tuesday.

( Second semi-final comments... )

Notes on Eurovision Semi-Final #1 (Spoilers, for any of you who want to watch it still and don't know who's gone through to the final)

Hurray, four female-presenting hosts! Surely that's a first for Eurovision?

The following is in alphabetical order, not performance order.

( Semi-final entries.... )

[I have run out of time to finish this post before going to collect Grouting, so in case I don't get a chance to get back to this later today, I'll post it as-is now ( Read more... )

It's Eurovision week! It's taken me until late Friday to finish watching the videos, but I'm done ( Read more... )

Of course Sweden got through. (And a good thing too.) Very happy that FYR Macedonia did too. Malta's "This is the Night" feet dancing was so much fun ( Read more... )

Very glad to see Cyprus and Iceland making the final. Cyprus' song was easier to focus on without the distraction of the Snow White video. Ireland was, of course, much more expected, and their stage show was fantastic! With a large on-stage water fountain ( Read more... )

It's time for my annual pre-Eurovision video watching!

This year's themes: black-and-white videos and costumes, songs about broken or ended relationships, and fantastically-staged cellists.

If the winner were a mystic: Sweden - Euphoria (Loreen)
If the winner were the best of the ended relationships songs: United Kingdom - Love will set you free ( Read more... )