I didn't think Austria was forgettable, but I think I forgot to mention them because I also missed most of their performance. I liked what I heard in the recap, my mom as well, and I ended up looking up their performance to watch it in full this morning. I thought it was a very catchy song with a good driving beat and energy. They looked like they were having a great time, which is always nice to see.
I ended up watching Croatia this morning as well. I like the way the dancers helped to tell the story of the song, too. It's actually kind of moving.

I hadn't watched Reddi's cover of Think About  Things, but I just listened to it now and I think they did a good job doing a rock interpretation of it. I also watched they semi-final performance and I enjoyed it.

There was a period of time where I went from liking Slovenia's song to being sick of it, but now that I've seen them perform in the competition I like it again.

I think your observation about emotional songs is interesting (I saw some discussion on Tumblr blaming the juries for how many ballads made it into the final, but I don't think it's just them, and I am glad that Iceland and Portugal made it). Something else I was thinking of last night is that with the exception of Armenia (which didn't compete in Eurovision last year), Albania and Bulgaria (which both made it to the final last year but not this year), all the countries that made it to this year's final so far are the same countries that made it last year. Latvia, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, and Denmark all didn't qualify last year. They don't all have similar songs from last year, the only similarity is maybe that Denmark had a retro-sounding song last year, too, even though the style was pretty different. I know there will always be overlap because the same countries compete every year and only 10 qualify from each semi-final, but I find it interesting how similar the results were for each country for this semi-final. Maybe the populations selecting their songs don't share the same taste as the rest of Europe? Or maybe it's just a coincidence, I saw a lot of people disappointed that Latvia didn't make it to the final on Tumblr. I was hoping they would because I like their energy and because my grandparents are from Latvia, but I could kind of see why they didn't qualify.

Sorry, it's Verona arena, not colliseum!  I should know, I've been there!  Such a beautiful city.  (I didn't have tickets for the arena, but do remember it was Aida that was being performed). 
I love this song so much more than Brividi.  I've felt more emotional about this than any of this year's songs, so if this had been an entry this year, this would be my winner. 
 

Last edited by Liberty (May 12, 2022 7:46 am)

I'm fairly pleased with the second semi-final results.  I had a top ten after watching the performances and seven of those went through.  The ones that didn't were:

Ireland - I think Brooke has got better and better.  I really enjoy this song and it's a bit different to anything else in the competition.
North Macedonia: there's something very earnest and authentic about Andrea.  I heard that she was in trouble for inadvertently disrespecting the flag (she threw it to somebody instead of passing it when having her photo taken on the red carpet), and I wish she had got through.  I do like this song .
San Marino: was not a favourite of mine, but I did think it was a really fun performance, a bit different, and would break up the show well.  I loved the silliness of the mechanical bull!
 
Of the ones that did get through but not in my favourites:
Finland - I did enjoy this performance.  They are so enthusiastic and looked like they were having a great time!  But I don't like the song very much.
Azerbijan - this was borderline top ten for me, so I was happy to see it go through.  I probably preferred it over Sam Marino, but San Marino was a bit different. I like the singer, but had found the song a little bit bland.  I think it was better live. 
Romania - again this was a borderline top ten.  I find WRS really likeable and the song is quite catchy.  I didn't think it would go through, though.

The ones that weren't in my top ten but didn't go through:
Israel - I think he is a good performaner, but I don't like the song.  I've also been a bit put off by accounts of inappropriate behaviour from Michael Ben David.  I did actually wonder if he's just not good at reading people and isn't aware when he's crossing a line.  But it could be that he's just full of himself and a bit creepy, and it did put me off this a bit.
Georgia - I don't really connect with this song at all.  I don't understand what the song is about and kept worrying that the lead singer couldn't see and was going to fall off the stage.
Malta - just a bit of a bland song
Cyprus - I felt her voice was a bit off.  I quite like this song and it wasn't bad, just not a favourite
Montenegro - I do like this song.  I felt she had to stand still and balance that costume. I liked the costume but not as much as the really geometric one she has in one of the videos.  I thought she had improved from the previous live performances and this was on the edge of my top ten.  If she had staging like Diodato had on Tuesday then I think this would have been better and in the top ten for me.  Would have loved to see dancers lifting her up to "breathe"!

Then the ones from my top ten that made it!
Serbia - I thought this was a great performance, quite exciting.  I think it's the most arty entry and it's different so will be pleased to see it in the final.  The audience seemed to be on board with it.
Australia - I have probably over listened to this!  But I thought the staging and costume elevated it.  It was interesting that he goes up a staircase instead of going down like in the promotional video.  I loved the costume and think it was the worth the training he had to do to walk upstairs with it! 
Estonia - Stefan is consistently good at his live performances, very good looking and charming and connects with audience.  He moves around a lot and smiles a lot, which was quite nice among so many less happy songs. I think he sells it well.
Belgium - Jeremie is the opposite of Stefan - he seems to struggle to get that audience connection, both with the live audience and the camera, and doesn't really look like he's enjoying himself.  But I think he did well and I do like this song, and think he has a great voice.
Sweden - another one that I've probably overplayed, but Cornelia is consistently good, and I think it's a great song.  I love her voice - she doesn't have the dramatic high notes and so on of some of the singers, but it really fits the song, I think, and she always gets it right.
Czech Republic - have struggled in live performances previously, but I think getting better, and the lights helped the atmosphere!
Poland - he is a great singer.  I don't like the song as much as most people though.   I think the dancers, etc. helped as he doesn't move about much - however he always seems to sing very well.

I'm going to post this before I lose it!
 

Last edited by Liberty (May 13, 2022 2:09 pm)

I enjoyed reading your comments. I wasn't able to watch this second semi final all the way through because of an errand I had to run, but I watched the  first few performances and then caught the announcement of the qualifiers at the end. I watched the non-qualifying performances this morning since I know I'll see the qualifiers again.

I thought Ireland wasn't bad, even if I didn't really like the lighting design. I like Brooke's voice. I thought Isreal's song was kind of like Moldova's last year in style, the male dancers, and the long note partway through. He's an energetic performer, but it wasn't my cup of tea. That's unfortunate about some of the singer's behaviour. I wasn't aware of that.
I find that Georgia's song is just meaningless. I've read the lyrics and they definitely don't make sense, either in terms of logic and sometimes not grammatically either. I kind of like that they are weird, the steampunk elements of some of their costumes, and that they said "Make love, not war." But I didn't like their lighting design either and I'm not surprised they didn't qualify.
I think Malta is fine, but maybe not the most standout. I like the message though and I think Emma Muscat has a good voice.
I thought Andromache's voice didn't seem very strong. Maybe it was nerves. I thought her set design was interesting, but the song didn't stand out to me.
I realized while listening to Montenegro that I hadn't listened to her song before the competition. I like her low voice. I didn't understand the lyrics right away, but I think they are gesturing towards caring for the planet and fellow people, which I think is a good message.
I thought San Marino was a bit of a mess. Not really my cup of tea in terms of the song or the performance, and his costume, but I agree that the mechanical bull was funny! Definitely going for the opportunities to be over-the-top that Eurovision provides, which I appreciated.

I thought Azerbaijan's staging and performance were interesting and I'm looking forward to getting another chance to see it. I didn't see all of Finland's performance, but now that I've seen the singer in a few backstage interviews, he seems sweet which kind of make me feel bad that I don't like the song more. I enjoyed Serbia, and I think it's cool that so many people were clapping along! I'm glad she included some onscreen text about the meaning of the lyrics, since I think they're important to the song, even if they aren't all exactly the same as a translation of the lyrics. I like the fact that it's so different from everything else, you are right it's very arty. I kind of think of it as performance art, almost.

I only saw the recap of the rest of the performers, and when I heard them I understood why they were picked. I figured Stefan and Ochman would make it, and I like them so I'm glad they did. I think the singer from Czech Republic sounded better in the clip from this performance than in some other ones, which is nice. In a backstage interview after qualifying she said she had to save her voice for the final, so I'm not surprised if that's what she was doing before, too.
I'm looking forward to hearing the full UK performance. I think the song has grown on me, and I like the theme of it.

And on a Subwoolfer note: It's been revealed that TIX isn't the astronaut. The video I saw earlier in the week was a stunt. The mystery continues! I never expected this year's Eurovision to have an element of The Masked Singer, a show I've never watched, but that's what's happening.

Last edited by Yitzock (May 13, 2022 3:51 pm)

Well I will watch some of it tonight, but not the whole slog.
I haven't watched Eurovision for over 15 years, I dont think.
But the BBC have done a good job on the trailer, it's from my son's home nation and I'm not doing anything else!

Oh dear, doesn't bode well for me.
I was only going to watch cos the trailer made it look quite rocky!

Just off a video call with the Italian family...
they may give it  a watch, too.

Here we go from
"Tried changing jobs, tried changing lovers
Changing my furniture, change my bed covers" (love those lines!)
to "Hey, sing your heart out boy"!  
I've cracked open an alcohol free Czech beer and ready to party with my cat!  Enjoy!

Last edited by Liberty (May 14, 2022 7:03 pm)

There were a few not in English!  I've had a live chat with my son who lives a mile away - I should just have gone round to watch it!  France was really good tonight.  There were a couple of other high energy ones - Spain, Moldova, Ukraine - they were all good!

I enjoyed reading both of your comments, Liberty and besleybean! Just like last year, I wasn't able to watch the final live (though for a different reason), but I watched it after lunch this afternoon. I thought the hosts were kind of annoying and repetitive, so I skipped most of their blah-blah-blah, but they had some fun moments towards the end before the results.

I ended up enjoying Finland more than I had hearing earlier performances of the song, I think they are definitely better than Blind Channel. The band members seem to have a great bond and were having a great time.
I thought Moldova was fantastic, as I did before. My mom and I both enjoyed them very much, so fun. I'm glad they got lots of votes from the public, even if the juries didn't give them a lot.
I was surprised how many points Greece got. I thought it was a fairly good song and performance, but I don't really get why it got so many 12 points. As far as emotional songs, go, I think I ended up enjoying Sweden the most. I wasn't really into it before, but the performance in the Grand Final worked for me. I thought Kornelia did a great job.
It was nice seeing TIX present his country's jury. He looked really nice in his tux, which is not his usual look. I was wondering if he was going to wear his sunglasses or not, since lately he hasn't been wearing them as often. It was nice to see him without them, even though I respect why he often wears them. But it's also nice that he's getting more comfortable without them. It was nice to see Arny Fjola deliver Iceland's jury points, too, and it was funny how she worked in two song titles into her little speech.
I think almost all the best songs, for me, ended up in the second half of the performance, though I enjoyed some of the earlier ones, like Subwoolfer. I still think they are kind of annoying, but they are so Eurovision.
I continue to find Kalush Orchestra's performance moving. They released a  video today for Stefania that was filmed since the Russian invasion, and the imagery is quite powerful. And they put the English lyrics on it, too.
I thought Ochman did even more amazingly in his vocals in his performance, I was surprised he didn't get more points, too. Same with Stefan, though maybe not as spectacular as some of the others.
I was really excited for Konstrakta when she was briefly at the top of the scoreboard. Since her song is so different, even though she has fans I wasn't sure how well she would be received in the end. I'm glad there are people who appreciated her performance, because I think the song has a good message and she's a compelling performer.
I wasn't expecting Iceland to win, but I thought they would get more points even if it's a low-key song. I'm glad they didn't come in last, at least.
Germany is in last again! I thought his performance wasn't bad, I think I liked the song more than I initially did, but it's still not one of my favourites.

I'm truly happy for Kalush Orchestra winning. I don't think it's just a sympathy vote, since their song is pretty good. It has a moving and meaningful message, and blends contemporary with tranditional music, and that's something that's great about Eurovision (just like how Go_A was popuolar last year for doing their own combination of contemporary and traditional). Sure, it shows support, and I think it's very meaningful for the Ukrainian people, but I don't think that's a bad thing. My mom actually started to get emotional when they were announced as the winners, because of what it means for Ukraine and because of what's been going on in the world. I hope there will be more good news for Ukraine in the near future. I saw a video on Tumblr of the Ukrainian commentator, broadcasting from a bunker, and his reaction to the win. I think it represents what a lot of other people are feeling. I agree with you, Liberty, it's not just about performance and musicianship, but emotions too.

I might have other things to say, but that's all I can remember right now.
 

Last edited by Yitzock (May 15, 2022 10:45 pm)