Eurovision 2010 - 25/27/29 May 2010 - Norway

After seeing both semis (SF1 in real time, SF2 in chasing playback):

Positives:
Singing began only a few minutes after the start.
Short postcard sequences - the gaps between songs seem to be getting smaller year by year.

Negatives:
Use of strobe lighting (Turkey did it every chorus), it's an unnecessary gimmick that spoils it really.
BBC showing their own bits at certain times (e.g. after the singing ended), so UK viewers missed whatever was on stage then. At least I'll be able to see the proper stuff on the official DVD when it comes out.

Just for your info, I'm currently watching songs from the 1980 Eurovision Song Contest on You Tube, which took place at Congresgebouw, The Hague, Netherlands. Back then they didn't use strobe/laser lighting effects, and it looked plenty good enough, so why do we need them 30 years on? It's a song contest, not a lighting effects contest.

Goodness. I've just seen tomorrow night's opening sequence. It's stunning.

Right. Time to loose some money.
I want to back Romania as I think it's a good tune (and the double piano is a nice if unspectacular visual effect)

But then I think the Germany is a good catchy song - BUT - I saw Lena perform live on the last Schalg Den Raab (the German original of ITV's Beat The Star) a couple of weeks ago, and whilst the vt they used on the song is a good representation of the song, singing live, she is dreadful. Pitch and tone all over the place.

I really think that France could be the very, very dark horses in this competition. It's so different, and 'commercial' sounding, it could do good business.

Any thoughts?

It was a comission piece by Martin Landquist (Nåid), and (most of it) can be listened to on his website under "Comissioned music".

http://www.martinlandquist.com/

Hmm - Romania have entered some great pop songs in the past. (Didn't Tornero do much better commercially than the winning song a few years back?) Not sure this year's is a winner - though it should do pretty well. Don't think it has quite the pan-European appeal required.


Germany sounds a bit "fake" to me. She's German - but doing a bizarre mockney-ish accent... Suspected the preview track had been tweaked...



France sounds like a World Cup track to me - and never underestimate the latent racism in Eurovision... Particularly in recent years. Quite an ugly side to the contest IMO.

I can't wait! The semi-finals have been of the highest quality - much slicker than some of recent years - which have almost felt like dress-rehearsals. Can't wait to see them turn up the wick for the final. And I'm sure they will!

Ah noggin off again on his 1998 fest Heheh agreed though - the music direction and responsiveness of lighting was spot on. Likewise with 2000 - fabulous, sophisticated hosts and a great opening (if a little less spectacular than I remembered upon looking back. The set also looks remarkably primitive in MSs and MCUs, but I forget it was a decade ago afterall).

I haven't got a feel for Oslo as yet as I watched through snow on account of my moving apartment and the temporary arrangement I hasitily hooked up. Luckily my new connection has been made just in time for Saturday! If I have one major gripe, it is the highly irritating directorial choice of cutting way from jib shots too early in an earnestness to make things snappy. The grace of a long jib shot can never be replaced by steadicam, however dramatic it may be in its own right. For the slower songs the premature cutting is particulary jarring.

But loving the revived craft of lighting one more and the eschewing of overly dominant LED. Can't wait for tonight!

Is there going to be a Eurovision Song Contest 2010 chat room on TV Forum tonight? We've had one the last couple of years.

Ahh yes, I hear what you say. Maybe the 'World Cup' feel of the song is deliberate to hide his skin colour and reduce some of the closed mindedness in some countries that vote?
Pre semi-finals, I really can't wait to see what left of field entry France puts in each year - they never dissapoint!

The worrying thing is for the past two years "the word around the venue" to quote Paddy on the BBC Three commentary, as been spot on. Russia in 2008 and Norway in 2009. This year the chatter is saying Azerbaijan loudly. It's almost like the group of Eastern Europe and former Soviet nations are seemingly choosing the winner before the contest, and making sure by talking loudly around the contest venue and pre-contest events that their wish is granted.

Hosting Eurovision next year would seriously endanger the public television and radio broadcasting company (ITV) in Azerbaijan - given the story going around that NRK had to release the rights to the world cup, just to pay for some of the budget to host this years in Oslo. Don't book those plane tickets to Baku just yet....

One wonders whether Armenia will go (or be allowed to go) to Azerbaijan if Azerbaijan DO win... That could put the cat amongst the pigeons... (Particularly after last year's televoting scandal in Azerbaijan - where people who had voted for Armenia got a visit from the police...)

Lol, ITV is just about the only broadcaster that could afford to host the entire thing! Make no mistake, the endless Azeri promotion, the YouTube and Facebook adverts and that truly bizarre Eurovision Talents website were all done for one thing, to ensure Azerbaijan's victory at the contest and to host it next year. No doubt the government would throw millions at the event, perhaps even more than in Moscow, they're just that desperate.

They've just pumped a load of cash into the national football team as well in an attempt to improve their rankings. It's all to do with creating a worldwide awareness of a pretty much unknown country (in the western world anyway).

Should they come to host it, they would have to invite Armenia, the EBU wouldn't allow otherwise. When they won the rights to host the 2009 Eurovision Dance Contest (which was later cancelled) they very publicly invited Armenia to join the competition. Armenia ended up turning them down in protest of the Azeris boycotting another dance competition that was held in Armenia.

Azerbaijan is sitting on a lake of Black Gold ... No problem whatsoever with funding the contest. Their serious campaign for the 2016 Okympics got Baku to Applicant City status too.