Eurovision 2025 took over Basel, Switzerland, and we’re back with our unfiltered American take! Join us as we review every performance from the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 Grand Final, reacting live to all 26 finalists. From shocking results to incredible vocals, wild staging, and the ultimate Eurovision 2025 winner, we cover it all. Whether you're a longtime fan or just discovering the madness through us, this honest review is packed with commentary, laughs, and big opinions on one of music’s biggest nights.
Join us on Patreon!: https://www.patreon.com/CCTVPOPS
Follow us on social media: https://linktr.ee/cctvpops
- 0:00 - Intro
- 1:27 - Norway | Kyle Alessandro – Lighter
- 4:16 - Luxembourg | Laura Thorn – La Poupée Monte Le Son
- 7:51 - Estonia | Tommy Cash – Espresso Macchiato
- 12:00 - Israel | Yuval Raphael – New Day Will Rise
- 14:49 - Lithuania | Katarsis – Tavo Akys
- 18:46 - Spain | Melody – ESA DIVA
- 21:57 - Ukraine | Ziferblat – Bird of Pray
- 25:57 - United Kingdom | Remember Monday – What The Hell Just Happened?
- 32:01 - Austria | JJ – Wasted Love
- 35:56 - Iceland | VÆB – RÓA
- 38:44 - Latvia | Tautumeitas – Bur Man Laimi
- 42:40 - Netherlands | Claude – C’est La Vie
- 45:57 - Finland | Erika Vikman – ICH KOMME
- 49:04 - Italy | Lucio Corsi – Volevo Essere Un Duro
- 52:25 - Poland | Justyna Steczkowska – GAJA
- 55:57 - Germany | Abor & Tynna – Baller
- 1:00:04 - Greece | Klavdia – Asteromáta
- 1:03:26 - Armenia | PARG – SURVIVOR
- 1:07:05 - Switzerland | Zoë Më – Voyage
- 1:10:06 - Malta | Miriana Conte – SERVING
- 1:13:02 - Portugal | NAPA – Deslocado
- 1:15:52 - Denmark | Sissal – Hallucination
- 1:21:02 - Sweden | KAJ – Bara Bada Bastu
- 1:23:35 - France | Louane – maman
- 1:28:41 - San Marino | Gabry Ponte – Tutta L’Italia
- 1:31:09 - Albania | Shkodra Elektronike – Zjerm
- 1:34:57 - Overall Thoughts
00:00:00 --> 00:00:11 An Asian won Eurovision, beef-causing espresso macchiatos, and Israel getting booed again. It's time to talk Eurovision final 2025.
00:00:14 --> 00:00:40 Yes, the Eurovision Grand Final was on May 17th, and we're going to discuss all of our thoughts on the performances. We did do a Eurovision 101 episode last year, and our Eurovision 2024 review was one of our best performing episodes of last year. Yes, right. So let's do it all again. And of course, let us know all your thoughts in the comments too. What do you agree with? What do you disagree with? Who was robbed? Let us know. Word. Yes. Yes.
00:00:40 --> 00:01:06 Oh, also, we are together. We are actually together. Yes. We haven't been together in a while. Yeah. Guys, if you're new here, Chris and I usually are separate when we film it, but we're here together now. And guess what? We have reached over 4 subscribers on YouTube. So thank you so much for joining the CCTV crew. And if you are on a podcast platform, make sure you give us that rating, follow, and share the episode because it helps us get into that algorithm.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:29 Yes, and special shout out to our Patreon crew members. We have Emily, George, Lily, Julianne, Jonathan, Jasmine, Janelle, Darius, Ren, Hillary, and TKO861, our newest member. Oh, hi, welcome. I didn't see you, Dio. Guys, welcome. And if you want to help us use episode topics as well and just hang out with us, you can join us at patreon.com slash cctvpops. Okay, so we're going to go in show order. Ooh.
00:01:29 --> 00:01:39 Okay, so starting the final, we had Norway. We had Kyle Alessandro with Leider. And this ended up 18th place.
00:01:40 --> 00:02:09 It wasn't terrible, but I think for me, I remember listening to it and not being impressed by it because something about his voice is lacking the depth necessary to really fill out this production. The production is big, it's bold, and then he has this thin... He projects really well, but the resonance isn't there. He sounds like the youngest prince of a royal family rebelling, and I need something with a little bit more body. That doesn't mean he can't sing, but I do wish that his voice had that resonance and not just a projection.
00:02:09 --> 00:02:31 And then when you get on stage, it was just like, it wasn't bad. But he's just so cute in the face and singing about lighter and I'm going to get over you. And it was lacking intensity. So that kind of took me out. The staging was really dynamic. The costume was like, wow. And the medieval baggy jean thing was like, cool. But I don't know if this was for me.
00:02:31 --> 00:02:54 Yes. Okay, I will say the staging, it worked. Yeah, I think it's good that he went first, actually, because there was a much more elaborate staging afterwards. But because he was first, I was like already impressed by all the screens and stuff. Right. You know, so I think that actually worked in his favor. Like the whole post-apocalyptic war situation. And then the way the fire ended up coming out was very cool. Yes, all given that. Yes.
00:02:54 --> 00:03:13 The song's fine. Yeah. Yeah. I think the most interesting parts, the most interesting part was the dance break. Yeah. Which is kind of sad to say. That's what I'm saying. But he's not it. But that's where the traditional instruments like really came to the forefront. They are present in the rest of it, but I don't know. That was just more interesting because the rest of it is just kind of like basic.
00:03:13 --> 00:03:32 And it sounds like reggaeton too. I'm not saying you can't use different cultures as your inspiration, but I think it just kind of made it feel a little like... Yeah, it just felt like it was just a generic kind of, yeah, reggae-inspired dance pop track. But yeah, I think performance-wise...
00:03:32 --> 00:03:58 Look, he's not really a dancer either, but he was kind of forced to kind of do a lot of choreography. And he did what he could to kind of keep up with that. Yeah, the song's hard to sing. But a lot of vocal acrobatics, but the live vocals were definitely a little shaky. Yeah, it was fine. Yes. It wasn't bad. No, but it was just kind of down the road. And then I kind of forgot about it quite quickly as well.
00:03:59 --> 00:04:14 Yeah. Yeah. Okay, so what's your final rating for this? I'm going to give it a seven. It's not that low where I hate it, but it's not like, wow, because I have other pop singers that are male that I gave higher scores. Okay, I will agree with you on the seven. Mm-hmm.
00:04:15 --> 00:04:31 All right. Up next, we have Luxembourg with Laura Thorne, La Poupe Maud Leçon. That was beautiful. Thank you, guys. I thought it was good. Yeah, I hope it was good. I just want to say, actually. Please, correct. In fact, we are wrong because we're definitely going to get some wrong later on.
00:04:32 --> 00:04:47 Yeah, I can only read Korean and Spanish. I'm sorry. Okay, so this one ended up at 22nd place, which isn't the best. But, you know, I actually don't mind this one. Like, the song itself, it's kind of interesting and has some electric guitars mixed with some, like...
00:04:47 --> 00:05:07 clock ticking sounds, just like other interesting sounds, the electricity that happens in the middle of it too, and it's catchy. You know, like the na-na-na hook of the chorus. It does get a little old because it's quite repetitive. Yeah. But I think as a pop song, it's not bad at all. The vocals are fine. There's some interesting harmony layers in there. Yeah.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:37 But yeah, what did you think of the song before you even get to the performance? That's the word. It was fine. You know, I am. Okay. So the title loosely translates to the doll turns up the sound and the lyrics depict the girl not wanting to be controlled by her lover and not wanting to conform to what she wants. And I commend the singer for the lyrics and the interpretation of it. But like the song sounds generic. It's a little too by the numbers for me. Like there was nothing about that made me go, wow, for longer than maybe like a second.
00:05:37 --> 00:05:54 as opposed to a consistent progression of dynamics. I think the song almost ran the risk of being super basic until the bridge. Her voice was in this deeper part during the section, and it sounded so good, which makes me think if she would have sang this on lower...
00:05:54 --> 00:06:18 It would have been so much more interesting because a lot of vocalists, pop vocalists, go for that high soprano sound instead of like really, really just working on that alto and making it sound rounded and full. Because by the time she belts at the end, it would have been a surprise. It would have been more dynamic. It would have been like, look, she can hit these notes because then it boosts the end of the song. But by that time, it's like, that's the only part that gave me life. Has she been singing in that lower part of her register the whole time?
00:06:18 --> 00:06:37 And then kind of went up a little bit, kind of went, ugh. Just stop trying to be like, I'm this bright pop singer. I really own that deeper part of her voice. I probably would have been like, oh, yeah. My score would have been different to where I fell. Got it. Well, yeah, I agree with you. The ad libs are great. Yeah, at the end. And the performance bumped this up for me because I thought the performance was great. Mm-hmm.
00:06:37 --> 00:07:07 That whole dollhouse situation, the visuals were so cool. The way she started on the floor with all the, you know, things going on around her. She was interacting with it. And I think the way they did the male dancers kind of as a contrast to her was very effective. I especially loved when they were walking along the catwalk and the floor would build along with them. Ah, that was great. Then we got a little costume change. A lot of costume changes this reveals this time around. But hers is great. Ripping closely. Yeah, the performance bumped this up for me.
00:07:07 --> 00:07:36 For sure. I think the performance was great. I feel like for the song, it should have been a little bit more like ABBA in direction. Like lean more toward the disco, the ABBA sound. I feel like it was kind of scratching the surface because it was so theatrical, the performance, that the music almost didn't feel as theatrical enough because it was just so good, the performance. I feel like this is one of my favorite ones, I would say, because of the digital use of the screens and then the practical things too. So yeah, oh, something so. So yeah, I'm bumping this up slightly to an eight because the performance is great.
00:07:36 --> 00:07:49 that's valid i don't think it's down too down the road as much that note helps because she has potential i will give it a seven though so yeah sorry to the first two
00:07:50 --> 00:08:18 Hey, moving on to Estonia, we have Tommy Cash with espresso macchiato. This was third place, which was mainly due to the public votes. Not too many jury votes this time around. So apparently some Italians were actually quite offended by this one because the lyrics make fun of Italian stereotypes, and they felt it was offensive. And that's actually a rule in Eurovision that the lyrics can't be, like, basically. Oh.
00:08:19 --> 00:08:24 mean in kind of all of its different ways, but you can't have fun of another culture, you know? And how do you make it?
00:08:25 --> 00:08:55 Well, so they were approved. So it made it past the, you know, I think it was, it's borderline. You know, it's one of those borderline situations. If you're Italian, please give us more context about your thoughts on these lyrics. Somebody. But yeah, you know, Eurovision is known for the more like silly, crazy stuff. So it is nice to have some of these. I may not love all of them, but they're just very entertaining. And this was very entertaining. Yeah. The song itself is bizarre.
00:08:57 --> 00:09:25 That is a word. Like the swing kind of like, I guess, inspiration behind it. Like, that's just, I mean, that's an interesting choice. It's memorable. Yeah. Like, even without the performance, it's pretty memorable just as a song. No, it is. I remember being a TSA line. I think, okay, you guys are going to hear me say this a lot. So I am working on a tour and I have to travel quite a bit. So I was in the TSA line for about an hour and some change. I listened to a lot of the songs. And this is the song that I sat here being like, what the F is this? Because remember last year we had Windows 95, man, right? Yeah.
00:09:25 --> 00:09:43 So I was like, I'm ready for the absurdity because that's what made Eurovision great. That's what people tell me. So I was like, cool, cool, cool. But I remember being, like, hearing this song and thinking to myself, what the F? Like, what? There's no way. I thought, I actually thought this was Italy song submission because I didn't, I did not
00:09:43 --> 00:10:07 pay attention to where the song was coming from. I was listening to it on a playlist. So I was like, this is terrible for them. Why would they do this? Like the song is so unserious. Like me likey, like made of words. I'm spreading like a mafioso, like spaghetti. Like it's so messed up that Estonia had like, they had nothing to lose. They were like, screw it. They were like, what are you going to do about it? Nothing. That's what makes it kind of like, oh,
00:10:08 --> 00:10:24 I don't know who was trying to like test the waters here and say, F it, let's just see what they're gonna do. But literally this is kind of one of those, which I'll go and do, nothing. And then I don't think it is as wild as Windows 98 by man, but honey, those swinging legs.
00:10:25 --> 00:10:53 And then his hair was like really silk pressed. Like it was giving keratin treatment. Like everything was just so funny. And then the story of him being famous and like the fan hugging him and them sitting dancing together too. It's so weird because like I figured that she would know how to dance. But just seeing her dance. What do you know weird? I don't even know what to call that. The jig. The jig is a good word. Yes. It's a story of fame and it's coffee beans. So I think it was a joke. But I appreciate them not taking themselves too seriously.
00:10:53 --> 00:11:12 Yeah, I love the story of the performance. I love the security guard of men as the dancers. I thought that was very funny. Because it's just people you wouldn't normally see doing that, you know. And honestly, props to the choreographer. Because the actual choreography, good musicality. Like, they made it memorable. Yeah.
00:11:12 --> 00:11:36 You know, they really turned it into a moment. Like, you know, I will remember this. Absolutely. I will say the vocals were terrible live. Like, I do wish there was a little bit more talent there. And the shtick did get a little old by the end. But there was kind of a lack of these silly entries this year. Yeah. And so, like, and I do like that sometimes, you know, because if it's too serious, it's not fun.
00:11:37 --> 00:11:56 This is true. So because of that, and I want to encourage a few more silly entries, I will give it a seven. Oh, that's so nice. Yeah. I'm giving it a six point five because it was not good. And I've heard sillier better. But yes, I was way more entertained by this than some of the ones later on. Oh, I can't change my sport, can I?
00:11:57 --> 00:12:23 I was going to give it more. Too late. I'm sorry. All right. Up next, we have Israel with Yuval Raphael with the song A New Day Will Rise. Yes. As we mentioned in our intro, there is definitely a layer of politics with Israel's involvement here. So there were still people trying to get them disqualified. But they still performed. So, yes, they did get to second place. Right.
00:12:23 --> 00:12:46 Um, mainly due to the public votes. Oh, okay. Time. Okay. Um, and it actually was quite close. Like, we were just waiting on the fun country at the end. Oh, cute. Those results. Um, okay, so the song itself first. What'd you think? Um, you know, while I was sitting in the TSA line, there was a couple songs I was playing, and this one kind of came up like third or fourth. Um, and...
00:12:47 --> 00:13:07 I was kind of interested in it because she has so much resonance in her voice. And I think because I don't know where the countries were, you know, of origin, I was like, oh, yeah, you were just listening to the playlist. Yeah, I was. So I was very like unbiased at first until I kind of put faces and flags to the faces and to the songs. And I thought her voice was so resonant.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:31 I thought, wow, this is really nice. I don't like that we have to ignore what may be political. It stinks. But just to avoid the trouble, guys, we're not trying to be nasty. So whatever happens in terms of scores is because of the song. Okay? The song is beautiful. The singer was captivating when she was performing. The whole thing, though, being on stage in the performance...
00:13:31 --> 00:13:54 I can't quite say I felt the same about it. Because it started losing its wow after a while. Especially when she started to have to climb up the stairs. Okay, that's my biggest comment as well. Like, the fact they made her go around it and then have to walk up the stairs. Like, they should have just had a lift in the middle of that thing. So she could just rise very elegantly. What? That...
00:13:54 --> 00:14:20 Yeah, I found that odd as well. Yeah, so the performance was fine. The song's also only fine for me. I think it starts off really strong. I like how twinkly it all is. It kind of sounds like a lullaby at first, and it gets really pretty as the strings kind of come in. Yeah, that's what it was. But then the melody itself is just kind of boring. I think the chorus is supposed to be this very empowering, anthemic moment, but it doesn't really fully get there. Did we go anywhere?
00:14:20 --> 00:14:37 You know? Yeah, so it kind of loses me, but I agree with you that her voice is amazing. Like, one of the best voices, I think, this year. Very full. Her vibrato was so nice. Yeah. And open. Yes. See, I'm just gonna go with a seven for this. Ooh! You know what? It was fine.
00:14:37 --> 00:15:06 I'll match you because I don't hate it, but I will match you because it is just average. I will say shout out to her switching between English and native language. I always love when they do that. I think there was more than two languages in this one, actually. Yeah, definitely. Love those. Yeah. Next is Lithuania with Catarsis. And the song is called Pavel Axis. Axis? Axis. So sorry. Okay, so this got to 16th place. Okay. I really did not like this one.
00:15:06 --> 00:15:23 Look, I appreciate an alternative rock moment. Right. Especially because there's usually not that much of that in Eurovision. I feel like. True. It's just like one or two kind of more rock songs. It's usually more dancing kind of. Dancing. Electronic. Mm-hmm. But unfortunately, this song itself just is not good. Yeah.
00:15:23 --> 00:15:47 Like, I think the composition is good. Like, the drums are awesome. The instrumental is pretty cool, actually. Like, there's a lot of tension building. It feels kind of dark. Yeah. But the actual, like, melody of the vocal is just, like, a lot of wailing. And he's just, like, mumbling kind of the whole time if he's not wailing. And it just constantly, like, repeats over and over again. Yes. Like, there's no, yeah, oh, my God, it went on for so long, that ending.
00:15:49 --> 00:16:04 is great yeah like i i was just like i'm not feeling this at all like where's the elodie yeah yeah yeah you know it stinks i think a part of this music is difficult to listen to and critique sometimes
00:16:04 --> 00:16:32 Because if we don't fully understand the language, maybe we don't connect as much. And I thought that was the issue. I was like, maybe it's because we don't understand the language of the Lithuanian people. Maybe that's the reason. But I think it really is the melody of it. Because at the end, he's saying, the word he's repeating is yours. He's saying yours, yours, yours. It's not really creative. And he didn't even, I think it bothers me, there was no melodic difference. Right.
00:16:32 --> 00:16:53 You can repeat the same word over and over again, but if you don't change the intonation, then we're just, what are we listening to? A record skip. Yeah. A CD skip, you know? I have to say, watching the performance, the guys, you guys, the blonde, the lead singer, he looked like Drew Grew from Despicable Me. You know? Drew Grew. His brother. The blonde.
00:16:57 --> 00:17:23 That's so funny because I mentioned Gru later on in my notes for another song. Yeah. You do? No, literally, I looked at it. I had to Google it because I'm like, there's a blonde brother in there. And in the outfit that he was wearing, I was like, oh, my God, it's Drew. But yeah, the blue, I didn't really get the blue. I don't know. They're like post-apocalyptic, like, jail outfits or something. And that's just the lyrics. And that's just, I promise. Wait, so what's the song about?
00:17:26 --> 00:17:42 lyrics. You can't say that if I don't know what's the song about. It's about like youth if I'm not mistaken or something. It is like one of those like, not post-apocalyptic things, but it does match. It does make sense. It does make sense. Watch someone. It does it, but...
00:17:42 --> 00:18:00 I looked it up and I remember last night being like, oh, that's what the song's about. Okay. I feel like last year's representative for Lithuania gave me something so much more strong and so much more bold. I think I like the band more in terms of the instrumentation more than the vocalist choices of melody. So for me, it was Netflix.
00:18:00 --> 00:18:19 Yeah, the staging, like the wind machines and like the flying rocks on the screen and stuff. I mean, they matched how intense it all was. I was like, OK, that's interesting. But I was been watching the rocks flying around more than I was watching them, you know. So anyway, unfortunately, this is one of my least favorite ones of the night. I will give it a 5.5.
00:18:19 --> 00:18:48 Oh, I gave it a five. Okay. Oh, hang on. Oh, I'm curious to know what his lowest score is. I am curious. Oh, by the way, I like the lyrics. It is like empty words. What are you saying? Empty words only fuel the fire. The houses are burning. They start to collapse. Out of her eyes, the great is downpour. So there was definitely a potential for it if we understood it. Yeah. Maybe that was the flying rocks and the outfits. Sorry. Yeah. Okay. Moving on to our first diva of the night.
00:18:50 --> 00:19:18 We had Spain, Melody with Esa Diva. Yes. Okay, so unfortunately, this only got to 24th place. I was kind of a little bit irritated because when I saw what the score was, I was like, y'all joking? This woman. This song was a little basic in terms of instrumentation and production, like in terms of like EDM. But then you have these Spanish, like actual cultural flares, like the castanets, the guitar, and like, of course, her voice. Her voice alone was the flair. She said, Esa Diva.
00:19:19 --> 00:19:39 This one was attacking her note, and it was very consistent. Like, her vocals, oh my gosh, goals. Absolutely. Like, I think the dance break bridge part with the diva diva, I was like, okay, that's a little dry. But then there was a large build moment. She kills it live. Like, for me, it is so difficult to sing half the songs together.
00:19:39 --> 00:20:03 not half the sauce half of one of my songs live because it is very belty this girl she said no no problem no problem no problem the song has elements i think make it exciting and big um and the performance was great too like she owns the stage and i think as we go deeper and deeper into the show when i think about what what rating she got compared to some other people when they had the same elements of vocals but she actually had the presence
00:20:04 --> 00:20:14 What's going on? Spaniards, what did y'all do? Yeah. I need to know. Maybe there's something political going on you don't know about. You know? And the ending movement. Oh, the flip.
00:20:15 --> 00:20:41 Hang on, wait. Catchy, catchy, Chris, catchy. Yo, shout out to that dancer that had to be in charge of executing that. Can you imagine the pressure? There's like billions of people watching you. It's the most watched... One of the most watched events ever, like, in the world. And he came after a dance break. He's already at the lapic acid building. Okay, flipper. Yeah. Shout out to you. Yeah, I'm horrified this did so badly. But yeah, I guess you're right. Like, I guess people...
00:20:41 --> 00:21:06 There's just so there've been so many great divas and Eurovision that maybe the standard is just so high. And I think you're right. Maybe it's the song itself that was just not good enough. Mm hmm. You know, but the whole package. Yeah. I mean, look, the song. Yeah, it's basic, but it's catchy. No, it's fun to dance to. It has the drama that you'd want in a song called Esa Diva. And and yeah, the vocals, yo. Yeah.
00:21:07 --> 00:21:17 Her, she may be, I think, my favorite vocalist of the whole night. Yeah, she surprised me. Yeah, it was so impressive. It was so impressive. And she is a star.
00:21:17 --> 00:21:37 great presence and the performance is pretty simple because she doesn't need to do the most you know you know what you're so right like she kept my attention just pointing and you know like you're so standing there i can't remember i can't remember a single dance move you're right because she literally is just singing the ending was the thing i remember oh my gosh yeah there was that slight fail where she was late to the curtain
00:21:37 --> 00:21:48 The curtain reveal, which is a little awkward. It's really awkward. But you know what? She killed it. And this deserves so much more, which is why I'm giving it a nine.
00:21:48 --> 00:22:18 Oh, I give it an 8.5 because it does have, you know, that basic thing I was talking about. I'm fine with that. The performance was so good. Go off, girl. Yeah. Up next is Ukraine with Zakhar Blatt singing Bird of Prey. I want to say Birds of Prey so badly. Yeah, I think it's singular. Bird. Yes. So this got ninth place. Not bad. Mainly due to the public votes, actually. And I, this song grew on me quite a lot. Like from my initial listenings of the playlists, you know, over the past few weeks.
00:22:18 --> 00:22:48 but this one, yeah, this one I kept kind of coming back to, and I was like, oh, I think I like this more and more each time. Because it's an interesting song. No, it totally, it's like a bunch of different songs put together. There's an element of classic rock in there. There's some folksiness in there. And there's like a melancholy and like a drama to it all. But then you bring in that woman doing like the, what do you even call that? The trill? What is that? The ham.
00:22:49 --> 00:22:54 a little like operatic kind of like moment. What is that? The vocalizing...
00:22:54 --> 00:23:23 Yeah, socializing. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, because she's up. Yeah, yeah, she comes in and becomes very kind of hopeful and kind of spiritual. I don't know. I think it's a cool song. So I feel like I just kept remembering it, and I wanted to listen to it because I wanted to discover new things in it. So as a song, I really liked it, actually. Yes. And one of the ones that I... I don't know. I just think it's just very unique. Yeah, this one stood up to me, too. I think, again, one of those, I heard it before I saw it. And this one...
00:23:23 --> 00:23:38 It has like a cool rock, curl jamby thing going on, but then it also sounds like jazz at certain points. And I sat there and I was like, oh my gosh, guys, there's a band called Snarky Puppy. They're a jazz band and they have a song called Shofokan. Shofokan.
00:23:38 --> 00:24:02 uh chauffe can i'm gonna say it like that for now um and it started to remind me of that song gets into this weird like it's jazz chords it's a jazz progression you're like but why does it sound so foreign still there's something that is so interesting about bands like this that can take all these different influences and then throw it here it's like here everything but the kitchen sink um and it
00:24:02 --> 00:24:27 For me, it sounded like something that would really go off as an anime outro. Because I was listening to it, and I'm like, it's very shonen outro, so I liked it. First lesson, I liked it. And I'm glad that the real vocalists were used in this performance. I thought with all these background vocals, but I heard it on the track. I was like, ooh, what are they going to do? So to have it actually be vocalized, and then the girls were part of the performance kind of in the back. I was like, ooh, what is this spooky little ghost thing going on? And the...
00:24:27 --> 00:24:50 This was the lights right in your hair. Yeah. Yeah. So they had a lot of moments where I was like, ooh, interesting. And the song is so good, I didn't actually look up the lyrics. So I feel kind of bad, but that's good. That is very good. Vocally, the song is very tough to sing. Ooh, yeah. And toward the end, you can hear that the singer was getting kind of pitchy. And it's so hard. You got the nerves, you got the vocals, you got whatever is going on over the past how many weeks?
00:24:50 --> 00:25:12 um the emotion behind the lyrics and i think in terms of the lyrics it's probably okay that he sounded a little bit like worn here and there um but unfortunately if you don't fully understand the lyrics it just sounds like he's making mistakes so yes is he making mistakes yes but then he's being really emotional with the lyrics it kind of adds to the whole thing um so i was just like oh wait hang on that note was wrong oh wait hang on that note feels a little off
00:25:13 --> 00:25:36 Yeah, you could feel the passion in it, you know, so I think, yeah, I think it's fine. But that's what saves it. Yeah. Yeah. Um, the fuzzy video filter definitely threw me off at first, though. Yeah. And it was kind of distracting, but I guess it was supposed to kind of feel like a 70s... Like, disc-oriented? Yeah, you know, because they were in, like, the bell-bottoms, and it's kind of like the 70s. Dude, but it was, you know, they were like, what would be? Flurry, like, like, I'm going to put their finger on my glasses. Yeah.
00:25:36 --> 00:25:54 No, yeah, exactly. So I kind of get it, but I didn't love that effect. But yeah, like I said, this was one of the ones that as a song I kept turning back to. So I will give it a nine. Ooh. I think because it is based on the performances, like if it was sitting there as the jury, I would have to give it an 8.5.
00:25:55 --> 00:26:23 Okay, moving on to the United Kingdom. And we have Remember Monday with What the Hell Just Happened. And this got to 19th place. And this was from all jury votes because they got zero public votes. Oh, girl, what's going on? What's going on? Y'all got Nando's. What's going on? That should be enough. That should be enough to win. Okay, so they had a girl group this time, which is fine. Okay.
00:26:23 --> 00:26:43 You love a girl group. Love a girl. The song is fun. It's definitely all over the place. You know, we mentioned the one before just now. Also all over the place. But this one was a little bit more chaotic. You feel that? It definitely confused me. I still don't love every single element in it. But it does feel like they were inspired by, you know, Bohemian Rhapsody. Okay.
00:26:43 --> 00:27:12 Or something, because it had all those tempo changes. It had all the different kind of references in there. And, like, some moments sound like Queen. Some moments sound like something more modern, like a chapel would sing some of these verses or something. So that's interesting. Yeah. The chorus, I think, is quite polarizing. You know? Oh, really? Those big belts with the harmonies. And so I'm here for it. I actually don't mind it. That's why, because I'm like, really? Because I also don't mind it.
00:27:12 --> 00:27:24 Yeah, but I was reading a lot of comments where people thought it was very grating, actually, because they're just kind of like yelling. Yeah. The staging was awful, but we'll get to that. What do you think of the song before we get to that?
00:27:25 --> 00:27:51 So I have lots of thoughts on the staging. I don't know much about the ladies. I remember seeing that they were announced as a Eurovision pick and people were like, heck no, in their comments. I don't know why. UK fans, explain yourself, please. Tell me why you guys don't like Remember Monday. I mean, for me, I didn't hear about them. Like, don't get me wrong. Don't get me wrong. Ali got the same score as well last year in terms of like zeros. But they got the public vote.
00:27:51 --> 00:28:09 They didn't get public vote. They got the jury vote. So it's like, everyone thinks that they're pretty awesome. Why don't you? I just need to know. I think at first listen, the genre bending was very catchy for me. And I love that first verse into the chorus. I think for me, the song...
00:28:10 --> 00:28:28 After listening to it, I can understand my, over and over, I can understand why people are like, okay, this is a lot. When you're watching it, if you're following Eurovision, this is like your umpteen time hearing the song. Have it gotten better? Hasn't gotten worse? But if you don't like it and you keep hearing all the cacophony of noises and harmonies, you can be like, girl, sss.
00:28:28 --> 00:28:52 Girl, stop. But yeah, I'm going to be real with you. I'm into them. Spectacle in the vocals. The concept of the song was effective. I've actually been turned to a fan of this one song. We'll see about the other ones. I like this. And the performance. There's elements of it that I really like. And then elements of it, I was like, girl, what y'all doing? Okay, what did you like? All right, so here we go.
00:28:52 --> 00:29:11 I think the outfits gave like Sabrina Carpenter meets Abba meets Disney Princess. Because if you look at their outfits, it was definitely giving Abba, for one of the girls, who's wearing blue, was like little disco pants. There was a yellow one with a little heart in it that looked like Belle. The pink one looked like Aurora. So it was all these little princesses. The chandelier ties into the shade. It?
00:29:12 --> 00:29:22 I said they looked like they were doing a community performance of Six the Musical. Oh my God, did you see his face? If you guys are not watching, he made a face that he re-stopped dead in my truck.
00:29:23 --> 00:29:52 But yeah, if you think about it, the lyrics of this is almost like a princess that kind of falls in love. I think that's kind of what helped me understand what was happening. Because I was like, why is there a chandelier there? Yeah. But it's like, what the hell happened? It said, they said something about falling from the chandelier. So it's like, they are princess because they mentioned losing the shoe like Cinderella among other princessy things like clutching the pearls and things like that. My biggest gripe is that I wish that the stage rotated instead of them chasing the stage because honey, Aurora princess was dying. Yeah.
00:29:52 --> 00:30:10 She said She was And then she had the clunkiest shoes Looking like Miss Polly Pocket My girl was clunking I will say when they first came on that catwalk And they were doing the sidewalks I said y'all better get that Oh my bad But I said y'all better get that But when they came up that stage
00:30:10 --> 00:30:24 She was getting ready to die. And I was like, damn. But at least she didn't kill the harmony. Her solo. She got her belt out. Her lead vocal. Her solo vocal. She was out.
00:30:25 --> 00:30:43 And girl, I feel your pain because right now I'm losing my breath. But aside from that, I think that stage should have rotated. It shouldn't have been known. What just happened? Like, what is happening? Why are you chasing the camera? Okay, so do you have an explanation for why they suddenly had all those, like, swimmers on the screen around them?
00:30:43 --> 00:30:58 Oh, because they said something about taking a dive. That's what that was. Okay. So the Ellie's fine. You have to listen. It's school time, everybody. Listen. The stuff makes sense. I mean, but if you think about the outfits, too, like they were wearing like little princess dresses and like at the ball, there's always a chandelier. So if it's crashed, like, why is that thing there?
00:30:59 --> 00:31:25 Okay, I think my biggest issue with the staging was that it just looks cheap. Oh. Like, it all—I feel like I get the whole princess concept, but, like— Yes. It just—like, the costume, it all felt like they were given a very small budget. That tiny little thing with the hole at the end that they, like, peeked through. Like, it just looked so small and sad, you know? The UK spent too much money on Ali last year, remember? Yeah.
00:31:26 --> 00:31:53 With the rotating box. Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. Like, it just was not effective. And I think they were... Yeah, I think you could tell they were trying to, like, get to point A to B to C. You know, but it was just kind of all over the place. The performance was not good. It let it down, I think. Well, that's where. But, yeah, I think overall, though, they definitely didn't deserve zero points. Like, they were better than some of the other acts. Yeah.
00:31:54 --> 00:32:11 But yeah, I'll still give it an 8.5. This one actually is my 9. So we switched. Okay. Moving on to Austria. We have JJ with Wasted Love. And this is the winner of Eurovision 2025. At first listen, I thought this was a woman.
00:32:12 --> 00:32:32 Yep. This is a woman. This is not me misgendering anyone. It's just I listened to this at the TSA line and I thought, wow, girl, who hurt you? Me too. I feel you. That's impressive. Like, dude can hit no shit. I said it's kind of crazy. It is absolutely obscene. He reminds me of, we have a couple of American singers like that. Um...
00:32:32 --> 00:32:54 Oh, my God. I can't think of their names right now. But there are some singers who could be who hits notes like these. And I'm always like, how in the world are you hitting this falsetto like this? Are you hitting this whistle note or whatever? I remember, you know, Kurt from Glee? Because he has a high voice as well. I think he said when he was going through puberty and his voice was changing, he just kept like forced his voice to like stay high.
00:32:54 --> 00:33:24 Yeah. Okay. That makes sense. That makes sense. When I hear... I don't know what the vocal range is. I don't want to say it's like a control though because that's probably not accurate. But his voice is so good. I think for this song, the genre bending is really good. You have like this operatic rave thing going on. The building of the song follows the progression of the story. And it feels like the tension is building really well. This is the resonance singing that I was talking about. So you have someone with a high voice, much like the first performer. But there's resonance here.
00:33:24 --> 00:33:51 So the voice sounds so full. Like, no offense to the Matchbox kid, but, like, there was something. To be fair, though, this one was a lot of head voice and, like, opera versus, like, a chest belt. This is true, but, like, even, like, the texture of the chest belt wasn't giving, like, oh, it was, huh? You know? So, sorry, so no offense, kid. You know, I think the fifth element blue alien vocal chop is, like, peak. Peak crying in the club.
00:33:51 --> 00:34:10 me crying in the club. And I think for me, the staging for this was interesting because Laureen was the only person I knew from Eurovision at the time. And she's someone who was singing very resonantly and she'll move around a lot, but it makes sense, right? When she was singing Euphoria, the wind was blowing, it was giving something. Cool. This man on the stage with the boat
00:34:10 --> 00:34:28 And the elbow dancing. Yeah. Clever Quarry got this stopped. Don't ever do that again. I did not like that. Because it made his vocals sound shaky. Yes. And it pissed me off because he was so stable. But you don't want to sit there and be pissy at the finals. No. No. The camera could have moved.
00:34:29 --> 00:34:58 Yeah, I agree with you. I agree with you. Yay. So mad. Yeah, well, okay. So the song itself, I agree with you. First, yeah, the vocals can't say, like, less about it. Like, it's so impressive. Like, it's insane. Yeah. Like. Disgusting. I mean. Yeah, like, the first time the chorus comes around, it's like, what? And then it just, like, keeps growing. You know, it's crazy. Yeah, the song itself is cool. Like, I like all the strings. Like, the bassy synths. It has an interesting melody in it.
00:34:58 --> 00:35:26 Yeah, the staging for me, oof. First off, the flashing was... They needed a warning. He needed a warning. And yeah, I agree with you in that the screens and stuff showing the storm was enough. Like, his trying to pretend to survive on this boat. Survive on the boat. While doing this crazy opera. Surviving on the boat was great. No, because it's silly. It's like, I'm going to start talking. I'm shaking his chair. Mm-hmm.
00:35:27 --> 00:35:55 Do anything right now Yeah the crazy EDM outro Was also very unexpected the first time I heard the song And it's very awesome And the energy is just so intense So yeah it's definitely a worthy winner Yeah I would say that the score Is this the perfect song Is this the perfect performance Perfect performance no Perfect staging no So I'm going to give it a 9.5 Yeah I'll go a 9 Yeah Yeah
00:35:55 --> 00:36:18 Okay, moving on to Iceland, we have Vibe with Roa. And this was 25th place with zero jury votes. So yeah, 25th place. Out of 26. Ooh-wee! This one sucked. Ooh! This was my least favorite performance of the entire night, and least favorite song as well. Hmm. This song does feel a bit like...
00:36:18 --> 00:36:38 what someone who has never watched Eurovision, but had been told about it, maybe, would imagine what a Eurovision song would be like. Yeah, like Will Ferrell's movie. Okay, to be fair, he actually did his research on Malia. He did. But yeah, it's just like the first stuff, the song itself, it's just so...
00:36:39 --> 00:37:08 stereotypical Eurodance like faceless pop. Oh, yes. Like there's rapping in it. The singing is like barely even singing. You know, they're just kind of yelling over it all. The violins coming in was at least like something interesting. You know? But oof. This song is not it. I'm sorry, Vibe. I'm not. This Vibe, people, men, boys, this feels like a pirate chanty.
00:37:10 --> 00:37:37 Didn't it? But like I was on a boat. But like for children. SpongeBob. This is. How dare you SpongeBob. It's something better than the Patrick show. This is the Patrick star show type stuff. I don't know why they had to rap. And it kind of just makes me think where it's like you guys can't sing. So you have two children whose parents probably have money or whoever's behind them is funding it because it's like there's two kids. Let's be real here.
00:37:37 --> 00:37:56 I think that's what the case is. Something doesn't feel right about this. This feels very much we're trying to plant them, but it's not working because the song is not good. I'm telling you now. I think it was kind of a funny mix of eye glitter and yo, yo, yo rap. Like, I guarantee you one day these boys are probably going to come back from something and like, they're going to do something big.
00:37:56 --> 00:38:13 Like when they get older, hey, it was us vibe. And either one of them is going to be a really good singer or like one of them goes solo. And like, yeah, we were forced to do it like Milli Vanilli. I don't know. But for now, this was an okay song and just an okay performance. They had a lot of energy and a lot of confidence. And that's cute. Very talent show. Very much my parents have money. Zero.
00:38:16 --> 00:38:36 Okay. Okay, you're gonna be a little nicer. The performance was okay. Okay? Like, the boat and kind of, like, the water and stuff. Like, at least it was interesting, the way they used the screens. Uh-huh. That's all I could say. I'm not gonna give it a zero. One. But no...
00:38:38 --> 00:38:47 Okay, I'll go four. Four still fail. One minus one. They still worked very hard, these two young brothers.
00:38:49 --> 00:39:17 Again, it's a gimmick. And it does not give. Yeah. Yeah. Up next is Latvia with Kautimetas. And they sang Verma Nlaimi. Verma Nlaimi. I do feel bad because the word is pronounced in the song. I do apologize, guys. Oh, they sing so fast in this, though. Thank you. Yeah. In my defense. Yes, they were 13th. 13th. Yes. Not bad. Not bad. I think in terms of girl groups,
00:39:17 --> 00:39:45 I was pleasantly surprised because, you know, a lot of girl groups now are very modern in their harmonies, modern in their style. I mean, we just remember Monday. This was like girl groups on Eurovision or just groups in general on Eurovision that Harunized, I enjoy. But the girl groups have to bring something different each time. Otherwise, it's going to feel like the same, same like X Factor audition, right? Like they came in strong. I was feeling all the notes. I like their blend was very immaculate.
00:39:45 --> 00:40:11 Obviously on the record, it's like, you know, tuned and whatnot, but even in person was really good. The percussion of the song sounded like a tribal kind of anthem, but I appreciate them performing on stage like little fishy creatures instead of pretending to be a caricature of North American tribes. I think the overlapping of the vocals in terms of the performance, the tassels, hanging, everything was a very striking silhouette. And then their little, you know, long phalanges.
00:40:12 --> 00:40:33 I think it was really cool. I will say at one point or another, the choreo was out of sync. Did you notice? No. They did. Oh, I did. It was in the beginning, though. And I will say it was only the beginning. But yes, those little nymphs were giving. Okay? After the bridge, they had nothing else to lose. And they were just creeping out like, na-na-na-na-na. You know? Like, I go...
00:40:33 --> 00:40:59 No, I thought this was one of the best ones of the night, actually. First off, obviously, I love a girl group, and I love harmony. So the way this song just started with that was already caught my attention. Yes. Yes. You know, I'm here for the whole... Like, are they sirens? Are they fairies? Are they, like, wood nymphs? Like, what's the... Are they all three? Oh, wait. Like, the whole spiritual aspect of it all, or kind of, like...
00:41:00 --> 00:41:13 witchcraft almost kind of like feeling of it all. I'm here for that. Yeah. I'm really here for that. And yeah, the whole thing just sounded, yeah, kind of, yeah, like a spell they're recording on, you know? Mm-hmm.
00:41:13 --> 00:41:41 And yeah, staging, so cool. Love the whole atmosphere that they put on. It was quite simple, too, just with those, you know, those things hanging down and them just kind of doing different silhouettes and stuff against it and posing in different ways. The screen moment with the tail. Oh, that's coming out. So cool. Yes. I will say the song itself, though, I do wish there was just maybe one more hook in there. Because that chorus, is it even a chorus? I don't know what's...
00:41:41 --> 00:41:57 I guess it's a core. It gets a little repetitive at the end. Like I wish there was one more just kind of like interesting switch up in there. Just that would turn it into a 10 for me. But this ended up being a big highlight for me.
00:41:57 --> 00:42:17 Respect. You put things in perspective. I think I was sitting there watching and I was like, okay, where you going? Where you going? I was so captivated by the way they looked. Oopsie. I don't know. Yeah. Still one of the best of the night for me. Yeah. I think the crescendo of all of it was really, really good. I think for me, I wonder if they go around looking like this on a regular basis. Like, is this their shtick?
00:42:17 --> 00:42:46 You know? Like, I wonder. If this is their shtick, I like it. If you guys walk around looking like little creatures, cool. Love it. Enjoy it. I think they're my favorite girl group. I think they're the only, the last. Of the two. Yeah. Of the two. But, but, I defend and remember Monday quite a bit. And I gave them a nine. I gave this group a 9.5. Okay. I will give this a nine. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Moving on to the Netherlands. We have Claude with C'est La Vie. This was 12th place. And this is mainly from jury votes, actually.
00:42:47 --> 00:43:11 Um, so this song, I think it starts off actually pretty strong. Yeah. Starts off as a ballad. He sounds pretty good. But then when the beat kicks in, ooh, it turns into just a basic, I don't know, there's some things about it the second the beat kicks in and the chorus is just so disappointing. Yeah.
00:43:11 --> 00:43:32 Like, I almost think it should have just stayed a dramatic ballad. You know, even if you kept the melody, like, I'm sure there's a, you know, an acoustic version maybe that he's performed or something that one of you could point me to. But yeah, I feel like it would have actually sounded better if he just kind of, like, sang his face off to just a guitar or something. Or strings, you know? Like, I think that would have made it more effective because, yeah...
00:43:32 --> 00:43:59 The beat just turns it into such a basic track. Dude, I'm like, y'all learned nothing from Salaman from Friends last year. That man sat there and said, And stood away from the mic. And it was like, what, third place? It was high up. Top five. Top five, right? So, oh my God. You know what kills me? I listened to this song, also in TSA line. And I almost skipped it. Because in the beginning, it was good. And I was like, his voice, his vocal tone is so warm.
00:43:59 --> 00:44:22 Yeah. Oh my gosh. It was like, oh, it pisses me off because I thought I was going to do something and it did nothing. Again, how are these songs beat? You say, well, you say, but we, we watched the, we watched the whole competition. We know how it works now. We've had our Eurovision talk with our friends today.
00:44:23 --> 00:44:45 And we know how it all works. Every country has their own battle and they pick their country song. How did this song make it? Okay. No tea, no shade. It was just very anticlimactic for me. And I'm very annoyed about it. His, oh my God, in his live performance. Oh yeah. That performance was not good. It was painful. It was not good. He lost all his mystique as soon as he started moving his body.
00:44:46 --> 00:45:07 Yeah, I don't know why they thought he should dance. I guess because it's an upbeat song, but he should not dance. No! Those moments felt so awkward, like him doing his body roll thing. And then in the mirror at the end, he was doing, it wasn't bow game, but it was just all these angled arm movements. Uh-uh. That was not it.
00:45:07 --> 00:45:37 Yeah, he's charming. I will say he's charming, but it's more endearing than it is fierce. He did try. Yeah, he tried, yeah. Yeah, but honestly, we're trying to be nice here. But yeah, I don't know. And then he started crying a little bit at the end. Oh, yeah, he just like, at the end of the break, yeah, before he even finishes the last line, or right at the end of it. Yeah, I legit have that in my notes. Was he fighting a lump the whole time? He might have been, because the vocals were kind of shaky on the night.
00:45:37 --> 00:45:55 He was just so excited. I don't know. Congratulations, Claude. You do deserve a better song, though. You are such a talented young person. But should I let that ending cry? Six. I'll agree with you on a six. Yes. Six. Okay. Okay.
00:45:55 --> 00:46:19 Up next is Binlan with Erica Vickman singing Itchcom. Yes. This hit 11th place. Yes. She destroyed so many mic stands from performing and rehearsing this song, I'm sure. Oh my gosh. The song itself is very odd. Why say that? I don't know. Like the melodies are just odd. Yeah. You know? Yeah. And so...
00:46:19 --> 00:46:46 I just don't really want to wrap my head around this song. Like, even listening to it, you know, after watching her perform, I'm still kind of like, these melodies are so odd. There's an 80s-ness to the whole thing, though, which I kind of appreciate. And the build is great. Like, the build from verse to pre-chorus to chorus, I think, is interesting. And there's, like, kind of a frustration in the pre-chorus and then a euphoria in the chorus. And then it all builds into, like, a great climax, which apparently the song is about...
00:46:47 --> 00:47:17 by an accent so it works i get it i hear it you know what that would explain a lot of the crotch shots i saw because i remember i accidentally like scrubbed the video to the middle of the performance like you spoiled that i said nope all i saw was a crotch i don't know i don't know what i missed um i understand your sense of saying like the melody feels odd because she's singing so robustly yeah i feel like she's just yelling at me at certain points where she's like yeah
00:47:17 --> 00:47:39 Yeah, she was feeling it. Right. It was loud. Yeah. It was loud, yes, and very strong. I do want to know, though, if these melodies are popular in Finland or not. Because I think because we heard Windows 95, man, last year, and then a year prior was another weirdo. This is the first time I heard.
00:47:39 --> 00:48:07 This is the first time we've had someone going on stage who's actually trying to just sing their face off. She's a rock star for sure. And I think the stadium rock also kind of plays a part in the instrumentation of the song, which is fun as well. You're in this huge arena, right? You might as well give it. I love the usage of the mic stand for her little pole moment. Yeah. And then the giant. Yes. The giant mic stand. Right. Maybe one of my favorite visual moments of the show. Yeah.
00:48:07 --> 00:48:35 Yes, I think that was absolutely epic. If you guys have ever seen Jem and the Holograms, she had her guitar, like when they would ride their, I think the Misfits would ride their motorcycle. It was like a guitar motorcycle. It was very, like you said, 80s. I remember rewatching Jem and the Holograms during pandemic. And this song, the styling, the giant microphone that's spitting out sparks would fit the concept. So yeah, she's definitely a force.
00:48:35 --> 00:49:05 Yeah, she killed it, to be fair. Yeah. And her stage presence was so high, and she looked hot in that black leather outfit. Yes. And yeah, she was committed. She was really giving it. So as of performance, she really convinced me. Yes. Barberrella with the crotch and the Fleming microphone. I gave her a 0.5 for the crotch. Okay. So I'll give her a 7.5. Yeah, I'll match you with the 7.5, because yeah, this song, I still don't get it. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Okay.
00:49:05 --> 00:49:34 Okay, now here we are at number 14. Italy with Lucio Corsi singing Volevo e Sere un Duro. That sounded good to me. I was saying it like I got... Let us know if that was correct. So this got fifth place. So it did very well. Mainly due to jury votes in terms of promotion. And I really liked this one. Actually, this one as a song also stood out to me. I think because...
00:49:34 --> 00:49:38 Um, it is one of the quieter ones, but...
00:49:39 --> 00:50:09 I liked the kind of old school rock thing. And as a voice, yeah. Like his vocal was just very endearing to me. Like it's very kind of soft. And you can tell he's really telling a story. Even though I don't know what he's saying. Which he was the only one who got subtitles the night of the performance, which was very interesting. And that was very helpful because the lyrics are beautiful in this. Like all the metaphors and stuff that he uses. But yeah, even without me understanding what he was saying, though, I could feel it.
00:50:09 --> 00:50:21 And so it really caught my attention every time the song came around. And the melody is really beautiful. And the string arrangement is really beautiful. So yeah, I think as a song, this one actually was a highlight for me.
00:50:21 --> 00:50:51 Yeah, this song was about being an underdog and he wants to be so special, but he isn't. This song definitely has like a throwback old school rock vibe. I love Beatles kind of for me. I mean, I don't know the Beatles like that. You listen to them a little bit more, I think, recently. But something about it just sounded like one of those like Billy Joel. But as the song kept progressing and I was like, I'm hearing something else. It wasn't Billy Joel. I mean, it wasn't Beatles. It was maybe Billy Joel or maybe Bob Dylan with the harmonica. You know what I'm saying?
00:50:51 --> 00:51:09 But yeah, I think the song was like this weird, melancholic, but acceptance of being insignificant or like tiny or like small because you have these huge amps on stage and he's like, it's just me, Lucio, you know?
00:51:09 --> 00:51:36 And I was like, oh my gosh, so sweet. But yeah, I think the idea of them being quote unquote nobodies in the grand scheme of things is really kind of heartwarming in a sense. And the jury, in terms of respect, appreciate the song and the artistry that was present. Because legit, like the makeup that he was wearing, the shoulder pads, the boots. But that was the most extravagant thing about the save.
00:51:36 --> 00:51:55 Aside from the amps, obviously. And the giant long piano. Very cool. Yeah. It's very cool. I will say, though, I do wish they had the rest of their just like fake musicians around them. Like, I know in your vision, the bands don't play live because it's just impossible logistically to get that all, you know, all the sound right.
00:51:55 --> 00:52:22 But I think because the performance was so simple and it was based around a rock performance with the giant amps, which looked very cool. I was like, if they just had a fake drummer on the side and like three fake string musicians on the side, I think it would have actually elevated it a little bit more. But can't complain. I think he's very talented. The main guy was very, very talented. Loved the harmonica moment. Yeah. So yeah, I'll give this an 8.5. I'll give it an 8.5.
00:52:22 --> 00:52:37 Okay. Just the night. Okay. Moving on to Poland with Justyna Stekowska with Gaha. Gaha or Gaja? What do we get? Gaha. Yeah. One of those. And this one hit 14th place.
00:52:38 --> 00:52:58 Yes, so I believe she has entered before. Oh? So she is a Eurovision legend. Oh, yeah. Okay, go ahead, girl. And she, for soft performance, yo, she killed that. Yeah. Like, she is goals for when I'm in my 50s. Oh, true now.
00:52:58 --> 00:53:17 Oh, no. It was a help as well. But yeah, the song itself, I like the wiry strings. I like the dramatic percussion. Yeah. This one is, you know, a dance song, but it's fun. I think the pre-chorus is probably my favorite part with, like, the choral kind of aspect of it. Oh, yeah, yeah, totally. I will say the chorus itself, literally just being too...
00:53:17 --> 00:53:46 big belted notes. Yeah. And nothing else. Yeah. I mean, look, she sang the crap out of that live. I will say listening to it, I was kind of just like, that's it. That's the chorus. But live, seeing her still doing some of those dance moves while just belting that huge ass note is very impressive. He's giving SNL where it's like a great singer where she's just doing all the strange moves. And yeah, visually, I'm here for the Game of Thrones show.
00:53:46 --> 00:54:14 Khaleesi thing. Yeah, it works. The dancers killed it. I think some of the choreography was a little basic, but, you know, it works. You know, there's energy to it. Right. Her randomly whipping out the violin as well in between the belts. Yes. Also, she had to sprint after she did the whole hanging thing. Yeah. She had to sprint from the main stage to the B stage, belt again, and then they did all that floor choreo, and then she belted again. Yeah.
00:54:14 --> 00:54:22 Epic. She killed that. Like, as a performance, yo. That was amazing. So unfair meeting an episode.
00:54:23 --> 00:54:53 Her voice is so... The resonance. This is the resonance thing I'm talking about. They don't usually get effects like reverb on their vocals, right? No, I don't think they're allowed to. Right. And that's the blend, folks. She sounded like she had something around her mouth like this. But yeah, it's interesting because I was like, wow, it's very haunting. And then she oozes sensuality. You look at her, you're like, she's smithy. She's giving you something. She's luring you in so that she can, ah! She can yell and breathe her flames on you.
00:54:53 --> 00:55:12 this song reminds me of something that lindsey sterling uh meets the mummy meets nor the mummy yeah because it's like it hit like some you know phrygian scalish kind of like you know um the lord of the rings when that actually was gay with thrones
00:55:13 --> 00:55:30 Lord of the Rings works too. This is true. This is true. Or The Hobbit. Let's say The Hobbit. It was giving... With Smaug's rings. I know. But Smaug was kind of the focus. Lord of the Rings was more about like, you know... This is Smaug. On fire. On death. So this was giving Smaug, you know, the shriek that...
00:55:31 --> 00:55:47 She screams, she's on the thing. The lyrics are talking about her saying, I'm Gaia, I am God, the power, my mother is love. Like she's like, I am woman, hear me roar. So this song is very much mystical, very much like, oh,
00:55:50 --> 00:56:09 Yeah, so it's cool. I gave it an 8.5. Okay, I will go an 8. Okay, moving on to Germany. We have Abor and Tina with Baller. And this hit 15th. Okay, they're a duo? Ooh! Ooh!
00:56:10 --> 00:56:39 I thought it was just Tina by herself. No, the celloist. I realized, nah, but I kept saying to myself, I did not see the appeal in Tina. The most interesting thing was the instrumentalist. And I don't... Hey, guys, listen, listen. If y'all saw a celloist with a highlighter, well, LED cello, you'd be like, wow, that's impressive. I didn't think he was part of the performance because he kept acting like he was a feature. Yeah.
00:56:39 --> 00:56:52 But he was in the front. You instrumentalists can introduce... He was... I don't know. I thought they did all right. Kind of showing he was in it. I don't know. No, because...
00:56:55 --> 00:57:24 Because I thought it was just her. Okay, well. All my critique is toward this young lady. That's fine. Oh, no. All right. So this song is like a fun, like, little party moment. I just want to say rave, but it's like just a little house party. But I don't think there's anything else that made it special. Like, the illuminated cello. I didn't even finish my notes. It says the illuminated. The cello. Like, she's pretty. And she does sound decent. But there was no wow about her. And it looks like she's still trying to figure out what her visual artistic, like, identity is. Because she was wearing all black. The...
00:57:24 --> 00:57:37 The 2016, like, flannel wrapped around the waist. The whole, like, underground party scene where she looks like she's only 16. It was very weird. I thought this was supposed to be, like, German brat. Mm-hmm.
00:57:37 --> 00:58:03 Yeah, okay. You know, just kind of like basic party track. Yeah. Just kind of like, I don't know, and do drugs too. I don't know. Oh, maybe. Do you guys like the song? Like, seriously. I actually didn't think the song was that bad. Like, it's catchy. It does get kind of old after a while. That hook is a little repetitive and it just kind of stays the same energy the whole time. Which is the critique I often give Charlie XCX in this whole rap era. Like, it just kind of...
00:58:04 --> 00:58:11 You know, it's the vibe or whatever. You don't like the bratwurst? The bratwurst? I normally love bratwurst.
00:58:11 --> 00:58:39 Yeah, I just wish it took you on more of a ride. Like, it just doesn't go anywhere. Not at all. But if you're into the Charlie XDX kind of just like... No. Kind of like 3 a.m. Like, you're still going because you're on stuff. Like, this comes on and you're, like, feeling it. I don't know. This is not giving breath. I mean, it's not giving... It's maybe breath worst. Neither. And it's okay. I don't get Charlie. If I get what you're saying, but eh. No, not, like, in terms of, like, she would sing the song. But I mean, in terms of, like, the ideas. Yeah, the energy. Oh, yeah.
00:58:39 --> 00:58:58 Okay, sorry about that. I mean, it seems like, speaking of people just dancing mindlessly to this, that's exactly what the dancers were doing. Because when I tell you, oh my God, I didn't realize what was happening, but it just looked unrehearsed. It's like they spent the past few months still looking like they were filming for a TikTok.
00:58:58 --> 00:59:28 But I think they were supposed to, like, not actually be that good. Because, again, it was like, it's the 3 a.m., you're still in the club, and everyone's kind of, like, on stuff. And they're just, like, you know, doing whatever. With the music turned off. Even when the music ended, they kept going. It was terrible. But they don't even notice. That was a song. So I feel like that was the whole vibe of it. Honestly, the best thing about the song was the... I didn't know what you were saying, but... I didn't know what you were saying.
00:59:29 --> 00:59:58 It's like the whole book. But the vocals are kind of rough, though. Oh, yes. Yeah, yeah. See, you know what? Those are kind of rough. She sounded fine in the verses, more so when it was breathier, but during the chorus when she was kind of trying, I guess she was trying to project a bit. Oh, yeah. And so it just, I don't know, it just felt a little meh. Yeah, and these people don't have it easy at all. Like, all the teasing I'm doing, yeah, but, like, they don't have it easy at all. So, yeah. So what do you rate it? 6.5, though. Um...
00:59:59 --> 01:00:11 Okay, I'll match you with a 6.5. Oh, okay. Pop list. Up next is Grease with Klaudia singing Astromata. Ooh, and this hits sixth place. This song is really pretty.
01:00:12 --> 01:00:34 You can really hear the emotion in her voice. She sounds great. She has a beautiful tone. I kind of want to listen to other stuff that she sings because it's just that beautiful. And it was just this beautiful live. Like, wow. Those vocals live, it sounded like a studio recording. It was that good. She sounded so good. And the way the song builds is really nice. Mm-hmm.
01:00:35 --> 01:00:51 Like the big belts kind of come a little bit more into it. There's just a lot of tension building all throughout it. So yeah, this one caught my attention. I'm here for it. Her glasses caught my attention. Oh, yeah. Very distinctive look. Yes. It's very rare you see a cute little pop star with their glasses on their face.
01:00:51 --> 01:01:17 She sounds really good. And it's interesting to have someone that looks like, quote, quote, looks like you singing. I know it sounds really weird, but we're talking about the whole performance of Eurovision, what catches our eye, what makes us interesting. Looking at her in all that black, her hair is slicked back, the glasses, you don't know what she's going to do. So when she opens her mouth, the acapella from the beginning literally had me, like the melisma in her voice, it all gave me chills. And...
01:01:17 --> 01:01:45 This kind of singing from foreign artists always makes me feel like it encourages me to listen to them, like you said, but also try to listen to more of singers from their country. Because I'm like, is this not you guys do specifically like Southeast Asian singers with the Phrygian scales and their their melisma? I'm like, how in the world do you hit some of these notes? It makes you want to listen and study. So she's very inspiring in terms of like vocal technique and vocal tone. And the song itself is very like her.
01:01:45 --> 01:02:09 I didn't even look up the lyrics, y'all. I feel a little bad about that. I wish I had, but I didn't. But this was that good. And it's always the goal to not have people worry about what you're saying, but how you're saying it and how you're performing at the floor, the sky full of flames, the woman dancing on stage. And did you did you understand the story that was being told? No, but I will say I really didn't like that tiny rock that she was standing on.
01:02:11 --> 01:02:39 Like, it's like you get that, like, kind of, it looks like a pier almost, like a ridge that she's on. And then you have this, like, baby rock, like, by itself at the end of it. And it just looks very sad by itself. And I feel like it could have just been, like, a circular platform with lights on it, you know? Like, it did, like, why was it a rock? It might have to do with the lyrics that we didn't read. Which is possible, but, like, then I wish there were other rocks. You know? Like, along the pier or, like, on the stage, like...
01:02:40 --> 01:03:06 The rock was very distracting because it was the only one and it was so small. It was. I mean, she did come to the rock at the end. She stood on the rock. Yes, and her spine in her white reveal dress. Like the very white. Yeah. Which I think is kind of interesting because everyone does it at the bridge. She was like, I'm done. New clothes. You know, like, so I liked it. I liked it, but you're right. The rock was a little just like kind of booger on a Q-tip kind of situation. You know what I mean?
01:03:09 --> 01:03:37 Yeah. That was a weird analogy. What? It's like, do you use Q-tips in your nose? That's a little odd. Like that, right? Yes, it's really weird. Okay. I will give it an eight. 8.5 from you. The glasses sent me. Okay. More than the glasses, though. Up next is Arminio with Parg singing Survivor. And this got 20th place. Watch out playing, my man. Hmm. He... He's a unit. Hmm.
01:03:38 --> 01:04:01 Yes. Okay. Okay. So the song itself is giving kind of Imagine Dragons. Okay. You know? Yes. Which I'm actually not mad at. The kind of electro rock thing. It's cool. I will say the actual studio recording didn't do much for me. Uh-huh. It's, I don't know. It's fine. I think the chorus is fine. I'm a survivor. I'm a liver. Or whatever. Okay.
01:04:01 --> 01:04:25 I appreciate the chanting of it. Like it feels empowering. You know, I'm kind of here for it. But the vocals, I don't know. They just weren't really giving anything for me like in the studio. But live, he sold it. Like the performance was great. The lighting was so cool. Loved the conveyor belt thing. Even the video effects with it kind of looking kind of woozy.
01:04:25 --> 01:04:46 like with him, like multiple versions of him kind of everywhere and all kind of being delayed and stuff. Very, very cool. And he just, as a performer, like he, yeah, he was just like in it, like fully committed and really commanding the stage, like really nailed it. So that really elevated my score because the song itself is only okay, I think.
01:04:46 --> 01:05:13 Ooh. Yeah. You like the song more than I do, I think. Because the performance. Okay. Oh, my gosh. Yeah. Ooh. Okay, listen. Let's get this out of the way. He is hot. He is. He is. But this is not going to swing my decision by once. Because once I got passed out, I'm the kind of person I can look at you and be like, that's nice. That's a nice boulder. Okay, he deserved better than 20. Right.
01:05:14 --> 01:05:43 That's my point. You put him up with the kids, vibing him? Please, stop. Stop. No offense, you played yourself. So for me, I will say maybe for them, they felt a little like, oh, iffy, iffy, iffy about the rap thing. I'm not going to lie. When the rap came in, I said, oh, sir, what you doing? So maybe that's what kind of, not saying you can't rap, but I think something about it just felt very like cheese to me when he was rapping for a second.
01:05:43 --> 01:06:02 or a second i think coming into it um kind of helps you understand when he comes back with it in the second verse um so he just ties it all together really nicely you have the rap a little bit of trap kind of drums in that second verse the the stadium rock of it all it felt very like you know stomp clap
01:06:02 --> 01:06:30 ish. So we appreciate that. The bridge sent me, you know. There has not been a pop star in the West that looks like that, unless it was a Latin artist like Maluma or something, or like Jay Boudovan. We don't have, like, who do we have? Benson Boom? And his bath lips? But the point is, this gentleman here, Prague? Yeah, Perg. Park and Park, okay. I don't know.
01:06:33 --> 01:07:03 pragmatic. He'd do what he had to do. He's a true star, pop star. And this is something I would add to a playlist for a gym workout. Oh, yes. This would be a great gym workout. Yeah, yeah. That last note was fire, so kudos to him. Oh, yeah. You know? We can talk about that. That belt held that. Yeah. Yo, that performance is amazing. Right! Which is why my score is kind of high. Not because he, because if I was going to give him a score, I know how to give him what he looked like. A 10. But for now, I'm going to give him a 10. He gets a 9. Okay. I'll go 8.5. Yeah.
01:07:03 --> 01:07:14 Moving on to Switzerland, we have Zoe Mee with Voyage. And they got 10th place. And this was all from jury votes because they got zero public votes.
01:07:15 --> 01:07:37 Which is kind of surprising. Right. I'm kind of surprised that you guys, what is that? Yeah. I'm not mad at this one. I'm here for the singer-songwriter thing. She has a really nice kind of breathy raspiness in her voice. And it all sounds very sweet and kind of innocent. The strings are really nice. The melody is pretty. I like the way the chorus is written. Like kind of like the long runs. Yeah.
01:07:37 --> 01:08:04 Then you get the kind of dark twist in that bridge as well. We were watching this together and she was very surprised when that came in. I will say, I think she was let down by the staging. Because I appreciate the simplicity of it, you know? And she, you know, the kind of close-up thing. She's kind of doing this, like, handography situation. And then it is really pretty at the end when you see all the lights in the crowd and everything. And then...
01:08:04 --> 01:08:25 The whole dark moment, you are surprised by those like 10 seconds where it suddenly gets kind of scary. But this song could have had some beautiful contemporary dancing in it. Like you could have really set a scene with just how beautiful the music is. So I feel like there was a missed opportunity to do something more visual with it.
01:08:25 --> 01:08:46 You know, I agree. This is not the VMAs. Y'all can't do these close-up shots. Because even I, when I watched it, I said, did she phone this in? Yeah. Yeah. It's not any shade toward her, but there is a certain grandiose vibe when you think of Eurovision. The stage is too big for you guys to be sitting there playing it to the camera. It's too big.
01:08:46 --> 01:09:02 No one was, not no one, but there's a lot of performers on the stage that weren't just thinking of performing to the camera. And I think that was my issue. Because, yeah, the shot of her with the lights in front of her was gorgeous. But, again, you're playing it small at this point. If you did it for, like, the regionals, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, yeah.
01:09:02 --> 01:09:19 You know, the Nationals, whatever you want to call them. Cute, very cute. But this is not a time to be cute. But that aside, I think that Zoe does have a good voice. It's airy, but there's some huskiness to it. It was really hypnotizing. The song has a bit of whimsy that I enjoyed, too. Do you feel like it was kind of like...
01:09:19 --> 01:09:45 It was dreamy. Yeah, totally. And I think the bridge threw me off. I was like, what the heck? But it makes sense when you talk about the naivete of being a young woman. And that's what the lyrics were about. And then the bridge comes and you talk about the darkness and some of the things that you can kind of run into as a young person. I would say her presence kind of surprised me, too. I wasn't expecting her to be so captivating. Yeah, so again, you know, they kind of played it small. It wasn't like she's a bad performer.
01:09:46 --> 01:10:06 No. You know? No, I think it's just tough because you want to stand out in this competition and just didn't really do that. That. Exactly. But look, she still got 10th place, so not bad. The jury was here for it. Yeah. Yeah. So I'll give it an 8. I gave it a 9. Those camera shakes. The bridge. The bridge. Y'all can ride a bridge out there in Europe. Go off. I'm not going to ride a mean bridge. Mm-hmm.
01:10:07 --> 01:10:36 Up next is Malta with Mirjana Conte singing Serving. Yes, this hits 17th place. And we'd like to note this song had a different title before. Really? It was Cont, which means singing, I believe, or to sing. Oh, okay. Wow. But, you know, they felt because she was serving Cont, and they felt that that maybe wasn't appropriate. So now she's just serving Ah. Yeah.
01:10:36 --> 01:10:47 Honestly, it feels like a drag queen song. You know? Yes. Where it's just kind of like a basic thought, but it's made for performance. That's what this sounds like. And the production sounds kind of cheap and tinny.
01:10:48 --> 01:11:08 Like I could see a drag queen that could dance their ass off, perform the crap out of this song. Yes. Do the dips. The meat for serving dip. You know what I'm saying? Oh my goodness. You know, honestly, when I heard this, I actually heard it on the MP3 first and I thought, oh, I wonder if this person just didn't make it past the regionals.
01:11:08 --> 01:11:33 No, they made it. No offense. I dig her voice. But the song is so basic. Like, the message is sweet. Like, oh, my God, you're serving. Like, be confident. Oh, my gosh. Yay. But, like, come on. It's not well written. It's okay. It's okay. And the verses are cool. Like, you're serving looks, serving body, serving face. Everything's serving except the song. The song is not serving. I didn't like it.
01:11:33 --> 01:11:58 I didn't like it. The staging was fun, though. Fabulous and grand. And at the end, the bouncing on the red ball was great. And the diva not down. Love it. I thought the performance was actually kind of messy. Oh, it was. Wait, you're right. Yeah. I don't think it was serving what they wanted it to serve. I don't know. It was giving messy clothes, though. Like, messy boots.
01:11:59 --> 01:12:25 Yeah, but to me, serving Kant is like, I want something impressive. Like, I want you to make me gasp or, you know, gag me. I may snap my fingers. Right, the little clap, right? Yeah, you're right. Which this didn't really do. Yeah, I don't know. It was campy, but I don't know. Maybe it was her. Sorry. Like, I don't know. Like, maybe I guess she was having fun with it.
01:12:26 --> 01:12:35 But I maybe just needed someone just a bit. I needed a drag queen. Oh, so I think that's what it is. That's all it is. Like, I needed someone just really over the top.
01:12:35 --> 01:12:59 Yeah. You know? Yeah, maybe. I think she just, she needs more time. She needs more time as an artist. And I think the choreography wasn't there. Like, there was no dip there. Someone didn't, you know? Yeah. And the vocals were fine. Yeah. Yeah. Ooh, we're going to just keep going. Diva is down. But what do you rate it? Diva is down. I'm going to give it a seven. I'll go with a seven as well. It's just kind of there. Yeah. Yeah.
01:13:00 --> 01:13:22 Okay, scroll. Moving on to Portugal, we have Napa with Deslocado. And this got 21st. Deslocado. Yes, this is the one with the guys who look like they work as baristas on the side. Right, I remember. Because I was trying to figure out what...
01:13:22 --> 01:13:38 Y'all rewatched the video. You tell me you don't think these guys work at a cafe. The lead singer owns a cafe, but works there when his employees can't come in. The pianist, he's the one who's like doing the books for sure. You know?
01:13:39 --> 01:14:00 So yeah, I feel like this group itself is interesting. This one meld me out. I think I was singing on the couch, listening to it. I was swaying. I think the bass line really got me, you know? Hearing it live as opposed to this record is always so satisfying because obviously you hear it in the mix when you're listening to it, when you're headphones. But then hearing it live, I mean, the bass...
01:14:00 --> 01:14:19 live. It's, you know, it's nice. Is it live, this band? Because like you said, logistically, it's kind of hard to have all these back lines switched out and stuff. But yes, to hear it live is quite nice. Because melodies fill in memories of memories and sunny afternoons turning into cool summer nights, you know?
01:14:19 --> 01:14:41 Right? Yeah, I think about it. It kind of just felt very like, remember that time we were sitting out there until 8pm but the sun was still out? Yeah. But I will say that the song seems to have melodies that need the assistance of Otter Tune because when he sings it live, the owner of the cafe and stop is just not those vocal cords are prof.
01:14:41 --> 01:15:04 Yeah, he sounds so much better on the record, I will say. The song itself has actually grown on me quite a lot. Because, yeah, the kind of soft indie rock thing is nice. Like, the instrumentation and arrangement throughout, it feels sentimental, he said. And, yeah, you can kind of feel that throughout. So it's just kind of like an easy listening kind of situation. But, yeah, for me, it did not land...
01:15:04 --> 01:15:22 live or yeah this performance just did not do anything for me you know we were saying like you want production in eurovision even if you're a band but you can still give me something like the you know even the screens or like nothing interesting was really happening on the screens either oh yeah
01:15:23 --> 01:15:50 Yeah. They had like a random kind of formation where three of them kind of come together and then walk out. But I was like, literally all that happened. And yeah, with the live vocals being kind of pitchy as well, well then, what else is there? Ooh. But then the actual song is actually quite nice. Yeah. So yeah, I guess that because of that juxtaposition, my score is kind of more again in the middle. So I'll go 7.5. Oh, that's so valid. I gave it an A. You know, the coffee shop didn't do do bad. Yeah.
01:15:51 --> 01:16:20 Okay. Next, you have Denmark's C-Cell performing Hallucination. Hallucination! Yeah. And only got to 23rd, unfortunately. Okay. Okay. Here's the thing, right? You close your eyes, the song's giving. Yeah. You watch, the song's giving, but she's not. Okay. Do the song itself first. What do you think? Okay.
01:16:20 --> 01:16:41 Pulsing, you know, synths, vocal effects. Like, where was this going to go? Everywhere, honey. Diva, vocals. What an ideal medium vocal. Like, I will say the song isn't anything groundbreaking, but it is fun and it is good enough for a repeat and a genuine add to a playlist.
01:16:41 --> 01:17:11 Yes. Right? Yes. Also, our PA, George, loved this one as well. He also felt that she has a really powerful voice. That song is a total bop. And he just loves a great, dramatic, fun Eurodance song. And he did tell us that a lot of people actually didn't think she would make it to the final because Denmark hasn't made it in the last few years. So even though she didn't place too high, the fact they got into the final is awesome. So that's good. Yes. I like this song a lot, actually. Yeah, it's not, like, amazing.
01:17:11 --> 01:17:28 But out of all of these, one of the higher playlist contenders, yes, has some interesting buzzy synths in it. And there's like interesting percussion in it, too. And yeah, the hello, that's fun, you know. And yeah, her voice.
01:17:28 --> 01:17:54 Yeah. So stable. Oh my God. I'm jealous. So stable. Yes. Like her performance, the actual performance itself wasn't the best in terms of the staging and stuff, but the vocal, the live vocal was amazing. But the styling. Oh my God. Sorry. I don't normally call in on this cause I know nothing about fashion. As you see, I'm just wearing a black t-shirt and I have like 10 of these in the cloth. Like, I don't know if they wear anything. Interesting.
01:17:55 --> 01:18:12 But it just wasn't very flattering to her. And it's not like she was dancing. So there was no reason for her to be in like this like tight thing, like put her in a gown, like put her in like a big thing. I don't know, like I just she could have just been like, I don't know. It just didn't work.
01:18:12 --> 01:18:27 I still have the same thing, though. Yeah. Oh, my God. The lighting effects and the camera effects were too much for me in the beginning. But I get it. It's like the hallucination concept. So it has that distortion. I thought the lighting was actually okay in the beginning. I feel like once you zoom out, that's when I was like...
01:18:27 --> 01:18:55 Maybe that's what I noticed. I was like, girl, what's going on? It wasn't her fault. I do hate that the bodysuit, like I hate the bodysuit that she was wearing. It was giving Abba Beyonce because like the collar and the sleeves were giving Abba within the bodysuit's crotch was giving Beyonce. And I was like, she could have, like you said, she could have had a pantsuit, like a gown or a gown like a blue in the wind. Like you saw what she was kind of singing and the crescendo and all the curtains. Yeah. That could have been her outfit.
01:18:55 --> 01:19:11 Why is everything around her blowing? And why is she not blowing? She's literally blowing, blowing. When you say someone can blow, stop. When you say someone can blow in singing, that music can sing really well. So I feel like while she's... She's blowing, it's crazy.
01:19:13 --> 01:19:27 I am so sorry. C-Salle, no disrespect. While she's singing and giving her, like, just wind coming out of her lungs, as the wind is flying from the air, her dress should have been winding too. Yeah, also she had a reveal in the meeting that was the most disappointing reveal ever, you know?
01:19:28 --> 01:19:56 That was the, like you said, it was the most disappointing reveal ever. The sleeves coming off ever so slowly. Her switching hands with the microphone. The other sleeve coming off. It was bad. It was so, that was the worst costume change of the year. Literally. I think she needed some aerialists, actually. Oh. Because, you know, with all the curtains and stuff, I was like, give me a light. It's people flying up. Like, I don't know. It just, like, needed something else. Um...
01:19:56 --> 01:20:22 Yeah, it sucks. I really think she was let down by performance. And I guess people just don't tend to support Denmark. They never make it to the final either. But look, you deserve better than 23rd, for sure. Yes, all the jokes aside. Yeah. All the jokes aside, definitely. Yeah, and again, vocally, some of the strongest of the night, for sure. Heck yeah. Yeah. I'll give it an 8. I'll give it... Oh, fuck.
01:20:23 --> 01:20:43 Here's why it's hard, guys. I know your vision because of Lorraine. Lorraine sang and belted her face off. But you know what she did? She moved around, even with tattoos. She was on the ground. She was flying the screen. You don't have to do much to be belting. And her eyes connect, okay? Miss Mams, I was not connecting to this song. So...
01:20:44 --> 01:21:11 I'm an eight sitting on a 7.5 for this. So it depends on the day. I hate the bodysuit. Hey, you're going to have to give me one for it to display. I know. Okay, guys, listen. I'm going to give it a eight. I'll give it a eight. She deserves it. She deserves it. God, pick a better outfit, y'all. Stop playing, people. Okay, moving on to Sweden. We have Kaj with Barabara Bastu. Oh, yes. And this hit fourth.
01:21:12 --> 01:21:39 Did very, very well. What did you think of this song about the Swedish love for saunas? So weird. But this is the good weird that we were talking about, though, right? So this is, I love the beat for this one. It's so bassy and quirky. I like that combo. And the accordion is the star. Look, if you guys have ever watched Bobby Flay, the accordion is the star of your dish. And this is literally the star of the dish.
01:21:39 --> 01:22:07 This is literally the star of the dish. I enjoyed it. I think it was really cute. I feel like all three of these men could sing, which was really nice. And I feel kind of bad for not realizing that Swedish pop songs don't have to be in English. Sorry, Laureen, Max Martin. I think it is rare. To be fair, Sweden normally puts in a pop song. So I think this was different for them to do this. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So again, I do apologize. An English pop song. Yes, yeah.
01:22:07 --> 01:22:16 Thank you. I do apologize for like not being like, oh, God, I don't understand Swedish. I don't care. The harmonies were tight and the song feels empowering and silly all at the same time.
01:22:16 --> 01:22:45 you know yeah i think the chorus is just fun yeah you know like it just it makes you smile a little bit even just listening to it kind of makes you smile with kind of the silliness of it the spoken verses i mean i think it would help if we knew what they were saying because it's probably like fun jokes about like saunas and stuff yeah so and like how good their wood is or something i think i was reading it earlier it's like how good their like wood is to like make an amazing fire to then like you know make an amazing sauna um weirdos
01:22:45 --> 01:23:03 But the staging, it's on the best of the night. Yeah, from the campfire to the building of the sauna. Yes. That little dance routine they do. Honestly, all... And in true Swedish form, because I know they're pop instincts, we got a key change.
01:23:03 --> 01:23:31 Oh my gosh. Yes. Come on, guys. You love the cooked sausages, the wood, the stage. I think everything was kind of cute. Like, they had blueberry cakes building the song. It was really cohesive. Now I'm kind of questioning my score. Okay. I'm giving it an eight. I don't love the song because it's not something I would normally listen to, but it was a highlight of this show. Oof. And we gave the other guy, I gave the other guy a lower score. So for my silly song, I'm going to give this one a 7.5. Okay. Yes. Yes.
01:23:32 --> 01:23:56 We got a couple more left. And right now we have France with Luan singing Mama. Mama. Mama hole. What's up, man, man? I'm so sorry. Oh, so this got seventh place and proportionally mainly due to jury votes, actually. This one. So, yeah, I feel like juries usually made up of more like artists and stuff. So they tend to go for the more artistic songs. So what do you think of this one with the sand? Yeah.
01:23:56 --> 01:24:21 Oh, yes. This is one of those TSA songs I was listening to. Again, I was like listening, not knowing anything, but I knew it was French. So this one was like, okay, I know this one. But then again, there is, who else sang in French? Switzerland. Yeah, there's a few songs in French, I believe. Yes, in this show. But for this one, I was like, okay, okay, I know this is France. Luckily, I was right. So...
01:24:21 --> 01:24:37 It has the romance, the romantic kind of sound, but I did not know what it was actually about. You know what I'm saying? I thought it was a song about leaving a lover. Like, I was, I feel like I was, I was at TSA. I was holding my backpack and I thought I was leaving my lover behind, you know? Uh.
01:24:37 --> 01:24:58 That's not what the song is about. Manon means Mark. Right. Yeah. Right. But again, I was hearing, au revoir, Moncle. You know what I'm saying? Like, it was not that. I think after last year's performance by Suleman, like, this song is not a bad follow-up at all. That song is hoof. That was hoof. It's hard to come up after him. But this is a good, like...
01:24:58 --> 01:25:21 was what successor and the song is so sweet because um apparently it's a tribute to her mother who passed of cancer so yeah she's a beautiful voice and um yeah i feel like everything was very gorgeous uh the lyrics were about her learning lessons about life and such and all these other things i feel like everything was great until she hit the stage
01:25:23 --> 01:25:49 How do you feel about the song? Okay. I like the song itself. Okay. It's very pretty. Like, yeah, you can really hear the emotion in it. It almost sounds like it should be in a musical. Oh. The way it's written. Musical. And yeah, her also. Vocals. Very impressive. Both in the studio and live. Very, very stable. Beautiful tone. Yeah. So yeah. I'm here for it. The song. You didn't like the sand? Yeah.
01:25:50 --> 01:26:19 You know what? I understand the passage of time. I understand like the whole sand. Yeah. Hourglass situation. Oh my God. Girl, girl, girl. People, what the heck was this? The litter box. The exploding litter box. That was so frustrating to Wad. Because what ended up happening was that the litter box was exploding.
01:26:20 --> 01:26:45 The sand spray was not it. I don't get it. I get the concept of lovers from bed to bed to no more lovers and no more bed. I get that. But oh my God, why was there sand flying? What lovers? In the lyrics. Oh, okay. It was like, oh, lovers from bed to bed to no more lovers. Like, oh, the whole concept of being, you know, like, it's about time passing. I get it. I get it. But using the sand as like the explosive...
01:26:46 --> 01:26:59 you know, a special effect. Yeah. What? Yeah, the weird farting moment was not the way. Oh my god. I'm sharting. Oh my god.
01:27:01 --> 01:27:18 Because the puffs of air mixed with the exploding fan behind her really didn't make any sense during the bridge. But, okay, even with the rest of it, though, with it kind of just falling down and putting her hand in it. So, first off, we were reading, thanks to my friend Michael, who was telling me about this, because we were talking about this as well. So, it was, I guess...
01:27:18 --> 01:27:44 small cork pieces actually so it wasn't sand so they were actually more like they're much harder actually bigger um and she would say that like a lot of it would get in her mouth like throughout because it's literally she's like it's falling on top of her and like like off of her and it's just like going everywhere and she has to just like spit it out like in between like moments with the cameras on her i guess um which is wild that they would do that to her first off just as a singer first off
01:27:45 --> 01:28:01 Oh my god, production's crazy. In terms of, like, it did get really beautiful when it started kind of, like, turning into a twister, I thought. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And, like, her laying in it, I think is fine. But, yeah, the exploding air moment in the bridge is...
01:28:01 --> 01:28:21 That was wild. That was a very odd choice. And we found an article where they were talking about it very proudly, how it was like a special machine that they made just for her. Uh-uh. No, this is not the time to sit there and test something out. A song about her mother. Leaving on a higher note, I love that her daughter's voice is at the end of the song. I almost started, oh, yeah, beautiful.
01:28:21 --> 01:28:38 I was like, oh, let me get insensitive. Yeah. I do think the song itself is very good still. And I was entertained, you know, while I was, you know, I had fun talking about the puff of air happening. The loudness. So yeah, I'll give it an 8.5. I'm going to give it...
01:28:38 --> 01:28:55 A Okay A little letterbox Moving on to San Marino We have Gabri Ponte Ponte? Yeah Ponte Yeah Gabri Ponte With Tutta Vitaria And this got Last place Of the final Got 26th place Sorry Yeah
01:28:55 --> 01:29:09 Jesus. Okay, so this is generic. This is generic. This is generic. Hey. This is so generic. If you didn't realize, I was just dryly trying to make up his melody of his freaking song because that's what the...
01:29:09 --> 01:29:37 That's what that was. I remember listening to this and praying for it to end because I thought, oh my God, this is this year's song, Get Me Out of Here. This was not that, this was like, it wasn't good. Like, it, oh God. Yeah, I feel like they could have had a vocalist, you know? Like, but these guys are singing all in unison. There was no one going, Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
01:29:38 --> 01:29:59 Right? Better song already. Yeah, actually. Yeah. Yeah. Actually, it's straight. It's straight. That was very old school rock of me, but it would have given it something personality-wise, because otherwise it just sounds like crap. Honestly, honestly, another thing was good about this. They said David chewing the gum, but even that made me uncomfortable. The statue of David. He's in there like...
01:29:59 --> 01:30:25 I always like, get me out of here. Yeah, I mean, the whole production does feel a little stereotypical, right? Like Euro kind of EDM. It did have an accordion, you know, which I thought was interesting. I mean, you can feel the country pride in this a little bit, which I'm not mad at for Eurovision. Like, I appreciate when they show their country pride or try to show off their sounds or whatever. Yeah.
01:30:25 --> 01:30:46 Yeah, this song itself is not for me. And the staging, I mean, it just felt like an EDM show. Oof. You know, to have the DJ kind of just doing nothing, sing a button, and you have these two just kind of like masked men that can't really sing. Just kind of shouting along. I don't know. Nothing really happens in it. Yeah.
01:30:47 --> 01:31:16 you know what? I'm going to just put it out there again. If you guys want to make a song like this for Eurovision, I'm down. If this is what you can make on Eurovision, let's do it. You and me. Shoot. CCTV. Let's go. Okay. Five. Ooh. Okay. I'll give it a five also. Yeah. Okay. We're at our final performance. We have Albania with Chodra Electronique. I believe. Electronique. Or electronique. Electronique.
01:31:17 --> 01:31:44 And the song is... Okay, I hope that's correct. Let us know. Okay, this got eighth place, proportionately mainly due to public votes. And this is actually one of my favorite ones when I was listening to it. Even though I didn't really understand the man's voice, it made a little more sense when we watched it live. Because I just, I don't know, I didn't realize they were a duo, you know? I was like, oh, he's like part of it.
01:31:44 --> 01:32:10 But I think as a song, it's actually quite cool. You can hear the traditional instruments in it. There's a drama to it. There's an intensity to it. Something very epic about it. And yeah, there's like... It's not tribal, but it's like... It sounds like something like Esmeralda. Oh, give us two. Tambourine the skirt. Yes. Yes. And also, this singer, she sounds so good. She has a beautiful tone. And I love the kind of...
01:32:11 --> 01:32:39 I don't know. There's like a... I don't know how to explain it. Like, there's just the way she kind of connects each note and kind of transitions things. It's just, like, very cool. Fluidity. Yes. That's what this is. And then there are strings, too, which are really pretty. And then you do have kind of these, like, EDM kind of, like, elements to it with that, like, drum pad situation. What drum? We mentioned Just Think of One Me before. Watching the performance, he reminded me of actual groove. Oh, wow.
01:32:39 --> 01:33:08 Yeah, from Despicable Me. Because he's just, like, standing there very intensely with a mic stand. You, like, get the side profile. And I don't know. He doesn't have a weird nose. He doesn't. He doesn't. His nose is on the mic. His nose is on the mic. And I still don't fully get his part. But, I mean, I guess it gives you something. You know, it keeps you interested. You know? You know what? I, um...
01:33:08 --> 01:33:32 Yeah, it's so funny that this is what you meant by the despicable me, because I can see it. He cuts the shanaas. So I love the stomp clap moment of it all. But yes, it does feel very like, you know, tambourine in the skirt around a fire in the fair. And, you know, Quasimodo's like, oh, who's that girl with the skin and the emerald eyes? You know, it was giving. Yeah.
01:33:32 --> 01:33:54 The chest voice. Her chest voice is great. And then the head voice. So like you said, all that fluidity. This right here, I get it now. Because I have it in my notes. I agree as well. I think the splash of the chorus makes me feel so much more impactful. The instrumentation of this music is probably one of my favorites of the show. But yeah, the bassy voice, Grooman.
01:33:54 --> 01:34:16 with his soul drumstick is hysterical. He was giving Vincent Price. You know Vincent Price, like the deep voice man that's in Thriller? That's Vincent Price. That's what this was giving. Or like there is an EDM song. I can't, oh my God, where a guy kind of comes on the radio and comes on the microphone. He's like, yeah. Yeah.
01:34:16 --> 01:34:40 And the woman singing her little voice out. So this has very like EDM dance, old school dance like elements to it. So I appreciate that. She took the song home in the final moments of the song. Oh, yeah. I do. She had dancers, though, for her little dance break. Oh, where some other woman came out to like do that with her. Yes. That's a little. Yeah. Attempt at voguing. Yeah. But the kind of like X and kind of like the weird kind of like structures on the stage. I mean, it was interesting. Was it?
01:34:41 --> 01:35:01 It's more than what some other people were giving. I'd take that over that rock, you know? The booger on the nine over the rock. Yes, the booger. Yeah, so I used one to nine. This one was a highlight for me on the show. Yes, me too, nine. Oh. Okay, so that ends Eurovision 2025. So overall thoughts, what did you think of this year's show? Do you agree with the winner?
01:35:02 --> 01:35:26 Oh, my excitement for a lot of other people kind of seems like, I don't know. But like, as I'm thinking about it, I get it. The ballad was balloting. Upbeat songs this year weren't terrible, but I think they all had a similar element to each other. I think JJ winning his stood out because no one was really doing the opera thing. We had EDM here and there.
01:35:26 --> 01:35:47 He had some classical elements here and there. But to combine the two was interesting. His look, his aesthetic, which is what we're all critiquing at this moment, also matters. So I think all those factors, all those elements do play a factor into why he won. Is he talented? Yes. Was the ship thing kind of striking? No. But is the song good? No.
01:35:47 --> 01:36:08 Yes. That he hit his notes. Yes. Most of them. When he wasn't fighting the air with his elbow. You know what I'm saying? But aside from all my little jokes here and there, he has a lot of the elements that we were talking about. The connect, the connectivity, the engagement, the movement, the stage production, the vocals.
01:36:09 --> 01:36:28 Oh, yes. And he's very unique looking. So, yeah, it all plays a part. Yeah, I mean, the song is epic. Yeah. Like, it's very memorable, the kind of opera thing. And the fact that he's a man and kind of hit all his nose is absolutely insane. So, yeah, I think it's a worthy winner for sure. I think when I look down the list, it's like, I get it.
01:36:28 --> 01:36:50 You know, if you look at kind of the top three, right, it was it was him, Israel, and then the espresso macchiato song. And the Swedes were up there, too, at number four. You know, so I feel like you just look at that top. I mean, I for sure give it to JJ out of all those. Yeah. But yeah, I thought the show itself was very entertaining.
01:36:50 --> 01:37:07 I think most of the performances were really fun and entertaining, but the songs themselves were only okay overall. Like, I don't think I'm going to save any of these. I'm going to be honest. Hallucination was maybe the closest, but even then, I have to know there are better songs in that area.
01:37:07 --> 01:37:29 genre yeah so yeah i would say yeah i i think like i said the most interesting one sonic leads me was ukraine so i will give that one a shout out and i wouldn't mind listening to that every once in a while yeah uh and latvia the the wood nymphs the sirens they deserved at least top 10
01:37:30 --> 01:37:57 you know what? I can, okay, I agree with that. And I also agree with your sentiment in terms of like, it doesn't mean people are not talented, but last year was just something different. Like we had Bambi Thug last year from Ireland. There was this other, oh my God, there's another, no European band, but there's another band whose name we could not pronounce. But there, it was a woman and a guy and their whole dynamic was like this old epic rock opera situation. They were really, I can't remember their names. But I feel like this year and even last year's winner,
01:37:57 --> 01:38:22 was someone of the LGBTQ community. So, and the song was like really good too. Oh, that song was great. You know what I'm saying? But the competition was really fierce last year. So many different things. With this year, I feel like a lot of the songs were a lot more similar. Like in terms of, this is a quiet moment. I'm going to belt my face off. And Or it was like, this is a beat. This is a beat. I'm going to belt my face off.
01:38:22 --> 01:38:41 I'm just trying to figure out where the specialness came. And I think it just came with moments like the last performance with her red outfit and just the deep voice, man, you needed to have something very special. Like Windows 95, man, last year was weird as heck. Yeah, you've mentioned him quite a lot. You missed him this year. Yeah.
01:38:42 --> 01:39:11 But you guys have my point though, right? That's how dynamic it is. I can't say I'll remember every single person in this list this year. Yeah. You know? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And that's the thing. Talented, absolutely. I definitely need to take lessons from a lot of these people because they can sing their faces all. But also, what made them special? I don't know. Because everyone's talented here. I'll say when I've gotten it. Well, not everyone. Those little kids need to go back to the drawing board and tell their mommy to get them lessons. But everyone else, great job.
01:39:13 --> 01:39:35 Okay, well, this has been Americans reacting to the Eurovision 2025. Let us know what we missed. Let us know what we got right, what we did not get right, what we mispronounced. Oh, sorry. And yeah, let us know what you think should have won. What other highlights were there for you in this show? Yes. Yeah.
01:39:35 --> 01:39:56 So we are available on all platforms. Make sure to comment below. DM us at CCTV Pops. And follow us because we have a lot of cool episodes about global pop music. And a lot of fun topics coming up too. Do we? Yeah. So until next time, that's Chantel. That's Chris. And we're signing off from CCTV, the nonstop pop show.