eurovision

Playlist of the month: British Eurovision hits

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Screenshot of the British Eurovision hits playlist

Tonight is the final of this year’s Eurovision song contest, so we’ll see how well this year’s British entry, “What The Hell Just Happened?” by Remember Monday gets on. You can read my verdicts on this and some of the other entries on Tuesday’s post.

Last May, the theme was my favourite all-time Eurovision songs, and so this May I’m focussing just on those that have represented the United Kingdom. As usual, you can listen along on Spotify.

  • “Love City Groove” by Love City Groove (1995). Yes, the song and the band have the same name. This was the first time that the UK entry featured rap. Though the band have released two albums, their other songs haven’t been played enough on Spotify to even show the number of streams.
  • “Ooh ahh… Just A Little Bit” by Gina G (1996). I’m pretty sure that this is the most well-known of all of the songs on here as it had a good life outside of Eurovision too. The opening bars are like a klaxon for summoning people to the dance floor.
  • “Love Shine a Light” by Katrina and the Waves (1997). A year later, and the UK won – indeed, this was the last time the UK won. Katrina and the Waves are of course better known for Walking on Sunshine.
  • “Where Are You?” by Imaani (1998). The UK hosted Eurovision in 1998, following our win in 1997, and this was a good song. The rest of Europe mostly agreed, and it came second to Diva by Dana International.
  • “Say It Again” by Precious (1999). Precious were a girl band, and this is classic pop. It came fifth, and whilst Precious did an album, they didn’t last much longer. Former member Jenny Frost found further fame when she replaced Kerry Katona as a member of Atomic Kitten, and later as a TV presenter.
  • “Flying the Flag (For You)” by Scooch (2007). I’ve missed a few years as these were mostly forgettable, but the band Scooch re-formed for this one off song. Again, it’s pure pop, and came with a great performance based on the band as flight attendants, but it didn’t score highly with our European neighbours.
  • “It’s My Time” by Jade Ewen (2009). A string of disappointing Eurovision results left the UK with no choice but to unleash its secret weapon: Andrew Lloyd Webber, who co-wrote the song. It mostly paid off, ranking fifth and the UK’s best result for seven years. Jade Ewen would join the Sugababes later the same year, replacing the final original member Keisha and completing their Ship of Theseus transformation.
  • “Children of the Universe” by Molly Smitten-Downes (2014). 2009 turned out to be a blip with more disappointing results to follow. This came 17th but deserved to do better. Molly was better known as being part of Stunt, who collaborated with Sash! for Raindrops (Encore une Fois) in 2008.
  • “Still in Love with You” by Electro Velvet (2015). I like a bit of electro swing, and whilst it wasn’t the best song, I have a soft spot for this. There’s a fun mash-up with the Bird’s Eye Potato Waffles tune. Alas, it came joint last in Eurovision that year.
  • “Space Man” by Sam Ryder (2022). And finally, our last big success in 2022. Whilst Ukraine won that year, we managed to come second, and hosted the 2023 contest in Liverpool due to the ongoing conflict.

Eurovision 2025 – my verdicts

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Screenshot of the Eurovision Song Contest home page for this year's contest in Basel, Switzerland

This week, it’s the 69th (nice) Eurovision Song Contest, which is being hosted in Switzerland following Nemo’s win last year. As per last year, I’ve listened to all of the 37 songs that will be entered into the semi-finals this week, and this Saturday’s final, and here are my verdicts. If you want to listen yourself, here’s the official playlist on Spotify.

Douze points

  • “C’est La Vie” by Claude (Luxembourg). Claude has a nice voice, like a Francophone John Legend.
  • “Esa Diva” by Melody (Spain). This is exactly the sort of song you would expect Spain to enter – a big latin-themed dance track.
  • “Gaja” by Justyna Steczkowska (Poland). Poland doesn’t have a strong record with Eurovision, apart from its memorable 2014 entry with “We Are Slavik” by Cleo, but I think this is good.
  • “Hallucination” by Sissal (Denmark). I think this is one of my top picks, actually. Some great lyrics and a strong voice.
  • “Laika Party” by Emmy (Ireland). I really like this one too. It’s also mildly controversial (by Eurovision standards of controversy) as Emmy is Norwegian, and indeed has tried multiple times to be Norway’s pick for Eurovision. As one of the song’s writers was Irish, she was eligible to perform for Ireland. I like how the lyrics are based on the true story of Laika the dog, the first earth animal to go into space.
  • “Mila” by Princ (Serbia). I don’t think this will win but I enjoyed listening to it nonetheless.
  • “Milkshake Man” by Go-Jo (Australia). Australia participating in Eurovision is just something that’s not worth thinking too hard about. Eurovision always needs at least one novelty act and thankfully this one is catchy.
  • “Róa” by Væb (Iceland). Iceland probably would have won the 2020 contest if it had gone ahead. This is good too.
  • “Run with U” by Mamaga (Azerbaijan). Azerbaijan hosted Eurovision in 2012 and often does well. This year’s entry is catchy pop and I think it could score well.
  • “Serving” by Miriana Conte (Malta). I liked Malta’s 2021 entry, “Je Me Casse” by Destiny, and it came seventh that year. This is in a similar vein, although the song had to be re-recorded as the original chorus was about ‘serving kant’.
  • “Tutta l’Italia” by Gabri Ponte (San Marino). You may have heard of Gabri Ponte – he’s quite big in the Eurodance scene at the moment – but you’ll almost certainly remember his previous band, Eiffel 65, and their 1998/99 song “Blue (Da Ba Dee)”. He’s back, with this song in Italian. Potentially one to watch, although previous established dance acts like Darude and Cascada haven’t always done well at Eurovision.

Nul points

  • “Deslocado” by Napa (Portugal). Nope, found this really boring.
  • “Tavo akys” by Katarsis (Lithuania). I can’t even remember why this song was bad, which probably says a lot.
  • “Volevo essere un duro” by Lucio Corsi (Italy). There are two other songs being sung in Italian in this year’s Eurovision (San Marino, mentioned above, and Estonia for some reason) and this isn’t the best one.

The UK Eurovision entry

Last year, we were represented by Olly Alexander from Years & Years with “Dizzy”. I think it was an okay song, but I gather the performance on the night wasn’t well-received. It came 18th out of 25 songs, and scored the dreaded ‘nul points’ from the public vote, gaining points only from professional juries.

This year’s entry is “What The Hell Just Happened?” by Remember Monday, and it’s an upbeat country-themed pop song. I think it certainly stands out against a lot of Eurodance. I don’t think it’ll win, but a top 10 position would be well-deserved.

Looking back at last year’s top 5, two of my top picks were in there. But I also liked the Norwegian entry which came last. Of those that I disliked, Joost’s “Europapa” was disqualified after some backstage shenanigans, but the Israeli and Irish entries came 5th and 6th.

Playlist of the month: Electro Swing

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A screenshot of my electro swing playlist on Spotify

We’re getting to the end of the January, so it’s time for another playlist of the month. This month I’m focussing on one specific niche genre: electro swing. Imagine swing and jazz music, but overlaid with a modern dance beat. It’s fun music and easy to dance to. Here’s a 10 track sampler playlist – as usual, you can listen along on Spotify.

  • “Inspector Gadget” by Madam Misfit. I had to get a Madam Misfit track in somewhere, as she’s one of my favourite artists. Alas, she’s not at this year’s Sci-Fi Weekender as it clashes with a Steampunk festival in America. This song covers the theme tune to the Inspector Gadget TV series, with additional verses written by Ms Misfit.
  • “Horny” by Pisk. This is a cover of the late 1990s song by Mousse T vs Hot ‘n’ Juicy (“I sent a message through the internet but it rejected).
  • “Still In Love With You” by Electro Velvet. Probably the most commercially successful electro swing song, on account of it being the 2015 UK Eurovision entry. Alas, the rest of Europe weren’t so keen, and it scored 5 points overall and we came 24th out of 27 countries.
  • “Take A Chance” by Odd Chap featuring Sarah Myers. Odd Chap is one of the most well-known artists in the electro swing subculture, and this song features songs by Sarah Myers who is actually Madam Misfit in another guise.
  • “Headless Horseman” by Kid Kasino. Halloween themed songs seem to be a big thing in electro swing, so whilst it may be January and October, it would be remiss for me not to include this.
  • “Black Betty” by Caravan Palace. Yes, it’s an electro swing cover of the Ram Jam classic.
  • “Hit and Run” by The Electric Swing Circus
  • “Dizzy” by Balduin
  • “Midnight” by Swingrowers
  • “Chaos Parade” by Riff Kitchen

Playlist of the month: Eurovision hits

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Unlike last month, I’m actually publishing this month’s playlist mid-month. And seeing as it’s Eurovision week, these are all my favourite hits from previous Eurovision years. My verdicts on this year’s songs are here.

You can listen along to this playlist on Spotify if you wish.

  • “Dancing Lasha Tumbai” by Verka Serduchka. A memorable performance from Ukraine in 2007. Allegedly ‘Lasha Tumbai’ was changed from ‘Russia goodbye’, as Eurovision tries to be non-political (but invariably is). It came second, losing to Serbia. It’s one of those very silly songs that epitomises Eurovision.
  • “Euphoria” by Loreen. Currently holds the record for most votes for any song performed in a Eurovision final and rightly a winner for Sweden in 2012. Loreen went on to win Eurovision again for Sweden last year, although I’m not so keen on her 2023 song “Tattoo”.
  • “Ooh ahh… Just A Little Bit” by Gina G. The British entry from 1996, and an absolute gay anthem. It didn’t win, although it came seventh which is pretty good compared to recent British Eurovision performances (2022 excepted). Gina G is actually Australian, and now Australia competes in Eurovision. Please don’t think too hard about the geographical implications of this.
  • “Satellite” by Lena. A fun little song which won for Germany in 2010. Lena would represent Germany again in 2011 but wasn’t as successful.
  • “Je Me Casse” by Destiny. The Maltese entry in 2021. A friend described this as Lizzo meets Mr Saxobeat (an Alexandra Stan song) and I agree, but it works. It came seventh. 2021 was an unusual event as it was the first show since 2019 and had a significantly smaller audience. Also, four countries (including the UK) got nul points that year.
  • “Only Teardrops” by Emmelie de Forest. This was the 2013 winner for Denmark.
  • “Thing About Things” by Daði Freyr. The probable winner for the contest that never was. This was Iceland’s entry for the 2020 contest that was cancelled due to you know what. Daði Freyr came back with a new song for 2021 but didn’t win.
  • “Diva” by Dana International. This won in 1998 in Birmingham, following Britain’s most recent win in 1997. Dana International was the first openly transgender Eurovision contestant and won with a great song.
  • “Toy” by Netta. Israel’s win in 1998 was followed by another win 20 years later, with this unusual but catchy song.
  • “Glorious” by Cascada. Whilst Cascada’s lead singer is British, this was the German entry for 2013. It didn’t do so well, coming 21st overall.

Eurovision 2024 – my verdicts

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An AI-generated image of a performer at Eurovision waving a Swedish flag

It’s Eurovision time again! It’s in Sweden again this year, after Loreen chalked up her second victory last year. The first semi-final was last night, and the second semi-final is tomorrow, with the main event on Saturday.

Watching the Eurovision finals used to be a big thing for us, and we would either go to friends’ houses for a Eurovision watching party or host our own in previous years. However, with an eight-year-old to get to bed, it’s not proved practical in recent years. Still, I’ve listened to all 37 entries on Spotify, and here are my highlights and lowlights:

Douze points

  • “The Code” by Nemo (Switzerland). Heartfelt lyrics by the singer about coming to terms with their non-binary identity.
  • “No Rules” by Windows95Man (Finland). This was the first song that I heard, due to its video going moderately viral on social media a few weeks ago. Very much a novelty song, but catchy.
  • “Rim Tim Tagi Dim” by Baby Lasagna (Croatia). A thumping beat drives this song.
  • “We Will Rave” by Kaleen (Austria). Feels like 1990s Eurodance, but in a good way.
  • “Always on the run” by ISAAK (Germany). A good voice; Germany came last in 2023 (they should have chosen Patty Gurdy) and this is a much stronger entry.
  • “Unforgettable” by Marcus & Martinus (Sweden). Not as strong as some of Sweden’s previous entries but a good performance on Saturday could see Sweden hosting two years in a row.
  • “Liar” by Silia Kapsis (Cyprus). This was ranked top in last night’s first semi final, and rightly so. Silia is only 17 too.
  • “SAND” by SABA (Denmark).
  • “Loop” by Sarah Bonnici (Malta). Malta have put entered some good songs over the years but never seem to win, which is a shame. This is a good one.
  • “Ulveham” by Gåte (Norway). I like this one. It won’t win because songs that aren’t in English rarely do well.
  • “11:11” by Megara (San Marino). As above, unlikely to win but this is a pretty storming song.

Nul points

  • “Europapa” by Joost (Netherlands). Like Austria’s entry, sounds like 1990s Eurodance but not in a good way. More suited to kids birthday parties.
  • “Doomsday Blue” by Bambie Thug (Ireland). This just sounds like a lot of noise and unnecessary shouting to me, but it made it through last night’s semi final.
  • “Hurricane” by Eden Golan (Israel). This is a by-the-numbers Eurovision entry that will probably not get through the semi-finals because of who the host country is. I’m surprised Israel was permitted to take part this year, as Russia and Belarus have been banned for the past three years.

The UK Eurovision entry

This year, the UK will be represented by Olly Alexander from Years & Years with “Dizzy”. It’s not bad; I don’t think it’s the best song, but often success is determined by the quality of the performance on the night.

The UK has had mixed success in recent Eurovision competitions; Sam Ryder’s “Spaceman” came second in 2022, leading us to host last year through Clearing as Ukraine (the actual winners) couldn’t host, due to being invaded by Russia, another Eurovision country. However, last year, Mae Muller’s “I Wrote A Song” didn’t achieve the same success and came second from bottom. Which was a shame as I felt it deserved to do better.

It would be nice if the UK could repeat its 2022 success, but I don’t think it’ll be our year.

Patty Gurdy

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I’ve been getting a little obsessed with the song Melodies of Hope by Patty Gurdy. Imagine folk-pop music, but instead of a guitar solo, there’s the sound of a Hurdy-Gurdy instead.

I’ve only recently come across Patty Gurdy, through her recent collaboration with Alestorm on their recent single Voyage of the Dead Marauder – which is excellent by the way, and a real return to form. She’s apparently quite big on TikTok, although I’ve decided that I’m too old for TikTok which is why I haven’t heard of her until now.

If Melodies of Hope sounds like it would make a really good Eurovision entry, that’s because it was a finalist for Germany’s entry for 2023. Had Patty Gurdy won, she would have represented her native Germany in the Eurovision finals in Liverpool last year, but her song wasn’t selected. A shame, because I expect it would have done really well. As it was, Germany went for Blood and Glitter by Lord of the Lost, and came last.

I also think it’s worth noting that she isn’t signed to a record label, and all her music is self-released. You can sort of tell, as the production values for her music videos are basic. But when her music is this-good, this is merely nitpicking.

Besides listening on Spotify and buying her music at the usual places like iTunes, you can support her on Patreon.

Eurovision Eve

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Tomorrow night is the annual Eurovision Song Contest, a pan-European music competition where each of the nations of Europe can put forward a musician or band and hope to win the chance to host the following year’s contest. Last year’s winning act, Emmelie de Forest, was from Denmark, so this year’s competition will be broadcast from Copenhagen.

In Britain the main focus is always the ‘final’ on the Saturday night, but there have been two semi-finals this week. They’re broadcast here on under-threat TV channel BBC Three, and I bet a lot of Brits don’t even know about them. I think this because the semi-finals don’t matter to us Brits –  Britain is one of the largest contributors to the European Broadcast Union, the producers of Eurovision, and it means that British acts automatically qualify for the final. This is along with those acts from France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Consequently the semi-finals are not a big deal here, and are mostly watched by those more fanatical about Eurovision.

For most of the past few years, we’ve been to Eurovision parties, where we watch the final as a group, usually with ample amounts of alcohol. This started sometime around 2007, when one of our friends was an international student from Canada – we tried to convince her that Eurovision was a major cultural event. I think she believed us right up until the show started, when she realised it was just a massive camp-fest. Which it is, but that’s one reason why I like it so much. Another other big reason is getting to laugh at the various novelty acts that invariably make it through to the finals, and then get increasingly frustrated at the end when none of our European neighbours decide to vote for the UK entry. And there’s the commentary provided by Graham Norton throughout the night.

This year, we’re hosting a Eurovision party ourselves for the first time. Not a big one, and most of the people who are coming are the same ones that we watch Eurovision with every year. It’s probably the last chance we’ll have to host a Eurovision party in our current flat, as hopefully by this time next year we’ll have bought a new house.

The UK never does particularly well in Eurovision and we’ve not won since the 1990s, but we still enter every year. Despite putting up reasonably well-known acts, such as Blue, Engelbert Humperdinck and Bonnie Tyler, we haven’t placed inside the top 10 since 2009.

In the past there has been a public vote to choose the act that we sent to Eurovision – usually called A Song for Europe – but since 2011 the decision has been made by the BBC. This year’s act is ‘Molly’ with her song ‘Children of the Universe‘ – it’s not really my kind of song but hopefully it’ll do well. Molly, incidentally, is not using her full name of ‘Molly Smitten-Downes’ in the competition.

Political events often affect the results, and it will be interesting to see what effect the recent issues in the Crimea have on Ukraine and Russia’s rankings. It may also reflect Britain’s historically poor performance, as the rest of the Europe hates us apparently. The current rise of the UK Independence Party may indicate that the feeling is mutual. I wonder what UKIP’s policy is on Eurovision?