2013: An Overview
"WE ARE ONE" IN MALMÖ, SWEDEN
Sweden last hosted Eurovision in 2000. The country had its fifth win, tying with the United Kingdom for second most wins, both two behind Ireland's seven wins. Sweden was one of the few countries that could actually afford the contest and they proved it to Europe by out-doing the show hosted the year before in Azerbaijan! The Swedes wanted to show the world why they are the land of Pop.
The semi-final openings were awe inspiring. The first semi-final began with an impressive children's choir singing the winning song from last year, before Loreen, last year's winner, appeared and joined them to finish the song. These were very talented children who sang brilliantly while performing the lyrics of the song in sign language. The next day's opening was just as impressive, featuring different interpretations of the Eurovision theme song.
The Swedish show was the first time I had watched a Eurovision with only one host. She was all they needed, as she was witty, professional and very likeable. Petra Mede was really the best host yet. She easily presided over the two semis alone with humor and knowledge. Her English was some of the easiest to understand. I enjoyed every time she made an appearance in between songs. She oozed talent and more of her skill's would be seen later.
I'm already a fan of Swedish music and at the time I had a radio show where I exclusively played Nordic, Baltic and Russian music. I was very excited about these intervals. The first semi-final featured a song by Kleerup, probably best known for writing and producing Robyn's "Every Heartbeat." The next semi-final featured two of Sweden's biggest stars. Agnes had won the 2005 season of the very successful Swedish Idol season. Her career has been massive in Sweden and her single "Release Me" was included in a mash-up on the "Pitch Perfect" soundtrack. Darin had participated in the very first Swedish Idol show. He came second but has had a massive career in Sweden. Their combined performance looked more like a Super Bowl Halftime show then a Eurovision Interval act.
This year the Swedes did something very special, and presented a very humorous take on Eurovision history. Confusingly incorporating American imagery and superimposing the host Petra Mede into famous Eurovision performances, these clever shorts came in three parts. The first two appeared during the semi-finals while voting was taking place. For those unfamiliar with the past of the show, they aren't really the most accurate account of the real Eurovision history but they're at least a funny take on the contest's past.
The show in Sweden began with a clever concept. It started with a film depicting a caterpillar travelling Europe before settling and creating a cocoon just outside the Öresund Bridge that connects Copenhagen to Malmö. Eventually a butterfly emerges and flies across the straight to Sweden. The butterfly theme is also found in the postcards, showing the butterfly in the upcoming entry's colors travelling to their country and then showing the competitor enjoying their home land. The 2012 contest included everything you'd want from Eurovision. Honest and sincere performances, mixed with cheesy pop songs and over the top and, sometimes, indescribable performers.
I became a big fan of the previous year's winner Loreen. I found out she had previously tried to get into Eurovision with a different song that was also very good and she eventually released a killer album. So when the Swedish final came around, I was expecting something big from Loreen. She delivered, with a medley of her singles and her two Swedish national entries including her winner "Euphoria." Then, after televoting window was over Petra Mede returned to show just how talented she was with a spectacle about Sweden. The song and dance routine included jokes about IKEA, ABBA, and meatballs. It was brilliantly comedic and Petra does a fantastic job.
Before the countries we're able to present their votes, Sweden took one more chance to show off. One of Sweden's most popular singers, the British-American Sarah Dawn Finer (she grew up in Sweden) took to the stage to sing ABBA's chart topper "The Winner Takes It All." When she was done, we finally get to the votes. Even though at first it doesn't seem like there's a clear winner by the douze points, eventually Denmark takes a commanding lead. For the first time they stop the voting when it's clear that Denmark had won and announce the winner. While they set up the stage and allow the winner to get to the stage, they continue the rest of the voting till the rest of the results are revealed. Of course, they change nothing. The contest would return across the Öresund the next year to Copenhagen.
The Picks of 2013
2013: The Best (The Netherlands)
2013: The Worst (Latvia)
2013: The Guilty (Germany)
2013: The Weird (Montenegro)
2013: The Hilarious (Romania)
2013: The Honorable (Hungary)
2013: The Winner (Denmark)
Semi-Final One Song Recap May 14, 2013:
Semi-Final Two Song Recap May 16, 2013:
Grand Final Song Recap May 18, 2013: