Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

  There was a saying that hell will freeze over before Finland wins Eurovision but then came the monsters from hell and stormed to record breaking victory that night exactly 20 years ago in Athens.... And even cows did fly! (At least I saw a cow balloon the day after hanging in a three infront of my window anyways....) I remember being at home alone, as I always do watch Eurovision alone and as I was a lot more inside in the bubble back then I had had my spies in Athens telling me Finland had won the semi-final. So expectations were high and all along I had said since Lordi won the national final that they would either win or be a total flop. After the Swedish vote I remember my excitement turned into calmness: We will win. And oh boy did we win! The Finnish commentators Jaana Pelkonen and Heikki Paasonen with Asko Murtomäki lost it completely somewhere around the third 12 points. You can watch the voting here , starting around 2h10) 8 points from Slovenia..... (We got first point...

Two ESC legends, two classics, one project: Logan and Lordi in the studio to record their respective songs. The Irish singer and three-time Eurovision winner Johnny Logan an the Finnish hard rock artist Lordi, winner of the Eurovision Son Contest 2006, have realized a joint project in which both reinterpreted the other’s Eurovision winning song. Logan recorded a pop-rock version of Hard Rock Hallelujah, while Lordi, together with singer  Noora Louhimo aka Motherbeast, produced a new metal-ballad version of Hold Me Now.  "The idea emerged during a spontaneous phone call. We immediately hit it off", says Logan. "The original idea of a duet for 20th. Anniversary of Lordi’s ESC victory was quickly discarded in favour of a song sway. When I heard Lordi’s demo of their winning song tailored to me, I knew right away that I wanted  to do it." Both songs will be out tomorrow May 15, 2026. So, as it seems Johnny Logan was invited to Vienna Eurovision but declined the invitati...

Finland's Yle is once again broadcasting a lot of Eurovision related things and most remarkable we get to celebrate both Lordi's win and homecoming concert in 2006 again as well as the Eurovision song contest 2007 in Finland in Yle's channels. Is it an omen for 2026 win? Saturday May 9: Lordi's Market Square massacre aka homecoming concert (Yle tv1 15.20-16.50).  This was an Event : Helsinki city center was so crowded with over 80.000 people that they urged in tv people to stay home already hours before as they couldn't get anywhere near where they could see the stage anymore..... President Tarja Halonen was present, too. Quite a spectacle to watch if you haven't seen it yet! In Yle Areena online you can watch the before mentioned Eurovision song contests 2006 and 2007.  Sunday May 10 : Turquoise carpet live on Yle Areena (17.55-20.10) Tuesday May 12 : There's a pre-how before the semi-final (Yle tv1 21.30-22.00)  hosted by Jasmin Beloued         ...

Jaana Pelkonen retuns to Eurovision bubble being the Finnish spokesperson 2026 nicely after 20 years when she was commenting the 2006 edition won by Lordi with Heikki Paasonen, and then hosting the show in Helsinki 2007 with Mikko Leppilampi.  But not only. She has hosted the Finnish national selection seven times, and has been the Finnish commentator also in 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2010.  After the national final in 2011 she left the bubble and went to the parliament instead after being selected in 2011 and again in 2015 when she was the 5th most voted MP in the whole country. After two rounds she stepped out of politics and returned to show biz in 2020.  Maybe, just maybe she'll repeat the magic..... 

The Käärijä hype in Finland is real. The past week everything has turned green and most every company and business is showing support in most imaginative ways from big companies to small businesses, private and public and I have to admit I have never ever witnessed such a support and hype for anything or anyone, not even ice-hockey world champs and that tells it all.  And it shows also in viewing figures: 1.264.000 (78%) for the first semi-final, all time record. Taking account the grand final that usually gathers a lot more viewers it's the 7th most watched Eurovision final or semi-final since 1999. The record is obviously Helsinki 2007 Eurovision final with 1.905.000 (83%). I have a feeling we will break that next Saturday. The fever was high also in 2006 when Lordi won. 1.479.000 (75%) gathered in front of their tv-screens. But in spring 2006 there was no hype. It only started a week before the final and exploded in their home coming concert in Helsinki Market Square with 800.00...

Loreen of Sweden is the 15th previous Eurovision song contest winner who has decided and/or managed give it another try. Only Ireland's Johnny Logan has managed to win twice, as we all know. One can't really do a ranking however as the contest had changed so much from the 1950's with maybe a dozen songs to the approx 40 we have these days. In coming days I will feature the winners who decided to come back  after  winning the contest as there also many winners who have won with their second or third try.   Rarely you see such "a star is born" moment and mass hysteria that followed like when only 16 year old Carola (56) won Melodifestivalen 1983 and went to Eurovision for the first time placing third. I was there, in Sweden that night at my aunt's and remember it well. I also went to see her on her summer tour in Sweden that year and it was something else.  But in a decade things went sour and she went from everyone's darling to a religious freak that needed...

Euroviisut 2006, the Finnish national selection for Eurovision song contest featured two song in Italian sung by Tomi Metsäketo. And Eternamente Maria was to one to challenge Lordi in the end. That year each artist had two songs and in the first round one of them was eliminated. Lordi's duel was quite even but apparently also Mr Lordi's favorite Bringing back the balls to rock lost 58-42% to Hard rock hallelujah . In the final Lordi dominated the first round with 29.150 votes against second placed Tomi only with 4832. But in the superfinal things changed and it was really between these two in a very tactical voting behavior: Lordi or not to Lordi? Tomi got as many votes as the other four finalists put together aka 45.431 but Lordi managed to get 67.369 and the rest is history. For once Finns got it right but in any other year this Eternamente Maria would have been a very decent entry. Never ever (or after) has Euroviisut caused such a stir and media attention and divided the...

Mr Lordi and his band have been a bit bored during the pandemic and after the fun idea of their fictional greatest hits compilation Killection last year they have now extended it to fictional seven albums of different decades and genres those songs could've been from. Clever, no?   Skelectric Dinosaur, Superflytrap, The Masterbeast from the Moon, Abusement Park, Humanimals, Abracadaver and Spooky Sextravaganza Spectacular are the album titles including influences and sounds inspired from likes of Bee Gees, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Boney M, Earth Wind and Fire, Pink Floyd, Bon Jovi and more... This blogger has enjoyed with amusement the disco one, Superflytrap wherefrom single Believe me is taken from. The latest single Borderline is from Humanimals. 

Eurovision 2020 may be cancelled but the various broadcasters are filling the empty hours with Eurovision related programmes and their plans are slowly coming out. Besides the specials in the making in Germany and Sweden, and EBU's own Love shine a light show airing on May 16 that should involve all the artists of Eurovision 2020 somehow there are alternative ideas. Yle has decided to celebrate the brightest moments of Finland in recent years instead. On May 14 Krista Siegfrids and Mikko Silvennoinen will be hosting a Top-10 show (19.00-20.30 local time). Finns have an opportunity vote online before hand the Eurovision 2020 songs and they will reveal and showcase the top-10. The voting opens on May 8 and the show will feature also other performances and guests. After that Yle will broadcast again the Eurovision 2014 final , where Softengine placed 11th with their Something better .  On May 15 we will have Krista and Mikko again (19.00-20.30 local time) and this tim...

Natalia Gordienko (32) was ment to do his solo debut at the Eurovision 2020 after representing Moldova already in 2006 with Arsenium and Connect-R with Loca . Natalia, of Ukrainian descent, sung, studied piano and dance at school and at the age 15 started participating in various song and talent competitions. She sung in Millenium band, worked as DJ, released an album and string of singles and videos over the years. And then came the big step back to Eurovision, until it was cancelled.  So far there has been no news if she will do it in 2021 or if Moldovan television will go for another selection. Somehow, cosidering she got a little help from Kirkorov this year, she might be back in 2021...

  Eurovision winner 2006 Lordi is losing another member of its winning formation. After Kita (2000-2010) and Awa (2005-2012) also Ox (2005-2019) is leaving the band after this summer's festivals. In the band's website he says there's no drama or major issues. He only has a strong urge to do something else in music and be available for new adventures. He thanks the band and the world's best fans for this 13 years long journey. Ox aka Samer El Nahhal is half Egyptian and he has studied in Los Angeles Musicians Institute. He spent part of his childhood in Libya and Irak wherefrom they fled when the war started. Kita or Sampsa Astala has been active after Lordi with his band Stala & So and they even participated in the Finnish national final back in 2010 - that got him fired from Lordi actually. He also plays in several other bands, plays drums and does backing vocals besides writing and producing songs for others. Awa aka Leena Paisa left Finland and moved to ...

Her son Fabrizio did it . Twice . Her daughter Claudia did it . Now she has entered X Factor that also doubles Malta's Eurovision 2019 selection and charmed pants off from most everyone with her heartfelt cover of Mia Martini's Gli uomini non cambiano . Forget girl power - it's Mom power time (especially if we also get Pernilla Wahlgren for Sweden).... How cool that would be?! Mrs Faniello can sing, she's lovely and she deserves it. Check out also Cinque giorni , Il mare calmo della sera . Fabrizio and Claudia can provide her backing vocals if needed. 

Lordi is currently touring Europe with their #Sexorcism tour and is treating fans in merchandize stand with limited editions of various items. Another treat is coming in a form of their first real live DVD to be filmed in Pratteln Z7 , Switzerland later this month.  Spice up your love with #Vodkatomicbomb  lingonberry hot sauce  or fix your sugar rush with #Chokelate chocolates.  And 50 daredevils can get wild with #Lordildo !  All of sudden the Lordi Cola of the 2000's seems rather innocent.... Tonight Lordi plays Heidelberg (Germany) and the tour continues to Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary and back to Germany, then Switzerland, Italy, Russia and finally Finland on December 28 at legendary Tavastia Club in Helsinki. They already did Austria, UK, France, Spain and Belgium.

Hanna-Riikka Siitonen (47) has died of thyroid cancer she was diagnosed in 2000.  She was multiple times a backing singer for Finland in the Eurovision song contest (1996, 2004, 2005) and participated in the national selection 2006 and was a featuring figure in the opening and interval acts in Helsinki 2007 Eurovision. She was one of the most used backing and studio singers in Finland, and worked a lot in television and theatre both in music and acting, radio and was Idols vocal coach. She was a daughter of Fredi aka Matti Siitonen (Finland ESC 1967, 1976, composer 1979).  In 1990's she formed multiplatinum selling duo Taikapeili with Nina Tapio. 

Måns Z continues to release singles that are nice but not extraordinary. Good effort though... Lordi does what Lordi does best: poppy hard rock with questionabe lyrics Marija does what Marija does best: Balkan ballad Jamala continues on her own path delivering some wings this time.  Mind you there are other versions:  Deep House remix , Disco remix , live

Brand new studio album SEXORCISM is released tomorrow, 12 years and 5 days after their monstreous victory in Athens 2006 Eurovision song contest. It is quite possibly the most controversial Lordi album yet and already their 9th stuido album (plus three compilations and one Ep)

Lordi has released the first single off their new and ninth studio album Sexorcism - out May 25, 2018. Check out Your tongue's got the cat 's lyric video below .-) Mr Lordi tells  Your Tongue's Got The Cat is clearly the lightest song on the album, reminding most the old Lordi in his opinion. The song tells a horror scene where a man oversees his beloved maid by the bed, remembering common times as she is now possessed by a Demon and nothing old and known remains, There may, of course, also be heard some hints to dementia and Alzheimer's disease, if you so wish. My father's last year's were filled with these memory disorders, so there might be some echoes of those times, too. 

Now what can I say? Carola is one of my favorite artists, an ultimate Eurovision Diva and we go back a long time. Flashback summer 1983: I was spending summer at my aunt's in Sweden. And Sweden was all about Carola after her Melodifestivalen win (full marks from each and every jury - for the first and last time ever) and 3rd place in Eurovision (6,1 million Swedes watched her there!!!) with Främling   (fate is I was also in Sweden when the Mello took place and saw it live on tv. However then I was all for runner up Kikki Danielsson's Varför är kärleken röd ...) Her album was the best selling album in Sweden ever (over 1.000.000 copies). She was everywhere, including a Folketspark near Fagersta where I saw her live.  The tour broke all previous records in 24 out of 25 parks. The year after I saw her live in Finland. And again in the years to come . But then Carola, a controversial figure retired after 3-4 years of success and even an album with the BeeGees in the USA to...

  Russian Eurovision stars Dima Bilan (2md in 2006, 2st in 2006) and Sergey Lazarev (3rd in 2016) have finally released the video for their joint hit single Prosti menya , filmed in Sintra, Portugal this summer. The guys started their career same time and have since been often rivals and have both developed their careers over the years, sometimes they have crossed paths (Lazarev also took part in the Russian national final 2008 placing 4th with Flyer ) , sometimes they went to different directions but the claimed hostility between them is nonexistent, and this duet cements their professional friendship finally. It was worth the wait.  Meanwhile Biland has released his new album Egoist

  Finland celebrates its 100th year as an independent state and has ever since searched for its place in Europe and the world, between East and West. Sometimes with less success. As we speak in 1939 we were at war again with Soviet Union but - let's make a huge change of subject here -  since 1961 Finland has been taking part in the Eurovision song contest (and we also took part, and won twice, the copycat contest behind the Iron curtain, Intervision song contest). It may have taken awhile before we won, but it never stopped us taking part. EBU did, in those crazy 1990's-early 2000's. Let's look back in coming days as a countdown to the Big Day some of the most memorable and significant entries from Finland..... In 1993 YLE was again rather desperate and decided to go for a small scale national final with four invited ladies each with two songs. Katri Helena , ever so popular, won with a very Finnish song Tule luo with accordeon and all. The bule and white...