Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

  Another dose of #Finhits from radio waves, streaming platforms and charts from the usual hit makers Olavi Uusivirta and Evelina with lesser known but by no means less worthy Aurora and Raappana Aurora - Viaton Olavi Uusivirta - Kielletty leikki Raappana - Iäisyys Evelina / TheoFuego - Miau

While the winner Softengine is still working on their debut album and is about to release their new single Yellow house shortly, the girls of MIAU have come out with their debut album Trinity . Ten songs including of course their 3rd placed God/Drug .  Jasmin Michaela 's new single is called Irtokarkkeja following Kertakäyttösydän . Clarissa is out with Lies , following her duet with Josh Standing in Top of the world . Oh, and Madcraft is out with Never had the guts , too. Let's not forget Mikko Pohjola being featured in Jannika B's Sateen rummut while waiting for his new album including of course Sängyn reunalla .  Hukka ja Mama are also working on their debut album with Selja . And Lili Lambert has released this fabulous music video for her Let me take you there . Hanna Sky has released a follow up single, too, Softer rain . Lauri Mikkola has been busy with various live shows but it's worth remembering his appearance in Elastinen's Uus . Even Jos...

UMK 2014 final takes place tomorrow and Ilta-Sanomat has gathered together the data from Spotify. It shows Mikko Pohjola is by far the most listened song song from UMK 2014 with over 30% of all listenings. Also his video on Youtube has been watched over 50.000 times already. He surely has a domestic hit in his hand, and who knows wins the whole thing?! He's also leading in my poll here on the right side where you can still vote... -> Meanwhile YLE has noticed #UMK14 has become a success also abroad in social medias. Thousends of foreigners are following, tweeting, commenting, watching online. YLE wants to thank the artists themselves that who have been more active than ever in social medias. Martin Hart sums it up nicely in his tweet In viewing figures on TV UMK is still struggling. The semifinal was the first show that made it to YLE2's weekly Top-20 at number 14 with 248.000 viewers or 44%. But back to the Spotify. Softengine follows Mikko Pohjola but only hal...

Here are the eight UMK 2014 finalist for your viewing and listening pleasure with voting instructions as well. It all started with performing the demo versions to the judges, then the remixed version to live audiences in the heats and semifinals. Some of them have also produced already videos for their entries, including Lili Lambert who didn't reach the final with her Let me take you there . What is remarkable this year is that Softengine, MIAU and Hukka ja Mama have all secured a recording deal before the final. 01. Softengine – Something Better: Jury live , live , video 02. Hanna Sky – Hope: Jury live , live , studio 03. MIAU – God/Drug: Jury live , live , video 04. Lauri Mikkola – Going Down: Jury live , live , studio  Acoustic video 05. Madcraft – Shining Bright: Jury live , live, video 06. Mikko Pohjola – Sängyn Reunalla: Jury live , live , video 07. Clarissa feat. Josh Standing – Top Of The World: Jury live , live , video 08. Hukka ja Mam...

This is it. The crucial semifinal. The remaining eight acts and songs are battling it out with televote only for the six places in the final. So far we have only known the jury votes and the result of 50-50 televote-jury vote. Tonight we might be in for some surprises.... We are back in Peacock Theater in Helsinki, for the last time, and Anne Lainto and Ile Uusivuori have been styled by the winner of an online contest (Helena Pirhonen) instead of the usual YLE's stylist, will they look different?  UMK+ will start online already 19.30 CET while the live show starts at 20 CET. Brädi will be the guest star performing together with UMK judge Toni Wirtanen. It will be also interesting to see if this semifinal manages to attract more viewers in front of TV as the previous shows have all got less than about 250.000, none of them entering the Top-20 most viewed programmes of the week iin YLE2. As always, I'll be here blogging it live for you so join in and enjoy the ride! ...

I can't help thinking of the Belgian entry RendezVous by Pas De Deux in 1983 when watching MIAU 's God/Drug . A similarly repetitive choreography (in a good way!) and song, some crazy girls with movements you can't ignore. Also both songs are clearly not everyone's cup of tea. The Belgian girls didn't impress the uptight juries 31 years ago: 13 points and 18th place. Originality and innovation weren't really hot those days. And I remember the Belgians weren't so pleased of them representing them either, most of them anyways. Yet, it's a song that is still remembered today! I don't remember what happened to Pas De Deux afterwards but  MIAU has just signed a recording deal and released a video for their entry that you can see here .

This Saturday the semifinal will take place and six more acts will join the final line up while two has to leave the race. We are still in Peacock Theater in Helsinki before moving to Barona Arena in Espoo for the grand final next week. In this semifinal there's only televote and as we have not really had a chance to see how they go so far as only the jury vote has been made public it's going to a very interesting evening. All still have a chance and there could be major surprises. In the final there will be again 50-50 televote-jury vote. The running order is below. The voting i open and you can vote here . If you don't want to spend your money on voting, vote in my poll instead --> MadCraft - Shinig bright Hukka ja Mama - Selja Lauri Mikkola - Going down Jasmin Michaela - Kertakäyttösydän Dennis Fagerström - My little honey bee MIAU - God/Drug Mikko Pohjola - Sängyn reunalla Clarissa feat. Josh Standing - Top of the world Hukka ja Mama have been ...

All went like predicted me thinks. Softengine sailed to the final and Lili Lambert goes home while the others continue to the semifinals. The televoting results were not revealed as usual, but here are the jury votes: Aija Puurtinen: Dennis 5, Lili 6, MIAU 7, Jasmine 8, Hukka ja Mama 9, Softengine 10 Toni Wirtanen: Lili 3, Dennis 4, MIAU 6, Jasmine 7, Softengine 8, Hukka ja Mama 10 Tomi Saarinen: Lili 3, Dennis 5, MIAU 6, Jasmine 7, Hukka ja Mama 8, Softengine 9 Redrama: MIAU 4, Dennis 5, Lili 6, Jasmine 7, Hukka ja Mama 8, Softengine 9 Next week the other six artists and the same procedure. See you then!

Peacock Theater in Helsinki's Linnanmäki amusement park hosts tonight at 8pm the first elimination round of UMK 2014. Six acts will perform for the first time their revamped versions infront of the judges and the live audience in the theater and the TV-audience. Combined televote-jury vote will send one act directly to the final, the last one has to say goodbye to the contest while the other four will go on to the semifinal where they still have a chance to get the ticket to the final. Watch it live here . The UMK+ starts online already 7.30pm. Join me for a live report as it happens! 20.30 The UMK+ has started from the backstage and the web presenters are talking some random stuff...Next they interview Tomi Saarinen . First live so everyone's a bit excited, of course! He tells a bit how the selection process was from those over 420 demos to these 12 selected ones among all those different genres and styles, most of all there was pop, he said. And can we send a song in...

Emanuele Lombardini, journalist and editor of Italian Eurovision site Eurofestival News and European music site Euromusica - Dove c'è musica has kindly reviewed the UMK 2014 songs for Blogilkar. Here goes:  1 - Madcraft - Shining bright Easy pop rock that is extremely radio friendly, at times reminiscent of " Salvem el mon " of Anonymous ( Andorra 2007). Historically, this kind of rock is not usually very lucky in ESC but the this is written well, it should deserve a chance. 2 - Dennis Fageström - My little honey bee Played only once, this is the only song that has immediate impact . Genuine pop, a song of love that typically works well. Radio friendly, simple, interpretation in line with the song. Would do much honor to the contest. 3 - MIAU - God/Drug The beat works, you start beating your foot along the music. Maybe a little repetitive, but you listen and start singing along on the first listening. The blonde singer surely works: her face and looks. A...

The first live show of UMK 2014 will take this Saturday in Peacock Theater in Helsinki when MIAU, Dennis Fagerström, Lili Lambert, Hukka ja Mama, Softngine and Jasmin Michaela take the stage and people vote one of them straight to the final, one out and the remaining four continue the battle for the place in the final line up. You can vote already since yesterday as the songs have been presented already and one can listen them online ( here for example).... The voting ends Saturday 11.1.2014 at 22.30 local time. But that's not all! You can also vote online and here's where things get a bit complicated. You can give one vote (0,95 euros) or 5, 10 or even 25. Or if you really want to support your favorite why not give 50 votes at once for the price of 47,50! This option, already used in other formats like Big Brother where it hasn't bothered anyone has caused a little stir among fans and media. Is it so that one with the richest back up group will win because of thi...

Time recap what the judges thought about the remaining six artists based on their very first stage performance of their demo tracks. What kind of advice they gave, what was good and what was not and who impressed, who didn't.... As an added bonus this blogger's views :-). Watch the show online here . Or on YLE2 next Saturday. Here you go: MIAU - GOD/DRUG The girls hoped in the insert that the judges would start arguing about their song, have a fight over it and indeed it nearly happened. General madness is one of the band's strenghts according them... They won't let anyone cold, everyone has an opinion of them! Toni: Well now, good boogie, I liked it a lot! It was fun, good song. I should analyze this performance somehow but... I'm simply sold. Surely you divide people, even among us judges, and surely this isn't for everyone. You've only got to gain here. Aija: One can see that you have been already so many gigs that you got it together on sta...