Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

Greece is the divisive entry this year. I like it. Of course it's a mixture of traditonal costumes and instruments, sirtaki, and all that with modern day rapper and dancer that strips off his shirt by the end of the performance. White and beige are their wardrobe choice, a big sun in the backgroud it seems. They seem to have it all right already. If only the guys will find smiles on their faces, now it seemed a bit too concentrated on getting the choreography right. Smile! Even if it's only utopia! I think this will qualify without problems, and not only because it's Greece. A nice add to the final line up. I don't think it goes very far there though. 

Reports coming from Globen tell Greece managed much better with the television screen shots than Finland. The act seems to have it all from traditional instruments to huge drums and all group dressed in white like Greek Gods and of course the climax: some Zorbas dancing and chest bouncing , all topped with a male dancer.  Who said Greece isn't qualifying? This act has worked a zillion times and why wouldn't it work again? This is pure Eurovision. The group tells they have been practising every day the past two months. Apparently it shows. Did the Greek Gods just stole the thunder from the Carelian-Caribian healer? In the Meet & Greet the band is kinda adorably lost and shy and clumsy. One lady in particular had problems holding her microphone, hopefully she remembers that when singing! In the end, the message of the song is not to give up. A bit like sing it away and just keep going. Opa!

A couple of artists returning in this one, a country returning and one country returning to more autenthic sound. And here are the other two non-English including songs besides Austria this year. MACEDONIA - KALIOPI - DONA (Romeo Grill) Kaliopi returns to Eurovision after her 2012 experience. Once again she was internally selected - due to public demand by her fans it seems - and her song is written by her ex-husband. Blogilkar: I adore Kaliopi. This out of the way let's get to the song. It wasn't quite what I expected after 2012 and her songs since. It's been labeled dated and oldfashioned and boring and ridiculed with references to donuts. The fact remains she's amazing live and can make this work on stage no mattr what. And I do like the song, too. It starts off a bit like a lullaby but even if I don't understand a word I believe every word. She deserves the final as this is a real song, not manufactured for Eurovision. 9 Jack:  The Macedonian queen...

The news from Greece tell Argo loses one singer, that is Elias Kesides, and will be replaced by a dancer Vasilis Roxenos. Expect some torso twisting line dancing and opa opas! Poor Elias will be watching the show from Greenroom instead.  The Greek song seems not to be favored that much by the fans, and expecially by a certain website but this blogger welcomes it with open arms compared to some plastic fake ethnicity Greece has sent a bit too many times already. For all this I hope it will do much better than the polls suggest. Just to annoy some people :-)

So, Greece has also revealed its cards for the stunned fanbase. After reading some comments before hearing the song - just like San Marino yesterday - I expected something much weirder. Instead we got only Greece going back some 20 years before they went all Scandipop with ethnic vibe with a rapper as a bonus. I'm think Marianna Zorba (1997) for some reason. Anyways, I don't hate it. I don't love it either. But after all talk and badmouthing by some unnamed Greek website among others I expected much worse....

It seems the rather unknown Thessaloniki band, hand picked by ERT's President Dionysos Tsaknis called Europond, for occasion renamed Argo - for obvoius motives: Who would be interested in Greek europonds these days? Anyways, the song will be revealed later and the band's line up has also changed a bt it seems and is Christina Lahana, Maria Ventidikou, Vladimiros Sofianides, Kostas Toupouzis and Elias Kesides. Friends of Zyriza maybe.....