Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

As usual these awards were handed out just before the final show and we have three winners. The Marcel Bezençon Award, named after the founder of the Eurovision Song Contest, was first handed out in 2002. The Awards are divided into three categories – the Composer Award, the Press Award and the Artistic Award. Composer Award : Rewarded for the best composition with special consideration given to originality and national identity in music and lyrics: Bulgaria 's EQUINOX with Bones . Press Award: Given to the best song according to the collective vote of the accredited press: France 's Madame Monsieur with Mercy . Artistic Award: Presented to the best artistic performance and voted by the commentators from all countres: Eleni Foureira from Cyprus with Fuego . I totlaly agree with the two of them, but Composer award and "national identity" to Bulgaria that is pure America? really?

ESTONIA - ELINA NECHAYEVA - LA FORZA Quando m'en vo per la via Sempre libera Vorrei che intorno a noi sia una favola Vocals ***** Staging *** Song * Overall **** Qualifier BULGARIA - EQUINOX - BONES So I love beyond the bones Goes deep inside your soul Vocals ***** Staging **** Song *** Overall **** Qualifier MACEDONIA - EYE CUE - LOST AND FOUND I wish you trust your intuition And let the journey start Vocals *** Staging ** Song ** Overall *** Borderline non qualifier CROATIA - FRANKA - CRAZY  Over the moon I’ll be your queen And I’ll be your fool  Vocals **** Staging ** Song ** Overall ** Non qualifier

The last three to rehearse today include also two major favorites Estonia and Bulgaria, with Belarus sandwiched inbetween. In the strange twist of fate four of the major favorites are all in the first semi-final's first half.... Belarus - Alekseev - Forever Gone is his projector shirt or whatever it was in the national final and better so, as Elina is coming right after with her dress. Innstead we have some drama with roses and some apparently rather offputting imaginary in a form a blooded shirt. He's got a rising platform and a dancer, the said real rose and some more petals in augmented reality. And the vocals are still all over the place - or maybe they simply are like that? "Gothic romance", "Dramaric", "WTF", "Slightly offputting", "Extravagant", "Disgusting" Estonia - Elina Nechayeva - La forza In the end they got the money and the dreadful dress is here. But it's a good distractio...

  Bulgaria - Equinox - Bones After placing 4th and 2nd the past two years Bulgarian tv created a super group for the occasion: Bulgarian Zhana Bergendorff, Georgi Simeonov and Vladimir Mihailov with American Trey Campbell and Johnny Manuel. Zhana (32) is Bulgarian X Factor winner 2013, also Georgi is known from XF, Vladimir had his taste of Eurovision by being one of Kristian Kostov's backing singers. Johnny made himself known in America's Got Talent and Trey has written songs to several global stars. Bones is one of the main favorites this year but even if I adore the vocal harmonies and their voices I'm not that into the song. And truth to be said even the vocal harmonies are very American. Also, being a specially created group should they win it would be kinda wasted one (think Tanel Padar and Dave Benton) as most likely they won't continue together and have success (think Bucks Fizz) so we wouldn't see them any gatherings and celebrations where the wi...

  Bulgaria's Eurovision social media team is one of the most active, and they have been teasing us with the release until boredom and now when the song and artist is out it's like a little let down. This said, the song is produced by the same Symphonix team that is behind Austria's entry (and Bulgaria's 2nd and 4th placed entries last year and in 2016) and it production values and sound are better than any standard Eurovison entries from the Swedish factory. The song itself, well... hard to say yet. Makes me think of Vikings soundtrack... and sounds more like a cool interval act performance on the mysterious depressive side - and depressive (and angry) don't usually do so well...  Written by Bulgarian Borislav Milanov, American Trey Campbell with  Swedish Joachim Persson and Dag Lundberg, while the band is made of Bulgarian X Factor 2013 winner Xhana Bergendorff, Bulgarian singer/songwriter and frontman of two bands and even an actor Vlado "Vladdi" ...