What You’ve Done Becomes The Judge Of What You’re Going To Do – Especially In Other People’s

Top 5 Non-English ESC23 songs

Eurovision is just a couple weeks away so let’s talk about different entries this year! 

Nine songs that are completely not in English are competing this year at the Eurovision. I ranked my top 5 below.

5. SPAIN -  Blanca Paloma: Eaea

No one can deny her talent. Her presence and interpretation is captivating, almost hypnotic. This is dramatic, load, theatrical, this is art, this has a soul, authencity. I’m a big fan of her live peformance which I hope will make Europe vote for her. However, after all these weeks I still haven’t downloaded this to any of my ESC playlists which make me scared that this might the most painful flops of ESC23. 

4. SLOVENIA -  Joker Out:  Carpe Diem

This is fun! Catchy and the music video is well fitting of the spirit of the song. You don’t need to understand the language or the lyrics to dance to this one. There’s a true disco, retro beat here I enjoy. I hope they’ll get the staging right for this one in Liverpool. 

3. FRANCE -  La Zarra:  Évidemment

This didn’t knock me out at first listen to be honest. But it has grown on me. It has a nice structure, that builds up nicely and in my opinion could have gone even higher, more edgier. I like the beginning of French chanson which then turns into a this groovy pop tune. I kind of expected a revamp but this definitely the direction France needs to go. Well produced, professionally performed and character owned songs! 

2. ITALY - Marco Mengoni: Due Vite

Each year I vote for Italy. Even when I think I don’t like them. Every year the songs grow. I cannot resist the quality, emotion, professionalism, talent that has gone into these Italian tunes. A lot of people say that we don’t need another Italian ballad this year but when it’s this good... there’s always room for one more. 

Marco Mengoni is no stranger to Eurovision as represented Italy already a decade ago in Malmö. 

1. FINLAND - Käärijä: Cha Cha Cha

Maybe I’m a bit bias as a Finn but even if I wasn’t... this is good and even though I wouldn’t find my cup of tea no one can deny the effect and reaction this song will surely cause in the viewer. Either it’s hate or love people will feel Cha Cha Cha will leave no one cold. The agressive cocktail of multiple genres (rap, pop, rock sounds and effects) will reach out majority of Europeans’ tastes. We’re potentially talking about a winner of Eurovision 2023 and for sure the best Finnish result since Lordi in 2006. 

What do you think about the Non-English tracks competing ESC this year? What’s your favourite??

Some shots from earlier this year in Lisboa and about! Including Cabo da Roca, the most western point of Europe. Some photos from Almada, the other side of the river. 

UMK 2018

CHOOSING SAARA AALTO in the fall 2017

For Eurovision 2018 Finland did things differently than expected. Instead of having the competition UMK (Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu) of 10 artists and their songs YLE, the local proadcaster chose one artist to represent the country in Lisbon in May. She would produce the songs where the ultimate track to Lisbon would be chosen by audience and jury votes in March 2018. And she was no one else but Saara Aalto, known to Eurovision audience already from UMK 2011 and 2016 (coming second). She also took part in X-Factor UK in 2016 coming second but this time making record deals with Sony Music and Warner. Therefore she has become quite a popular character in UK as in Finland gaining somewhat existing fan base in Europe but especially among Eurovision fans. 

The Eurovision dream of hers has never been a secret. Her attempts during previous years however haven’t been good enough in my opinion. She knows how to sing, perform and write songs but there has always been something missing. X-Factor gave her the much needed push and tools to create Finland’s Eurovision entry 2018. There has been a lot of criticism about choosing her without the public vote but to be honest this kind of buzz that is happening around her won’t wait. Finland has rarely these kind of artists as willing and skillful to perform at ESC so I’m definitely standing behind this. 

I will not review the videos cause in they don’t play much role in the final show of UMK or at Eurovision shows. 

MONSTERS Feb 9th 2018

The song offers a big start for Saara’s Eurovision 2018 journey. I was super afraid that the songs for Lisbon wouldn’t be good enough because earlier when Saara performed in UMK the songs weren’t good! But clearly this isn’t the case here! Monsters is an upbeat track with a catchy sound. Uplifting theme about leaving your demons behind you. Suits Saara and her story in life as in Eurovision. Her voice is soaring. This is such a motivating track and works outside of contest! Some say Sweden is all over this and but I’d say it’s high quality and attention to detail more like. No more that feeling that something is missing like in previous Saara’s attempt. I was impressed by the song when I first heard it but the more I listen to it the more it grows on me. This is gonna be big.

Domino Feb 16th 2018

The ballad. To be honest I was expecting bigger power ballad and this kind falls into the mid tempo range. But it has a nice sound. This can be memorable. Strong chorus and beat. Her voice is slightly over produced I think but still good singing here also. I like especially the bridge here by the way. First impressions were not as good as with Monsters but this song has grown for me and I’m really thinking this might work better when performed live!

Queens Feb 23rd 2018

Another uptempo track but with a theatrical twist. Knew to expect this. Goes with the same theme as Monsters but does not have the same catchy sound as the two previous songs did. It has some memorable notes and lines but it doesn’t reach same level as Monsters so therefore is the weakest link out of these three. Again I have to save some space for the live performance which in Eurovision can change things dramatically.

Nevertheless which of these songs will be selected I feel super positive about this! It will be the best pop we’ve have ever sent to Eurovision. I’m feeling also confident about Saara’s performance. She knows how to pull a ESC performance whether I’ll like it - that’s just the question of taste. 

The final track to Lisbon will be selected by jury and audience votes on March 3rd! 

Random summer shots in #Helsinki!

The perspective that wasn't mine yesterday

Somewhat continues from the post below..

But anyways news for those who haven't heard that I changed a job. Still in a video game industry but found  a better deal in a different company where I started  as a Linguistic tester a month ago. As much as I loved working at Babel, they couldn’t offer me anything else but functionality testing on call contract with evening shifts. Now with Enzyme Testing Labs I’ll actually get to do the linguistic stuff and have better pay, better working hours (no more evening shifts!) and the location is slightly closer to home too. 

This is actually the first time when my employer is making a contract of any fixed hours with me. I’ve always been on call and luckily the shifts, often more than I could actually do, have always come in. So I do feel like I’m being tied down a bit. Can’t do any big or (at least long term) travelling plans or anything cause the summer is high season for video game industry and naturally employees aren’t encouraged to take much time off then. And not that I would have money for travels anyway...But so far I’ve been more than happy to explore and discover the city of Mtl and that’s why haven’t traveled much in Québec/Canada so if this is the furthest I can go I’ll be fine with it. 

However, I did some travelling in April. 

Made a Easter voyage to the Québec’s capital, also named Québec which is over 200km from Montréal to north. It’s been one of my “must go” destinations for years and it was truly a fascinating and charming journey to see all those places where the history of not only Québec’s but also of Canada and North America took place. This is where it all began. The place where they established hospitals, schools, newspapers, museums and churches among others earlier than anywhere else in North America. The city was a battle ground for wars and battles that later came to define Canada and Québec.

Moi, en Québec finalement!

Today the city is known mostly for the most photographed hotel in the world Château Frontenac and for Vieux Québec, the old part of the city which is partly 400 years old and obviously a Unesco World Heritage Site. If my trip to Ottawa last fall was an eye opening experience in Canadian culture and history, this trip was exactly the same in la culture et l’histoire québécoise. I could seriously go on forever about history of this city... #historyfreak #quebecoise

I ain't wearing my winterboots in April anymore damnit!

But what we actually did in Québec: stroll around in the still empty streets of vieux Québec (no masses of tourists yet), did some shopping, ate well and visited the musée de la civilisation where the First Nations were represented respectively too. The more northern location was easily noticed in the chilly weather and the amounts of snow they had in the parks and the streets. The three days were seriously a good exercise too cause the city’s been built on hills and it seemed like there was nothing else but a staircase after another. Oh boy did my feet hurt on Monday after the trip! But it was vraiment québecois and there is no place where you could feel the political atmosphere (anglos against the francos) clearer than in Québec in my opinion. This is not a criticism just an observation. 

Moi sur les Plaines d'Abraham.

Weatherlike...Summer has finally kicked in! Had a few days of tropical +30 temperatures but otherwise it's been comfortably warm even thou spring was clearly late. In the beginning of May it was still quite grey and bald in naturelike but now everything has catched up. J'aime ça!

However, there is a one big down side in my life and year in Mtl. Room mates.. who I've had 15 in total by now and this doesn't include the new changes coming up at the flat within a few weeks. As much I love this appartment, the room and the location, it truly sucks that we don't have any saying about who's gonna move in. My landlord is great but he doesn't really care how we get along with each other as long as everybody pays their rents and don't seriously destroy anything...

Nothing major issues I guess but just stuff that truly bugs me. Having soirées late in the night during the week and not participating of the expences that we share together. Nobody cleans. It's also hard to have any kind of system with room mates that keep on changing this frequently. But oh well.. less than two months and these problems will be far away cause I'll be living with my mom again! And how much fun is that gonna be - NOT! 

Allrighty then, I think that was it for now.. thanks again for reading! :)

The soundtrack of my posts:

The lyrics and songs which I used as titles for my posts. Not in the order as they came out here in the blog. Some of them are my all time favourite but others just have wise thoughts or words I wanted to use. #pausini

01. Benvenuto LIVE

02. Limpido WITH KYLIE MINOGUE

03. La geografia del mio cammino LIVE

04. Tu cosa sogni?

05. Se non te LIVE

06. Bastava

07. Bellissimo cosí

08. Dove resto solo io LIVE

09. Mi tengo

10. Il mio beneficio

11. It's not goodbye 2013 VERSION

12. Le cose che non mi aspetto

13. She - uguale a lei

14. Nel modo piú sincero che c'é

15. Mi perspectiva

16. Celeste

17. Primavera in anticipo/ It is my song LIVE

UMK 2023 song review - Keira

The hype is very real around Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK), the Finnish national selection for Eurovision and the race to Liverpool kicked off with a banger! 

Keira - No Business on the Dancefloor 

The 18-year-old Keira became known to Finnish audience in Voice of Finland where she did fairly well becoming third on the final last year. Since then while waiting and searching for her momentum UMK came up in the discussions quite early on but finding “her hit song” took its time. 

This is her first single and what a hit indeed it has become! Currently it’s in top 10 most listened tracks in Finland on Spotify and on Youtube it’s the second most watched UMK23 clip with over 440 000 views! But as we saw last year becoming a hit song is not enough to win the ticket to ESC! 

No Business on the Dancefloor was written actually by Finnish ESC representative from 2011 Axel “Oskar Paradise” Ehnström  (can you believe it?). The Finns will probably also recognize the other songwriter Teemu Brunila (Jenni Vartiainen, Anna Abreu) and how the song definitely has some familiar Brunila vibes. 

Keira herself tells her song that she wants people to liberate their “inner party animals”. I’m not quite sure if it manages to do that but this still ticks all the right boxes for a catchy dance entry and it’s completely stage and Eurovision ready. Well done UMK and Finland! 

Some compare her to Rihanna - I can recognize some resemblence there also. Vocally this is a safe effort, they could have gone further with her vocal range but maybe she will surprise us in the live show of UMK on February 25th? 

Track like, this is strong. The beat is memorable, the flute gives an ethnic vibe to it and sets the song apart from other dance tracks of UMK. Lyrics are cheeky and full of pop references which some find them corny but for me they add personality instead. However, would I have added some volume, some power to this - yes I would and I’m really hoping the live performance gives to it its much needed extra spice! 

What do you think of the first UMK23 track and would you vote this to go all the way to Liverpool? UMK final takes place on February 25th! 

Took my time going though the Coruna trip photos from last September. I saw so many beautiful places! These are from my first 2 days :) 

"..and when you’re in your twenties, i hope you buy a plane ticket to paris. i hope you get lost wandering all of the streets. i hope you travel the world and read lots of new books.  i hope you have interesting conversations over warm cups of tea.  i hope you drink out of mason jars while dancing barefoot in the grass. i hope you have a water fight in central park. set goals and change them. quit your day job. i hope you don’t do any of these things or that you do them all. write a book. change your mind. start new friendships and let go of the ones that you need to. say goodbye to all of the things that have kept you stagnant and vow to keep moving forward..."

I visited Palace of Queluz last January which is one of the best kept secrets in Sintra / Lisbon located literally between the the fairytale town of Sintra and the portuguese capital. This is the most beautiful room I’ve ever been visited. And the best part was that I was the only person there!