The demo CD of the Melodifestival boxset is pretty fascinating. Fascinating enough that it's already got me wishing for a sequel, even if the singers are more Agnetha Körsvik and Anette Ingemarsson & Ida Segersten than Linda Bengtzing and Måns Zelmerlöw.
Noting the changes a song goes through between being demoed and being properly debuted is something only a schlager nerd would love--but that's what I am, so it's thrilling to hear the considerably different lyrics on Agnetha Körsvik's "Hero," the way "Night Of Passion" was completely rearranged (as well as lyrically tweaked) for the Poodles, or the different way Jessica Andersson sings "Jag ljuger så bra."
Often the changes were ultimately for the better; I prefer the lyrics to Charlotte's version of "Hero." Still, for those of us who will never get to sit with a songwriter as they hone a song into the best version of itself it can be, listening to demos like these is the next best thing.
As I mentioned recently, Linda Bengtzing's "Jag ljuger så bra" is quite possibly my favorite schlager song of all time, and definitely in the top ten. I had no expectations that Jessica Andersson's demo would surpass it in my affections, especially without the benefit of having ever been given the final polish a song actually to be released receives. It doesn't, but I'm very glad to have it.
Jessica, going solo after considerable Melodifestival success as half of Fame, faced a devil of a choice in 2006: if I'm remembering correctly, she could have sung either "Jag ljuger så bra" ("I'm Such a Good Liar") or "Kalla nätter" ("Cold Nights"), two of the best songs ever to compete in Melodifestivalen. She chose the latter, a Rachel Stevens-esque modern pop song, but unfortunately failed to make it out of her semifinal after a nervous performance that was better in theory than in reality. Linda took the former, a string-featuring classically styled schlager song with some of Ingela "Pling" Försman's best lyrics, and went straight to the final.
Jessica's demo reveals that she didn't sing "Jag ljuger så bra" with the spunk of Linda; Linda sells the song with charming bravado that enhances the lie of the song's protagonist, who brags to her ex about how life is better without him while secretly wanting him back. I'm glad she made the choice she did--both of them, in studio, are perfectly suited to the songs they ended up with. Still, hearing Jessica's voice on an uptempo schlager song makes me wish once again for the album we could have had if "Kalla nätter" and "Du får för dig att du förför mig" had taken off instead of the one we got once retro ballad "I Did It For Love" did well in 2010.
(Edit: a bit of research I should have done earlier reveals that Jessica was also offered and turned down "Evighet," which went to Carola and became the eventual winner of Melodifestivalen 2006. Also, as Alexander and this interview point out, "Jag ljuger så bra" was written specifically for and about Jessica, who was in the process of divorcing her husband at the time. However, when both the songs she sang on, "Jag ljuger så bra" and "Kalla nätter, were accepted into Melodifestivalen, she had to make a choice. She alludes to pressure from Bert Karlsson factoring into the decision she made and says that "Jag ljuger så bra" still feels, to her, like her song.)
You can purchase the gold edition of Melodifestivalen 10 År På Turné 2002-2011, which contains the demo CD, here (physical). I'm eager for my copy to arrive so I can start the two years it will probably take me to finish reading the included book.
This Saturday will mark the first semifinal of 2010's Melodifestival, so, as usual, I'm doing my Sunday-in-advance rundown of the artists and what we know about the songs (which isn't nearly as much as we'll know when rehearsals start or when song clips go up). Six of the eight artists are new to the contest and, while the proportion of new songwriters isn't as high, there are still quite a few debutantes in that regard as well. We do have three new-to-Melodifestivalen hosts, too: Måns Zelmerlöw, Christine Meltzer, and Dolph Lundgren.
(To be honest, there's not too much new here compared to my preview a few months ago, but I've added new information and thoughts where possible).
1.) Ola Svensson, "Unstoppable" (t & m Dimitri Stassos, Alexander Kronlund, Hanif Sabzevari, Ola Svensson) Former Idol contestant Ola really became popular with the release of summer single "Natalie," and since then he's continued in the upbeat boy pop vein, a sort of modernized teen pop meets strong pop beats sound. Strangely, the Melodifestival album and the single list the full name of his entry this year--his second time in the contest, after reaching the second chance round two years ago with "Love In Stereo"--as "Unstoppable (The Return Of Natalie)."
Unlike all but one of his singles since "Natalie," "Unstoppable" isn't written and produced by the team of Tony Nilsson and Peter "Bassflow" Boström. Dimitri Stassos is a frequent contributor to Eurovision national finals, often doing songs with a Greek flair (like Sofia's entries in Melodifestivalen and Soraya's Eurovision entry last year), but he did work with Ola on his less noteworthy debut album. His songs are often enjoyable but I'd still be a bit nervous if it was just his name in the credits; luckily, Alexander Kronlund, collaborator on Cheiron classics and of more recent work with Linda Sundblad, Sugababes, and Robyn, is backing him up, which has me excited. This song, described by its writers as modern, uptempo radio hit that is a harder sound for Ola, has buzz which it suggests it's as good as "Natalie." Though personally I'd rather hear it's as good as "S.O.S.", another Ola hit, this is still one of my most anticipated entries of the year. Please deliver, guys!
To watch: I should really embed his performance of "Love In Stereo" to give you an idea of his live vocals (passable but iffy), but I'll rep for "S.O.S.", one of the best pure pop songs of the past five years, any opportunity I get, so that's what's below.
2.) Jenny Silver, "A Place To Stay" (t& m Torben Hedlund) I wasn't previously familiar with Jenny, who had a career in dansband-style music back in the '90s, partly as a member of the group Candela. She then switched over to a fuzzier pop-rock sound--a little bit punky, a little bit '80s--as the lead singer of the band Holden, though she didn't equal her '90s success.
From the sounds of it, though, "A Place To Stay" is more in the style of its songwriter's musical career than Holden's: Torben Hedlund used to be a member of Bobby, a group which was certainly not afraid of synths (check out "She's History"). Had I realized that earlier, my excitement back in my first rundown would have been more significant. At least in the song's demo form, it was, in Torben's words, an "ambient dance/house song. He's also said the song is dark, minimalistic, melancholy, and hopeful, the sort of song suitable for the clubs and for making people feel sexy.
To watch: it probably doesn't indicate the style of her entry at all, but for an idea of Jenny's look and voice, check out a very recent performance of "Sweet Caroline."
3.) Linda Pritchard, "You're Making Me Hot-Hot-Hot" (t & m Tobias Lundgren, Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson) Linda, a contestant in the early stages of Idol, is likewise only in the early stages of her commercial music career, having released her debut single, an R&B cover of Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car." You can't say she's an established artist yet, not having had any substantial success in Sweden yet...
...but with these songwriters behind her, I'm very excited to hear her entry. The makers of Linda Bengtzing's "Alla Flickor" and "Hur svårt kan det va?", Alcazar's "Alcastar," Jessica Andersson's "Källa natter," and other modern Melodifestival classics (as well as a few less beloved songs), they're one of the sets of songwriters guaranteed to make me take notice. They say their song this year is uptempo pop in a Latin style; as I've said before, I'd rather they left off the "Latin style" part, but I'm still hopeful of quality, even though it's a replacement for the disqualified "Never Heard Of Him." Linda describes her song as a swinging, dance-inducing party song with a heavy rhythm. Linda has been preparing her debut album with the team that produced her lead single, which, sadly, isn't the Örebro gang who are behind this single.
To watch: it probably should be the music video for Linda's single "Fast Car," but I'm going with her singing another song from her upcoming album, "Rise Again"
4.) Pain Of Salvation, "Road Salt" (t & m Daniel Gildenlöw) Rock band Pain of Salvation is another act I hadn't heard of before, but then again, I'm not very tuned into the Swedish rock scene outside of chart hits. They're much darker and grungier than I prefer my rock to be, to be honest; I tend to prefer my rock anthemic, not unsettling. Not a judgment on their style of music, just a recognition that it doesn't often overlap with my taste.
The group's singer and songwriter, Daniel, describes "Road Salt" as a rock ballad, not hard but quiet, delicate but refusing to give up. He says it's about constant dejection and is tear-inducing.
To watch: I could have gone with some of their more typical, harder stuff, but since they say the song is quieter, here's "Undertow"
5.) Anders Ekborg, "The Saviour" (t & m Henrik Janson, Tony Nilsson) Anders Ekborg and "The Saviour" replaced the disqualified "Åt helvete för sent." Anders is a theater star making his Melodifestival debut.
Henrik and Tony wrote Ola's 2008 entry "Love In Stereo" and Tony has almost all of Ola's "Natalie" to now singles, as well as Elin Lanto's "Discotheque" and Johan Krafman's "Disarmed and Chain Reaction" (amongst other songs). They say "The Saviour" is a cross between Freddie Mercury and Pavarotti, with the subject matter of saving the world with music. Anders says it is grand and difficult to sing.
To watch: well, since the writers made a Freddie Mercury reference, here's Anders singing "We Are The Champions"
6.) Jessica Andersson, "I Did It For Love" (m Lars "Dille" Diedricson, t Kristian Wejshag) Lovely Jessica, a former Fame Factory contestant, returns to Melodifestivalen for the fifth time. The first two were as a member of the duo Fame, which won Melodifestivalen in 2003 with "Give Me Your Love" and took "Vindarna vänder oss" to the finalsin 2004. She hasn't been so lucky as a solo act, not making it out of her semifinal in 2006 with the fantastic Rachel Stevens-esque "Kalla Nätter" and making it to the second chance round in 2007 with the disappointing "Kom." I spent years praying for an album from her, but when that album finally came this past fall, it was all '60s-style retro pop--disappointing again, when Jessica by rights should be a great popstar.
There is positive buzz around her entry this year, a song which its writers (including Lars, a frequent contributor) and singer say is an emotionally-charged, big, beautiful, simple ballad about the pain and dejectedness of a love story. It's not necessarily in the '60s style, Jessica says. Still, I'd be more enthusiastic if this was another killer uptempo schlager or modern pop song (though Jessica has apparently been trying to distance herself from the schlager label).
To watch: Jessica awkwardly trying to make the short-shorts jumpsuit and chair routine work in 2006 with "Kalla nätter." She may be model gorgeous, but she was obviously uncomfortable, maybe explaining the song's failure to progress. She really does have stage presence in the right situation, but I think she may have been missing her security blanket of former Fame partner Magnus Bäcklund.
7.) Frispråkarn, "Singel" (m Hamed KeiOne Pirouzpanah, t Håkan Bäckman) Rapper Frikspåkarn makes his Melodifestival debut with a song by Hamed, who has worked on some R&B and hip-hop songs you probably wouldn't have heard of unless you listen to that part of the Swedish music scene. He often mixes in a significant electro element into those songs, though, and his work on Ola's "Sky's The Limit" and (yes, I'm mentioning it again) Adam Tensta's "80s Baby" gives me some hope for something at least kind of interesting. Rap is pretty far outside of the Melodifestival norm, though there always seems to be at least one rap entry this year, so it's always kind of tempting to view these entries as just the attempts of the contest's managers to show "diversity." Anyway, Hamed says "Singel" is a mix of hip-hop and R&B with crazy dancey beats and vivid lyrics and Frispråkarn says the lyrics are personal, about his lvoe life, and I'm decently hopeful we could get something with a decent instrumental backing, even if it will be no contest favorite and the lyrics might not be what I'd choose.
To watch: the music video for Friskpråkarn's single "Nästa tåg nästa buss." Decently catchy, no?
8.) Salem al Fakir, "Keep On Walking" (t & m Salem al Fakir) Singer-songwriter Salem is two '70s-ish, orchestral-souding, piano-based albums into his critically-approved career, with a third album due to be released in conjunction with his participation in Melodifestivalen. Salem says "Keep On Walking" is in his style, but since he's also been talking about a more electronic direction for this new album, it's possible some of that sound could crop up, too. He also describes it as hopeful and peppy and says it's about picking oneself up after one falls and still going on.
To watch: his Prince-like featured vocalist role on Staygold's great "Backseat" is buzzier right now, but I need to take another opportunity to promote what should have been his international breakthrough, the more delicate, magical "It's Only You (Part II)"
Overall, there's potential here, but too much up in the air for me to feel totally assured of the quality we'll be exposed to. Also, though there are some known faces, we also don't really have a big, A-level act here that all the others need to be afraid of based on name alone, which could potentially allow some good songs by less prominent acts to break through.
Oh no...I should have known writing about Bea Bronchal was a mistake--despite all my best efforts to wash them out with other music, I've had her songs running through my head literally ALL DAY. With that in mind, here's yet another of her amazing pop stompers; this one's called "Lo Prefiero" and was originally by Rebeca, who was in the running to represent Spain at Eurovision 2006 with it (Rebeca also had another song, "Que no daría yo," in the running), but from what I've heard, I prefer Bea's version. Is it going to scare all of you away when I say that it's got touches of reggaeton and pop-rock in it? It shouldn't--I know I'm overusing this phrase when writing about Bea, but it's a total pop stomper that, with its rapidfire vocals and "hey hey" chants, will be running through your head the rest of the day; there's no resisting that chorus. It's a song that makes me want to learn how to street dance.
Anyway, here's the Lithuanian song I've been meaning to post about the past few days. I really was going to post the song itself, but all I've found is a low quality mp3 that, to be honest, someone else frustrated with not being able to find the song probably just ripped from a video somewhere. Still, consider it the "featured song" of the day.
The singer's name is Mantas, and the song is "Lovefool Tonight," a fairly recent (past two months or so) single. It's got a little bit of a disco beat running through it, but it's kind of Robbie Williams-esque in a way (maybe not a million miles away from his version of "Lovelight"?). Despite one giant lyrical misstep, the song's really lodged itself in my head; it's not the sort of thing I expect to take the Internet by storm, and in fact I'll be more than glad to see it not really talked about elsewhere--I don't expect it would meet a very friendly reception--but I'm very glad it exists for my own sake. Could a Lithuanian music store open up somewhere on the Internet, please?
Apparently (according to an article in Aftonbladet from March 14) Fredrik Kempe and Anna Sahlene have formed a duo called Pomp, already have a record contract with Universal, are already working in the studio, have their eyes set on Melodifestivalen 2009, and have asked Jessica Andersson to join them and make the duo a trio. Fredrik, in a blog post, kind of hedged back a way from that a little bit, saying that they're just kind of testing and nothing is certain. Elsewhere, he says the music is "dansmusik med schlagertouch" ("dance music with a schlager touch").
Now, my natural preference would be for both or all three (if Jessica ended up saying yes) of those artists to have solo careers (I love all three of them as solo artists), but if we can't have that--and let's face it, we haven't had that for quite some time and there's not really any indication that's an option on the table; Fredrik's just been doing songwriting, Anna released her version of "Brief & Beautiful" in Estonia but that's all we've heard from her in terms of a commercial/pop career (though ESCToday did say an album would be out this year), and Jessica's doing musicals and released a track with Nordman--if it's a case of this or nothing, then I will definitely take this.
Charlotte Perrelli's song sounds like "Kempe-schlager and Kylie-pop with a splash of Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean' and S Club 7's 'Don't Stop Movin'." I have no idea how one song can sound like all of those things, but doesn't it sound BRILLIANT?! Plus, toss in a "Kalla Nätter" reference and I really don't know how it could get any more amazing-sounding.
Linda, despite falling during rehearsals, has a schlager song that will make a bunch of people religious after "Linda's three minutes of salvation" or cause the entire population of Sweden to become gay. (Also, the comparison to "Grace Kelly" did pop up again, in reference to the verses.)
Daniel has "the year's gay hit" (as well as a classic fifth placer; apparently it's overchoreographed).
Could I get any more excited? I really don't think so. And that's just three of the songs we've got to look forward to in this Saturday's Melodifestival semifinal.
One day, this blog will return to its only-semi-dominated-by-Swedish-music state, but as long as Melodifestivalen keeps going, I'm going to have Swedish music on the brain. Some day I really will finish that Fame Factory special I started, but until then, let's have another song from a Swedish group I love(d): Fame. Jessica Andersson, the female half of Fame, is off doing duets with Nordman now and the male half, Magnus Backlund--well, I've got no idea what he's doing musically, but he is talking to Gylleneskor about this upcoming semifinal.
Gjorda för varandra--I think Fame had some absolutely fantastic tracks. Oddly enough, most of those weren't on their only album (including one of my favorite Melodifestival tracks of this decade, "Vindarna Vänder Oss," their followup entry after winning all of Melodifestivalen with "Give Me Your Love"). "Gjorda för varandra," released as a single in 2005, was one of those. A mix of pop and schlager, it's not a schlager stomper in the sense of being some big uptempo song that you picture lots of big dramatic strutting across the stage to--though you could do that, if you wanted; it's just that it's more on the mid-tempo side. The song lists a bunch of things the (fictional) couple disagree on before concluding in each bridge and chorus that without those differences they wouldn't be attracted to each other and that, in the end, they're a couple, meant for each other (I think). Basically, upbeat catchy Swedish pop that, like many of Fame's songs, comes in right about at three minutes.
To buy Fame's single "Gjorda för varandra," go here (physical) or here (digital).
Next up: part of me wonders if maybe I shouldn't just skip the previews on Friday and hear them for the first time on Saturday--but yeah right, as if I have that much self control, so tomorrow will probably be writings about Melodifestivalen.
I really will try to do some stuff that's less "Swedish songs everyone already knows, loves, and has" soon, but after mentioning Jessica Andersson yesterday, I have to post this. Jessica first became famous on the TV show Fame Factory (speaking of Fame Factory, I've been thinking about doing a Fame Factory special, but 1.) it's more Swedish stuff and I don't want to completely overload people, and 2.) I'm incredibly far from an expert--it would just be what I know and love...oh, and 3.) I can never seem to make it all the way through a special without getting distracted, though I think I've eventually finished all of them); though she dropped out partway through the season to have a baby, she would be teamed up with eventual winner Magnus Bäcklund to form Fame, the duo that won Melodifestivalen in 2003, released an album which has some good songs but doesn't contain most of their best ones, reentered Melodifestivalen 2004 and made it to the finals, and went their separate ways for solo careers with the possibility of reforming at some point left on the table. Both Magnus and Jessica entered Melodifestivalen in 2006; Magnus made it to the finals via the Andra Chansen round with the nice but not amazing "The Name Of Love" (I guess it's pop-rock), but poor Jessica ([in]famously clad in hotpants) didn't make it out of her semifinal, despite having one of the year's best songs.
Kalla Nätter--I don't really think of this as true schlager, though maybe it is--it's more along the lines of really poppy electro-pop than something like, say, Linda Bengtzing's "Jag ljuger så bra" from the same year is. If I had to describe it in just one word, though, I'd go with this: fantastic. Seriously, dramatic in the right poppy way, catchy, a chorus you can sing along with even if you speak no Swedish--it's a song that does everything right (and yes, we even get a key change in it). Maybe imagine if Rachel Stevens was Swedish?
To buy the Melodifestivalen 2006 album, which includes Jessica Andersson's song "Kalla Nätter," go here (physical). I really hope we get an album from her some day.
Bad news: Jessica Andersson's official site denies the rumors that she now wants to sing in Fame again (as an Aftonbladet article reported, or at least created some fuzziness about by focusing on the wrong or less important thing from an interview with its headline)--well, sort of; she doesn't rule out doing it some day, but there are no plans for it at the moment.
Good news: why are their no plans for her to do Fame again? Because she's currently focused on musicals...and her "solo career"!
I know, I know, I'm probably reading too much into this, and the likelihood of her launching an album at this point, off the back of no single or Melodifestivalen entry (though she could release I single, I suppose; there's no guarantee of how it'd perform though), doesn't seem that great, but I'm hoping that at least means the door is open to us getting some more non-musical music from her eventually. Grasping at straws and all that, but I can hope...even if who knows when it'll ever occur.
Anyhow, that aforementioned Aftonbladet article also reported that once the musical she's currently starring in ends, she'll think about what she wants to do. She wants to release her own album and, I think, enter Melodifestivalen again (though that part, like all of it, could be me misunderstanding). I don't think she has a record contract at the moment, though.
So basically, no one get too excited, but I keep hoping we'll hear more from her, so I can't help reporting it.
I've toyed with posting "Kalla Nätter" or "Du får för dig att du förför mig" for a while now because both are fantastic, but never done it mainly because I'm guessing most people who would be interested have them already. I might end up doing it anyway, though--they're must-hears.
Please tell me "Musikal in, Schlager ut" doesn't mean what I think it does...
I think, if I'm understanding this article correctly, Swedish singer Jessica Andersson (soloist and former member of the duo Fame) is taking a break (though not necessarily a permanent one; the possibility for a return to her solo work or work with Fame is left open) from music of the commerical/Melodifestivalen/schlager sort and focusing on musicals instead.
I was really hoping we'd finally get an album from her this year. I may not have been a particularly big fan of "Kom," her Melodifestivalen entry this year, but I thought "Kalla Nätter" and "Du får för dig att du förför mig" were both great.
I got back just in time! The final is just about to start! I'm hoping for a Måns victory, but expecting the Ark to win.
If you want to watch, you can do so (through Windows Media Player--there's also a Real Player feed) here.
Edit: acoustic version of "Evighet." Andreas up first. I might not write that much, unless I start to lose my feed and start complaining (which I'm very worried about).
Edit: thank goodness someone restyled Sebastian--he couldn't really look worse than he did during the semifinal. I really like his song--a lot. I always liked it, but it's been a grower, too. I felt Anna Book seemed a little...off, or something, maybe vocally. I like Sonja's song as well. The stream was pretty bad during Sebastian's song, but it seems to have improved.
Edit: that acoustic guitar part in Marie's song really is lovely, and it's a nice song. Since I'm not worried (that much) about it winning, I think I'm able to enjoy it more. But Måns is up next!
Edit: oh. Maybe I've just listened to the studio recording so many times, but...is it just me, or did this not seem as good as his semifinal performance? I felt like he dropped some letters or words, some of the gestures just seemed a little off, sounded breathy at bits...I think I'm always harsher on what I'm supporting the most, though. Don't get me wrong--I love the song, love the performance, but... Still, Måns to win! Up next we have the one song I absolutely under no circumstances could live with as the winner.
Edit: thank goodness we have something exciting after that performance from Tommy--Sanna's up next!
Edit: for a big ballad, Sarah's is good. I think I heard somewhere that Andreas Lundstedt is supporting her? Sanna's performance was full of strutting, fireworks, and general fun. The Ark up next.
Edit: boy, they put on a good performance, don't they? They make it look effortless. Now, how long do we have to wait for the results?
Edit: vote for song 6, Sweden! 099-239 06!
Edit: I love this musical. I wish I could understand it. Now they're singing "Alla Flickor."
Edit: the first set of results is in...and Måns wins the first 12 points! The Ark get the 10 and Sarah gets 8. Andreas only got 1--I'm surprised; isn't he predicted to be in the top 3?
Edit: Måns gets 6, Andreas gets 8, and the Ark get 12. Sarah's doing well.
Edit: is this going to going to end up being Sarah vs. Andreas vs. the Ark? Sarah gets 8, Andreas 10, and the Ark 12, with Måns only getting 6.
Edit: Magnus Backlund presenting results. Måns only gets 2 points! Oh no...the Ark only get 6 here...strange....Sarah gets 8, 10 to Sanna--that's nice to see. Andreas gets 12. I'm getting really worried.
Edit: 2 for Sarah, 8 for Måns, 10 for Andreas, 12 for the Ark. Is Måns no longer a contender? Magnus Carlsson to present the next results--bring some good ones!
Edit: only 1 point for Måns! Shock. 8 for the Ark, 10 for Sarah 12 for Andreas. Total, Måns has 33, the Ark 60, Sarah 46, and Andreas 53.
Edit: oh goodness--Jessica's hair! Only 2 points for Måns. 4 for Sarah, 8 to the Ark, 10 to Sonja, 12 to Andreas. Sebastian's catching up to Måns.
Edit: 4 for Måns--is there even any point in me reporting what he's getting? Total, the Ark have 80, Andreas 73, Sarah 60, Måns 39, and Sonja and Sebastian tied at 31.
Edit: points are all over the place, but it seems to be a pretty set Ark victory. I'm so surprised (and disappointed) Måns isn't doing better, though.
Edit: Marie gets her first points (4). 8 for Andreas, 10 for Måns, 12 for the Ark.
Edit: Carola's presenting now...brings it all up to Andreas at 101, the Ark at 116, Sarah at 78, and Måns at 61.
Edit: we're seeing the phone numbers again. Sebastian's song is so much better than Andreas's.
Edit: telephone votes in, and the Ark win! I am happy for them, and my mood is somewhat improved by the fact that poor Måns got the second highest number of the public's votes. Andreas got the third highest and Sarah the fourth. As for overall results, Andreas came 2nd with 189, Måns 3rd with 171, and Sarah 4th with 122. It's probably just as well for any breakable objects nearby me that Mans didn't win--I think they would've ended up thrown up in the air in excitement. Can I hazard a guess that Måns would've got more votes from the public if he'd been in the top 3 after the juries' results? I would've thought the lead the top 3 had would've encouraged people to vote strategically for one of those, not for Måns. Congratulations to the Ark, though! The stream was generally great, too--skippy during Sebastian's performance, but that's about it.
Very stop-start so far...hopefully it all improves...Jessica vs. Elin up first.
Edit: I basically saw Elin's performance as a series of still images, so I can't judge...and now Anna Book is saying something about her...looked good, though!
Edit: and now the Ark are speaking about Jessica. Oh, Jessica, you might not have been comfortable in those hotpants last year, but did you have to go in the complete opposite direction? What is that shirt?
Edit: between these two, I'm not sure that it makes a huge difference to me...I think I might give Elin the edge, in terms of my preference, but it's very up in the air. I sort of have a sentimental attachment to Jessica.
Edit: ...and Jessica's through to the next round of this second chance thing! She was too cute holding that stuffed tiger, so I'm happy with this, too.
Edit: Jimmy vs. Sanna now...ooo, it's like Grease! They're going to race! I should support Sanna here, and I love her song, but I just love Jimmy's song more...he's who I'm rooting for.
Edit: yup, I still adore that song; even now, when I hear it I feel a strong desire to start bouncing around the room. It's so exactly what I love!
Edit...ohh, but I do love Sanna's song, too; both are in my top 10. My two favorites in the second chance round, and they're up against each other; can't we just send them both through instead?
Edit: Sanna's through--no surprise, and I am happy for her, but Jimmy's song is just so fun! I'm hoping she beats Jessica and goes to the Globen. Next up is Uno & Irma vs. Sonja, and I'm definitely hoping Sonja wins this; her ballad is so much better than Uno & Irma's.
Edit: there is something endearing about Uno & Irma's song, but--ooo, now Sonja's singing a Shirley song! And the audience is clapping along! See, people want her back!
Edit: Sonya through--good! I'm not sure who I want to win out of Magnus Uggla vs. Nanne--I think Nanne, though; and if I want Nanne to win, do I want her to beat Sonya? I'm not sure...I think so, but hmm...
Edit: Nanne and Magnus are playing chess--I think Nanne's the U.S. and Magnus is the Soviet Union?
Edit: Nanne's just performed, and--ooo! Now Mans is talking about Nanne. I love Mans's song--it's what I'm hoping wins the whole thing.
Edit: I just live this middle marchy bit of Magnus's song. And he really puts on a great show.
Edit: Magnus through. There will be some very unhappy people out there. I think I would've preferred Nanne, but I'm not hugely angry about it.
Edit: I've only ever seen Jessica's performance when the stream was very stop-start, so I've never noticed how she rips the tie off a man and then he takes it and puts it back on--I guess they didn't want her dancing around with a tie or something lying on the floor to interfere with strutting! I should be hoping for Sanna win more than I am--I want her to win, I think, but not as much as I expected.
Edit: lost my stream...and just when I was getting all optimistic about it staying.
Edit:...it's back! For the end of Sanna's performance.
Edit: some clips from the past--maybe past second chancers in the final? We get to see Barbados with Magnus, Alcazar, Bubbles, and Shirley Clamp, among others.
Edit: clips continue--oh my gosh, "Alcastar"! "Alla flickor"! Also, Magnus Backlund and Rednex. Yup, I'm pretty sure this is past second chance contestants' performances. I'm feeling all nostalgic now.
Edit: Sonja's just performed. Who do I want to win out of her and Magnus? I have no idea.
Edit: the host is smelling Jessica and Sanna now--weird! Just tell us who's made it.
Edit: nope, not telling us yet; Magnus is performing.
Edit: I've decided Magnus is too dangerous in the finals--I want Sonja to win this round.
Edit: great performance from Magnus again, and it is a fun song, but I hold to what I said--hopefully Sonja would just further split the ballad votes in the final, whereas I can see Magnus doing quite well. And if I want Mans to win, the less competition, the better.
Edit: Sanna through to the final!
Edit: and Sonja through! I'm surprised, but pleasantly so! Good for her.
My last minute hopes, before seeing the performances: Jimmy and the Ark to the final, Cosmo4 (what was I thinking yesterday when I said the chorus needed to be a little catchier? It's already incredibly catchy!) and Regina to the second chance. All the predictions seem to have the Ark making it to the final, though, so I'm throwing the weight of my "wishing and hoping" energy behind Jimmy and Cosmo4, but Regina is catching up fast.
Edit: worst. stream. ever. I missed Regina, saw a couple seconds of the end of Marie's (it seemed like she got an awful lot of applause...I'm worried), missed the first half of Jimmy's, missed most of Jessica's, missed all of that duet, and missed the last two-thirds of the Ark, and what I did see of everything was basically a series of still pictures. Sheesh. I've switched over to the radio now (P4 Melodifest here), but I can't even begin to evaluate the performances. Hopefully someone puts them up on YouTube soon. We're in the first round of voting now.
Edit 2: the top 5: Marie, Cosmo4, Jimmy, Jessica, and the Ark--I'll take that! Actually, I'm very happy with that. Now, let Marie place fifth, and I'll be thrilled.
Edit 3: the stream is back for me, though it's not very good...
Edit 4: the Ark go direct to the final...
Edit 5: Jimmy and Jessica to the second chance round...Marie's probably going to beat Cosmo4, but there's no justice if she does...
Edit 6:...yup, Marie to the final. It's not that I hate the song, but it's not exciting, it's not what I want from this contest. Poor Cosmo4--I absolutely love their song! I hope it does well on the charts afterwards. Out of all the girls, they were easily the best, and they're somewhere in my not-yet-mapped-out top 3.
Edit 7: final edit, I think--Jessica will be facing Elin in the second chance round. With one exception (maybe two), I'm not really excited about the final yet, despite a lot of songs in the contest I like. I'm so glad Jimmy made it to at least the second chance round, though--I really like his song (but then, I adore McFly, so that's probably not surprising). It's really a shame about Cosmo4, though--I was really hoping they would do well! If Regina ended up eight, I'm guessing there was something wrong with her performance, as the song was great, but maybe not, given last week--I'm still upset about Andreas's placing, even if the whole "Dandy Andy and the Funky Nuns" thing was sort of weird ("Move" is out as a single on March 5, by the way!).
Next week has a lot of people I actually know, too--Nanne Grönvall, Magnus Carlsson, Sebastian Karlsson, Sonya, the Attic feat. Therese, and a former Idol contestant from the same season as Sebastian, Måns Zelmerlöw (I've never seen him sing before, though), who also won Let's Dance. I can't wait!
Wow! I can't even begin to choose my top three from this round! ...which means I may be forced to do something I was hoping to avoid, but I might not be able to help it. Some people I wasn't expecting to have really surprised me (and thank goodness they did, becaues I was a little worried about being let down near the beginning). I'll update in a few minutes.
All right, in no particular order, my top five (full song titles and artists, in addition to being labeled on the song itself, can be found here):
Something about a name, sung by a boy (doesn't Jimmy sort of sound like McFly? I'm tempted to say first album McFly, but those "ooo"'s sound an awful lot like something out of "Star Girl," don't they? Put this in the "everyone else will hate it, but Poster Girl loves it" file. It may sound young, but it's so much fun! Easily one of my favorites of the competition so far. I'd love to see it do well; even though it might not be the greatest choice if Sweden wants to do as well as possible at Eurovision, could it at least make it to the finals, please? And do well in the charts afterwards?)
Something about a name, sung by girls (a helicopter! It opens with helicopter sound effects! One of the hallmarks of a great pop song--if we include videos, Matt Willis's "Up All Night," Nelly Furtado's "Say It Right," and the Click Five's "Just The Girl" all had helicopters opening their songs. It's got some brilliant lyrics, too, especially in that first verse. I wish the chorus was a little catchier, but I still love this song. Really fun, very poppy and upbeat. Robpop will probably love it.)
Something about worrying (I cannot wait to see this performed! It seems like everyone thinks this will make it to the finals, and that, to say the least, is a very good thing.)
Something about once believing, maybe (I'd never heard of this group before now, but I'm going to have to find out more about them! This is excellent! I sort of wish it was sung really energetically by a girl, because I think that could have made it really fabulous, an absolute impossible-to-listen-to-without-dancing stormer, but it's still great--synthy and super-danceable)
Something about coming (Jessica's song, and I'm not as excited about it as I was hoping to be. Still, maybe that's just because I had really high expectations, and I'm hoping it's going to grow on me. Maybe the performance will do it? I'm posting it because I'm quite sure I'll love it in no time. Uptempo and poppy.)
You can listen to all the songs here; click on the pink arrow next to the artist's name. Malin's song is pretty in a dreamy singer-songwritery way, but I think I prefer Regina's song, which I probably could have posted because I like a lot, too. Actually, why not?
Something about being a star (disco-ish, but not the sort with over-the-top-singing...sort of that "cool disco" style. There's a tiny skip-ish thing near the beginning...I'll go back and fix it ASAP. I already like this a lot, and I could see it jumping up the list in terms of my favorites pretty quickly. For the moment, though, there are other songs that I'd much rather see make it to the final.)
These are all web rips, so let me know if there's something wrong with the audio. Most importantly, don't forget to preorder the album!
Next up: I'm not sure...possibly more Swedish stuff, but I'll try to avoid that if I can.
After a run of songs that seemed to all be serious, hip, or rocky, today we're returning to "pure pop" that is, most importantly, incredibly fun and happy. Fame (who should really be shown in a color picture, because black-and-white just doesn't represent them) were a Swedish duo made up of Magnus Bäcklund and Jessica Andersson, two contestants on Fame Factory, a reality show singing contest. Though Magnus won (Jessica dropped out), the two would team up to form Fame and ended up representing Sweden in the 2003 Eurovision with "Give Me Your Love," which took fifth. Supposedly, from what I've heard (which could very well be out of date--does anyone know?), the duo is still sort of together, but Magnus released a solo album this year (it's more pop-rock than Fame's music) and they each competed separately in Melodifestivalen. Though the studio recording of "Give Me Your Love" on their album (also called Give Me Your Love) lacks some of the energy and emotion of the live version, the album nevertheless has some really great songs on it--it's incredibly poppy.
Anyway You Want It--some of the album's songs have, like "Give Me Your Love," Magnus and Jessica singing together. Others, though, feature just one of the two. This is one of those--it's a Jessica song. "Anyway You Want It" starts out with this neat overlapping, harmonizing effect before it jumps into the energetic, upbeat part of the song. The whole song is cheery, poppy fun, but the chorus deserves special mention--it'll have you wanting to sing along with it.
Like The Sun After Rain--a little more balladish than "Anyway You Want It" (though catchy and still not really slow), "Like The Sun After Rain" features both Jessica and Magnus. It's sweet and, though still very pop, it's a little more toned down--not quite bursting with exuberance like some of their other songs, but still happy.
To buy Fame's debut album Give Me Your Love, go here (physical).
Next up: Give Me Your Love also has a surprising (though I can guess why it's there) cover on it that will be appearing here in the near future. For now, either a song in Spanish or a couple of songs from the new album of an artist who often sings in languages besides English, but is American.
Your problems don't exist when music feels like this.
Songs are posted only for promotional purposes (I love them and want others to know about them, too)--if you like them, please "go out and buy the record"! If you are an artist, represent one, or are a songwriter/producer and would like your songs removed, I'll gladly do so (just let me know).
As I mentioned recently, Linda Bengtzing's "Jag ljuger så bra" is quite possibly my favorite schlager song of all time, and definitely in the top ten. I had no expectations that Jessica Andersson's demo would surpass it in my affections, especially without the benefit of having ever been given the final polish a song actually to be released receives. It doesn't, but I'm very glad to have it.
