Here are the ten songs that will compete in this weekend’s Melodifestivalen final, and the order that they’ll be performed in. Plus, our thoughts and predicitions!
This was one of the favourites to win before all of the songs were heard. But although it’s a really good ballad that we like a lot, we discounted it as a winner as soon as we heard it. It’s just not a Melodifestivalen winning song. However, Darin HAS a Melodifestivalen winning fanbase. And so we’d be very surprised if this didn’t finish top 5 at least, possibly top 3.
We’re so happy that Pernilla is here for the party, flying the schlager flag so proudly. Yes, it’s a much lesser version of the type of schlager we usually get at Melodifestivalen from the likes of Linda Bengtzing and Lena Philipsson, but this year’s contest has been starved of schlager, and so it stands out easily. And having danced to it in clubs during many nights out in Stockholm over the last couple of weeks, we really enjoy it now. It’s a grower that will stand the test of time. On a schlager par with say, ‘Om Natten’ by Jessica Folcker, or ‘Kalla Natter’ by Jessica Andersson. This qualified from the andra chansen round last weekend. And unfortunately, we think that it’s destined for a bottom three position on Saturday.
This is our favourite Andreas Johnson Melodifestivalen entry, but it seems to be Sweden’s least favourite. It’s not doing very well on sales, in opinion polls, or with youtube views. And nobody is considering it a serious contender. Like Pernilla’s song, we think this will finish in the bottom 3 on Saturday.
Our favourite of the night, and of the whole competition. We would love this to win. Not just because it’s the best song, not just because it would result in the best finish for Sweden at Eurovision, but also because it would give the two fingers up to SVT/Christer Bjorkman/the juries, or whoever it was that decided that Melodifestivalen 2010 should move away from the usual pop and schlager feel, and try to be a bit more contemporary. When people want contemporary music, they go out and buy it, or just listen to the whichever radio station they prefer. Nobody wants it in Melodifestivalen though, so leave it be. And nothing would hammer this point home more than a win by ‘Kom’!
See our write up of the Darin song earlier in this post. Our feelings about this are the exact same!
Poor Ola. He’s probably gonna come last with this. It’s not his fault, it’s just that ‘Unstoppable’ is nowhere near as strong as the material he’s released in the past. We like it, it’s nice to sing along to, but it’s going to look and sound like it’s totally out of its league on Saturday night as soon as Eric Saade performs ‘Manboy’. Both Eric’s song and performance put this to shame.
Jessica, Jessica, Jessica. We love you, but this song really isn’t good enough. We like it, but it just sums up the quality of this year’s Melodifestivalen songs when this ballad manages to make the final, when in 2008, two far superior ballads (by Shirley Clamp and Susanne Alfvengren) both had to settle for 8th place in their respective heats. Having said that, her voice is great, the performance in andra chansen was wonderful, and Jessica is so nice too. The song really is the weakest link in all of this. We’re predicting that it finishes mid table. If she can perform it like she did last weekend.
This one we like a lot. And we think it’s going to do very well indeed.
And it looks like we have a winner. Right since the song has gone on sale, and up to the moment of writing, it’s been number one on Swedish iTunes. It’s hard to see how this won’t win really, the juries will love it and the public already do love it. And it’s not exactly undeserved either, it’s a great song. Not our favourite by any stretch, but we do like it.
Ah Eric. Winner of the 2010 scandipop award for ‘Brightest New Hope’, and he hasn’t let us down! Brilliant song, amazing performance, and easily one of the standout tracks of this year’s contest (our second favourite after ‘Kom’). We’d love to see it win, but it’s unlikely, and it’ll probably finish mid table. We’re already looking beyond Saturday though and looking forward to his debut album, which will be released in May.
