As per my usual annual analysis here it comes for Melodifestivalen 2009; the clearly most exciting event of the year. So far this year seems to be quite good. We don’t have Kristian Luuk this year, which is sad, but we have Petra Mede which seems to be doing quite well considering. Clearly a comedian, and with an accent that I can’t quite place. I only wish that we didn’t have to see the International Jury as it’s kind of cheesy and the guy is French, so it’s even more pathetic in my opinion. She changes dresses at every interval, and has a great sense of stage-presence! I think that however well she and the show is, it’s sort of compounded by the great music that SVT provides. Before each act, there is a little biography with “powerful and triumphant” music. It’s a good idea, in order to give some info for the artists and what they are doing. So without further wait, here we go!
Nina Söderquist – Tick tock
Personal Favourite
Although unfortunate that she didn’t make it to the Andra Chansen (where she belonged) this song is a great hit and really catchy in my ear. It starts out with a sort of operatic-opening by Nina, who is a West-End Show-Girl. Man can she sing right on pitch (being professional and all!), and dance along with it! I feel that she’s portraying herself as a dominatrix in this show, but otherwise it’s a great hit. I see myself bopping to this all the time. The men are wearing skirts, however which is odd, but you go girl! Luckily it made the Andra av gången, but came fifth finally. What a shame, but for an opening number I think it’s a damn good way to open the show.
Jonathan Fagerlund – Welcome to my life Personal Favourite
What a cute little piece from Jönköping, who wanted to be a web-designer? So far, good on my books! But then it all went down, singing on Supertroupers and then being in a boyband Streetwise. The brunette is clearly out of a boyband era, but there is something special about this number. Perhaps it’s a boyband star singing with a girlband, to a girlband song. The song itself is really catchy and I like it. It’s cute singer that knows how to shake his hips (being a boyband creation of course), but I keep getting a vibe from him and his performance. It’s a gay vibe, but I feel that it’s way off, but the clothes, the hair, the eyes, the everything. Even the girl-band of course! Anyways, the song is great, it’s got great lyrics, he sings it really well. Back to appearances though; he’s a boybander and he doesn’t have tattoos (at least to that I can’t see) and to compound it there is very little hair on this boy’s body, if you know what I mean. 😉 Damn you public for not accepting this star!
Shirley Clamp – Med hjärtat fyllt av ljus
Shirley is back, but what the hell is she doing? I love her as singer. She’s experienced, she has great skill and a distinctive voice, but what the hell is Plingy, Bobby and Henrik doing? This song has the weirdest melody, and text that makes it sound like her heart is filled with juice, and not light. It just makes me kind of cringe inside, and the thought of her doing a ballad makes me even more sad. She needs an uptempo sort of tune to get the toes tapping, but this is just cheezy lyrics, horrible melody and harmony, and a song that just I want to forget. She does have a beautiful dress, however, and sparkles!! Yay glitter on her eyes, it makes me so happy, but still I don’t accept this song at all!
Scotts – Jag tror på oss
Andra Chansen
I won’t lie about this one. A boyband from the 90’s, that look a lot older and struggling to stay young, with a song like this makes me sort of question what the Swedish public was thinking. The guy(s) can sing, but the song isn’t really that difficult. It’s too rockish and a post-boyband teeny-bopper kind of way. I just think it would have better suited for other people, but apparently people want to see it again because it’s in Andra Chansen. I think that it’s just sort of tragic, because there were better songs. Given the songwriters, however, it’s not surprising that it’s sort of “awkward.” I’m sad from this one.
Emilia Rydberg – You’re my world Qualified Personal Favourite
What a bloody marvelous piece of music this. She’s a great singer, she’s a pretty girl, she’s got a song that simply speaks to everyone. I thought it was going to be jazz tune at the beginning, but then we just get a great surprise. It’s inspirational, it’s flashy, and it’s got a ton of people on stage (did the rules change?) I think this song gets more sexy points also because there is a contrabass on stage, and that makes me drool! It makes me feel like I’m in New York, and I think it’s fabulous and can do great things, but this is the only first Semifinal and it’s possible to get lost in the shuffle.
Alcazar – Stay the night Qualified Personal Favourite
I think I exploded a little bit in my pants when this song started. Being Alcazar, reunited for the first time in like forever, made me happy. Tess, Andreas, and the new member Lina (remember Nothing can stop me!? — I do!!!) take sexy-disco outfits, a fucking amazing disco-pop song and bust a move on stage. I must admit that they do look a lot older (especially Andreas who has shaved his head because of probable balding, and sporting sexy eyeliner). This song is pure sex, and when I say that I mean truly. The dancing is precise to the music, the choreographers deserve a clap, and then the singers deserve another great pat because the singing is class. They are hawt, they are sexy, they have a hawt song and don’t need to be on stage with anyone else but themselves, and it makes me so happy. I want to stay the night, cause I can be your lover, so hold on tight, and be your guide to paradise! The only critique on clothes that I would give is Andreas’ shoes which are tacky. The pink bodysuit and turquoise dress is bloody sexy.
Caroline af Ugglas – Snälla snälla Andra Chansen & International Jury Choice
A normal Caroline af Ugglas song. Always inspired by Janis Joplin it just sort of rasps off of her vocal cord, but this song makes me hate the word snälla, because she says it so many damn songs. Also do you realise how difficult it is to take a decent screenshot of her? She always has this weird constipated look on her face. Bar all that, she’s a good performer, and it’s simple enough. The style is Swedish, and I don’t see it winning, but it’s going to make it to the Final (quite possibly) after the second chance round and the jury. I don’t really see what the jury saw in it though, considering they are not Swedish…
Marie Serneholt – Disconnect me
I’m not sure really what to think about this one. It’s Marie, ex-member of A*Teens. How do I know this? Because A*Teens was my favourite band. I joined their fan site in 1999 and have been a member since (even after their break-up!) Sadly most of the members went sour: Dhani became a man-whore looking singer who can’t sing (why, he was so cute as a blondie innocent boy!), Sara is well who knows, and Amit had a go at a career but I reckon it was all done after they split. This song is catchy, but it’s like a weird pop song that has a bit of funk. The dancers bedazzled me more than her though, because she sort of looks like a bimbo. Plus the dancers hadd a shirt that opened low in the front, and high in the back, which means we got to see sexy dancer backs the whole time. Even still, I think the song is a little immature for the older-Marie. It was the wildcard and got dropped, oh well!
All in all the night was great, but the interval acts were… strange. I particularly liked the opening sequence with Charlotte (last year’s winner) and past winner Martin Stenmarck. I have to say that he’s certainly gotten more ripe and golden with age, and is drop dead gorgeous. And as always the song that he busts out could have even been a song in the competition and have done well; haha! Maybe it was one of the songs submitted that they decided to get them to sing to; whatever, take away his tattoos and I could find about a dozen people to shag him!
Comments are welcome, by the way!