Kyiv 2017 - first semi-final

EEEEP ... !!! :-D :-D :-D

OMG, it's happening. We've been waiting for a year and now it's happening. YAY!! :-D

I'm really psyched to see what they've put together for us after all the problems they've been having this year. I'm sure it's going to be good. :-)

A few glimpses of Ukrainian traditions and then some very modern music, a good combo.

The hosts, whose names I can't pronounce! At least the last names. That's great, it's a Eurovision tradition. They look like a boy band. Some things are universal. ;-)

Rules and explanations. SO happy that we can't vote during the songs this year. It's the only way to go.

I can't vote tonight as we're not in this semi ... but that doesn't matter, because I only want to vote for Italy. Rome 2018 ... !! But there's a big danger to Francesco and his gorilla friend and it's coming up now ...

Namely Sweden, opening the show with I Can't Go On. It's pretty much the best song this year and I hate it. It's so super slick and overproduced, it has zero personality. The performance is also just ... embarrassing. Fortunately his voice isn't sounding too good tonight. But the song is very catchy, and most of the other entries this year are emphatically not. So I think this is the most serious contender this year. But I hate it and I would give a lot to keep it from winning. Especially since the Swedes will be beyond insufferable if they win again and tie with Ireland for most ever wins ...

I'll have to hope this very early slot will be their downfall, but at the same time they are opening the show, so I don't think it'll have that effect anyway. No way they won't get through.

Georgia - Keep the Faith. Very red! A dramatic and quite beautiful ballad, but like most of the other songs tonight, not very memorable. Although Tamara's performance is excellent and she's really putting her heart into it ... this is actually better than I thought it would be.

Australia - Don't Come Easy. I love having Australia in the contest but I certainly don't love this song. This kid is 17 but looks 13, and is wildly unconvincing performing this song. No matter how many times he tries, he can't outrun his past ... ?? Seriously? He hasn't even finished school! Gah. This is just too dumb. It can still do well since a hell of a lot of the audience can't understand English well enough to follow a 3 minute song. But it's also really boring compared to Australia's previous two entries and it's kind of freaky that most of their presentation consists of giant pictures of Isaiah flashing on the screen behind Isaiah. Here's hoping they'll get metaphorically punched in the nose this year.

Albania - World. Well, my hopes for Albania are rarely high, but at least Lindita can sing. Even though she's dressed kind of like a really tacky bride. o_O This is one of those songs that are really pretty and pleasant to listen to while they're playing, but that you forget as soon as they're over. There are SO MANY of those songs this year. Good luck, they'll need it.

Belgium - City Lights. Ooh, what will this look like ... ! She has such a cool voice. And their presentation looks so cool too. Wow! This sounds even better live than I thought it would. This is one of the few more original entries this year. And Blanche's performance will appeal to quite a lot of the audience, she's putting a lot of emotion into it. Good job, Belgium!!

Montenegro - Space. I've been really looking forward to seeing the presentation for this song. OMG what is he wearing. The audience in the arena love him! :-D Haha, I knew the skirt would come off. Ahahahaha!! This is why I love Eurovision! This is the kind of thing you ONLY see in Eurovision ... !! :-D Hahaha, omg, seriously. This will maybe do super well or it may totally bomb. I don't even dare to guess ... ! :-D

Info about the Eurovision app. I has it.

Backstage with Timur and the performers. Timur is kind of the girl this year. Hmm ... not a lot of cheers in the arena for Sweden ...

Finland - Blackbird. I love Finland, and I quite like their entry this year. It's rather typically Finnish. ;-) Ie slow and rather depressing. :-D But it's beautiful, I like it. And Leena's voice is perfect for this type of song. I'm sure a lot of people are really loving this song right now ... and most of them will forget it as soon as it's over. But there are many songs this year that are even less memorable and not this good, so I'm cautiously optimistic.

Azerbaijan - Skeletons. What a weird presentation! Francesco won't be the only one with a dancer dressed unconvincingly as an animal. The song is pretty and enjoyable to listen to but also rather forgettable. The singer stands out a bit, maybe. But this is just one in the crowd for me.

Portugal - Amar pelos dois. One of my absolute favorites this year. I love that they almost always sing in their own language. With a song like this, an emotional ballad, it's such a huge plus because the singer can completely put his heart into it when it's his own language. He has a charming voice and the song is adorable, and really stands out from the rest of the lineup this year. The arena audience loves it. They have got to get through ... !!

Greece - This Is Love. Another pretty girl with a relatively good voice and a song that's pretty to listen to, but also forgettable. Not sure what more to say about this. Pretty, but forgettable.

Poland - Flashlight. Another pretty girl in white. I don't like her voice that much, for reasons I can't really put my finger on. The song is very dramatic but IMO also rather forgettable. The melody doesn't stick in your mind the way ballads can do sometimes. I have low expectations for Poland this year.

Moldova - Hey Mamma. One of my least favorite songs this year. Pretty much just dumb. And repetitive, which makes it annoying. But they're very happy and smiley and people will like that. Plus they have their saxophone player who is quite popular, but also annoying. Hopefully we won't have to sit through this on Saturday.

Iceland - Paper. What's with all the blonde women in white dresses this year ... ?? Not too smart, no one will remember which is which. The Georgians were smart to go with red. This song is also pretty but forgettable. Almost the entire lineup is like that this year. Makes it hard to guess how the various songs will do. This one can go either way, but it's really bland, it doesn't stand out in any way.

Czech Republic - My Turn. Are the Czechs cursed or can they actually not completely bomb in Eurovision?? Well, they've sent some real clunkers. They've done much better this year. But the song is still not very memorable. And her outfit is hideous. I wouldn't mind hearing the song again on Saturday but I'd rather not see that outfit ...

Cyprus - Gravity. Finally a non-ballad. And a man in black. :-D Slightly weird presentation, but cool effects. It's sounding better live than I expected. Kind of catchy. Not at all bad. This might do pretty well for Cyprus actually.

Armenia - Fly with Me. Another entry that I've been looking forward to seeing presented. Ooh, ethnic. And I like her outfit. I like the beat in this song ... it's a sort of unmelodious melody, if that makes sense. Her voice is pretty good, it's a pretty good performance, but I don't know ... The presentation isn't very creative. I don't know. Impossible to say this year, there's almost nothing that's really good this year.

Slovenia - On My Way. Omar's back in Kyiv! :-D I actually quite like his song from last time. But I like this even more. :-) It's a big dramatic ballad but also rather cheerful somehow. Ooh, I like this ... !! Hope he gets through to the final this time. ;-)

Latvia - Line. OMG, the last song already! Time flies when you're having fun. Agnese is dressed super weird, I honestly don't think that's a good idea. It distracts the audience from the song. A rather overpowering presentation like this does the same. But the song is rather original, for this year's lineup. Original in genre, but also repetitive in melody.

It's done!

Now info about voting which doesn't apply to Norway tonight. Alas. I wish I could vote for Portugal!! But I feel pretty confident I'll be able to do that on Saturday. ;-)

First runthrough.

Interval entertainment will be ... Jamala! Should be interesting. Flashback to Stockholm. Then an excellent performance of 1944, which goes down very well with the audience in the arena. An interview with Jamala.

Another pit stop in the green room.

Second runthrough.

The voting is winding down, 90 seconds left ...

Voting's over! Now for another round of interval entertainment while the votes are being counted. Verka! :-D And another performance from Jamala. Wow, what an outfit.

And now a little bit from half of the big five. Well, ca half. :-) Spain. I won't say anything about Spain. United Kingdom. A pretty song, but not very special. Italy!! YAY Italy!! I love this song. The presentation looks like it'll be fun. They're getting my vote, no question. :-D

The votes are in and have been counted! Jon Ola Sand confirms. Eep! Who will get through??

My guesses:
Sweden, definitely
Portugal
Belgium?
Montenegro?
Slovenia, I hope
Australia?

OMG I don't know ... !!

Now let's find out ... !

Moldova! WTF??
Azerbaijan. Sure, why not.
Greece
Sweden. Yes, of course
Portugal! Yes!! :-D
Poland
Armenia
Australia. Sheesh.
Cyprus
Belgium! Yes!

OK, so sending a blonde girl in a white dress was not a good idea ... ! :-D

Runthrough of the top ten.

I still can't believe I have to watch the Moldovans one more time.