Eurovision 2023 – The story so far (Part 1)

The Eurovision Song Contest played a huge part in inspiring the creation of this website, so it’s only fair that we turn our attention to it as the season heats up with just over two months to go before one of our favorite weeks of the year. This is the first of a series of posts where we will be taking a look at the songs and artists who will be flying the national flags in Liverpool, as the United Kingdom assumes hosting duties on Ukraine’s behalf.

In spite of the nation currently being under attack, it was defending champion Ukraine who officially kicked the Eurovision season off, boasting incredible production values for their national final Vidbir despite the fact that they were forced to hold it in a bomb shelter. Vidbir musical director Dmytro Shurov chose to prioritize entries with a different sound from that of last year’s ESC winners Kalush Orchestra, in a controversial but smart decision, as it prevents Ukraine’s bid from falling into a trap we have repeatedly seen at Eurovision: that of countries trying to mimic the style of the previous year’s winning entry, failing at it, and ruining their chances of victory as a result.

In a very close national final, with the decision coming down to a one-point margin, it was Ternopil duo Tvorchi who got the ticket to Liverpool with their English-language song Heart of Steel, a song about determination in the face of adversity inspired by the resistance at Mariupol’s Azovstal Iron and Steel Works facility on April 2022. With a hard-hitting electronic rhythm and a spectacular presentation carrying a message against the danger of nuclear warfare, we can certainly expect Ukraine to once again be a top contender for the glass microphone in Liverpool.

On December 22, 2022, just five days after Vidbir, over in Albania, the 61st edition of Festivali i Këngës came to a close. However, the Eurovision selection was only a part of the contest this time around, with the ESC entry being decided only through televote, while this same televote and jury counted for the full result of the competition. As a result of this set of rules, it is not overall FiK winner Elsa Lila who will be going to Liverpool, but Albina Kelmendi and her family, who won the televote. The song’s lyrics are about a family falling apart because of a disagreement, and a plea for them to find a way to mend fences.

With Albania’s hit-or-miss track record at Eurovision, we feel this one could go either way. But for better or worse, Duje feels unmistakably Albanian with its traditional touch, and could be a dark horse in the making with the right staging.

Belgium’s first national final in seven years saw Gustaph emerge as the surprise victor with jury and televote cancelling each other’s favorites out. For his song Because of You, Gustaph drew inspiration from his experiences as a member of the LGBTQ+ community.

As for how it will do in the contest, we’re honestly not sure. Gustaph’s contagious energy and flamboyant styling are most of what Because of You has going for it, which did not work out great for Israel’s Michael Ben David last year in Turin. We’re waiting and seeing, but right now we cannot picture this entry getting Belgium on the top half of the board.

Dublin band Wild Youth will face the unenviable task of breaking Ireland’s eight-contest streak of semifinal eliminations in Liverpool. Their song, We Are One, mirrors the mission statement of Eurovision itself to bring a message of peace and unity to Europe.

But when it comes to ending Ireland’s woes in the contest, we just don’t feel this is it. Wild Youth deliver a generic, unremarkable track that is likely to get lost in the shuffle in the semifinals, more so considering that, for the time being, the stage presentation doesn’t look all that promising either.

Norwegian-Italian singer Alessandra Mele will be flying Norway’s flag in Liverpool with Queen of Kings, an empowerment anthem which, much like Gustaph, also draws inspiration from Alessandra’s own experiences as a bisexual woman. Mele dominated the competition in the Norwegian national final, the Melodi Grand Prix, back in February, winning the final 95 points clear of runner-up and 2020 champion Ulrikke.

And we have to say we’re impressed. At just 20 years old, Alessandra already has a commanding presence on stage that perfectly fits the powerful energy of the song, which itself is well-produced and attention-grabbing. We can’t say for sure Alessandra will take the throne in Liverpool, but the Norwegian queen (of kings) will certainly be one to watch out for.

Slovenia is bringing the fun this year. Giving their national final EMA a rest this year, RTVSLO selected internally one of the country’s best-known indie rock acts in four-piece band Joker Out last December, but we had to wait until February to hear the song they would be presenting.

But it sure was worth the wait. Carpe Diem, titled after the famed Latin aphorism meaning “seize the day”, is indeed a fun, enjoyable track which could help Slovenia find its way back into the Eurovision final with the right staging. With Bojan and company ready to dance the night away in Liverpool, you certainly should not sleep on them.

After Chanel broke Spain’s bottom-seven streak last year in Turin, there was major hype surrounding Benidorm Fest when it came back for its second edition. In spite of not quite matching the well-balanced cast of its first run, Spain’s new national final certainly delivered some memorable performances, including that of eventual winner Blanca Paloma, who came back to Benidorm Fest with a vengeance after coming in fifth in 2022, putting her own twist on a Flamenco lullaby in her song Eaea.

Now, being Spaniards, we might not be completely unbiased here, but the potential for something big is definitely there. Blanca not only has an impressive voice, but also experience in set and costume design that makes it easier for her to develop her artistic vision into something unique and memorable. If Chanel brought Spain back to the Eurovision top spots last year, we feel Blanca will ensure it doesn’t leave them anytime soon.

Vesna were completely unmatched in Czechia’s national selection, ESCZ, scoring over 2,700 more votes than the other four competing acts combined. The Prague-based band will now be heading over to Liverpool with My Sister’s Crown, a track performed in four languages (English, Czech, Ukrainian and Bulgarian) that has been interpreted as a thinly-veiled protest song against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The song is striking in terms of sound, with its intriguing mixture of folk and more modern influences, but we are not yet sold on its live presentation. We will have to wait and see if and how the staging is tweaked for Liverpool.

If there is one entry so far in the lineup of Eurovision 2023 that you can’t not care about, that would be Croatia’s Let 3. The veteran rock band throws any hint of subtlety out the window in an out-and-out mockery of dictators’ childish behavior, which they have made no secret that is particularly targeted at Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Like we were hinting at with our opening statement on this entry, Mama ŠČ! is definitely a love-it-or-hate-it type of entry, one that will certainly be on viewers’ minds by the time the show is finished, even those who absolutely do not want to vote for it. That has worked well in the past for other provocative Eurovision acts such as Hatari, who achieved a top-ten finish back in 2019, but will it be the catalyst Croatia needs to get to the final for the first time since 2017?

And to close out this section, we would like to give the folks at Overthinking It a shout-out for their interesting analysis of this song and of Let 3’s most notorious moments. You can check it out right this way.

Part 2 will be coming next week with our quick takes on nine more entries for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest. Until then, feel free to let us know what you think in the comments!