Lopez Blogs

My final song tonight is not a Eurovision song, but it was a big favourite of mine in the mid-90s when it was a massive hit in the Netherlands. "15 Miljoen Mensen" was written and performed by the songwriting duo Eric van Tijn and Jochem Fluitsma. It was, like many other hit singles, originally featured in a TV commercial. Find the song at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEzwmEwAPgc

Fluitsma and van Tijn also wrote "Hemel en Aarde", my favourite Dutch Eurovision song ever, which was sung by Edsilia Rombley and did very well in the 1998 contest. Find Edsilia's original Dutch national final performance at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ER9kBmmZu2E

Clouseau represented Belgium at the 1991 Eurovision Song Contest with the rather fab "Geef Het Op". Watching their final performance now, two things particular strike me: 1) the presence of co-writer and Soulsister legend Jan Leyers; and 2) Koen Wauters' collar, which only makes me think of Harry Hill (!)
Oh, and it was 1991, so that may be a good excuse to chuckle at Kris Wauters' hair (!!)

Koen was rather sweet though :))))) and I still love this song.

It is probably apparent that most of my all-time favourite Eurovision entries come from the Nordic countries.

So here is "En Dag" by Tommy Nilsson which represented Sweden in 1989. If ever a song deserved to win the contest it was this one: good singer, good song, extremely fabulous songwriting pedigree (the legend that is Alexander Bard, along with Ola Håkansson & Tim Norell of Secret Service). And Tommy's big hair just ruled that year.

Find the original MF-winning performance at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnPRuYCtI2w

Having won the 1985 Eurovision Song Contest, Norge sent Ketil Stokkan to defend their title in 1986 with "Romeo" which is still one of my favourite Eurovision entries ever. OK it's dated, but enjoy Ketil and his rolled-up sleeves (soooo 1980s!) at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHxpc4tjpqQ and I defy you not to try out that little routine that goes with the song :))))

In a parallel universe, I imagine myself at a karaoke night singing this in perfect Swedish, even though a) my Swedish is rubbish, and b) I can't sing.

One of the best Swedish Melodifestivalen winners ever, from 1979. It didn't do very well that year at Eurovision - but to me it will always be fabulous.

Find the late great Ted's Melodifestivalen-winning performance at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EePXylI7TPI&feature=related

Tonight's Retro Saturday is a Eurovision special, in which I share some of my favourite Eurovision Song Contest entries with y'all :)))

FACT: The 1997 Eurovision Song Contest was the only one in my entire life that I didn't watch live (prior social engagement folks!) so on the night I missed out on the utter genius that is "Minn Hinsti Dans" by Paul Oscar.

FACT: "Minn Hinsti Dans" by Paul Oscar, the 1997 Icelandic Eurovision entry, is my most favourite Eurovision Song Contest entry, ever.

Find it (without Wogan's unnecessary mid-song interruption) at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jl0gBt-ns_4

Last week: lost 2 lbs (despite eating my way round Riga).

This week: lost 2 lbs.

It's been a hard week, what with injuring my shoulder and my fitness regime/over-enthusiastic gardening sending my body into a state of chronic fatigue, so I was extremely delighted to end the week with that good news.

Woo-hoo!!!!!

This Is My Life - Euroband: this blog's undisputed favourite Eurovision finals entry of 2008. They were robbed.
Divine - Sebastien Tellier: too good for Eurovision?
Outta My Head - Ashlee Simpson: why isn't this a bigger hit? So catchy.
She's Dangerous - M Pokora: one of the biggest songs on the radio during my Riga holiday - and it looks as if it'll be a big international hit.
If Only You - Danny and Therese: heard this a few times over in Riga too.
Rockin' for Myself - Motiv-8: cracking old dance tune from 1994 or thereabouts which I've rediscovered and can't stop playing.
Who Do You Think You're Foolin'? - Rongedal: follow-up to "Just A Minute". I'll be reviewing their album soon - it's full of ridiculously catchy tunes!
Jennie Let Me Love You - E.M.D.: didn't really like this to begin with, but Rix FM has played it so much that I've been knocked into submission.
Daylight - Kelly Rowland: Easy-going pop-soul number which has grown on me over recent weeks.
Maybe/Thunder Without Rain/Day Before Tomorrow - Brainstorm: I'm still familiarising myself with Prata Vetra's new Latvian-language album - but I'm still loving these classic old English-language songs from them.
21st Century Life/Hot Mess - Sam Sparro: two of the best tracks from his debut album.
Always Always - Zuma: this just gets better and better. It may not have had the ESC impact of "Hold On Be Strong" but presses the right buttons for an old new-romantic fan like me.

I haven't been to Australia. I plan to go very soon, but it's quite pricey and frankly I like my leg room so until i can fly at least business class (you get a better class of blow job from the male cabin crew) or go on one of those flat bed things you see in futuristic movies (DazPecs informs me those futuristic movies are actually commercials) the trip is in my mind only. Though I fully expect room and board from Adem, Ben and Mike who have introduced me to many a great and sometimes trashy pop-oz act over the years. Here are some of my current favourites...

VanShe ~ Strangers:
Oh this is very good indeed. A plunking bass guitar leads into glockenspiel-esque sounds and then the hypnotic voice kicks in with the brilliant opening line "You can blind me with your fosse lips". Like every good pop song, it just keeps getting better until the chorus kicks in and then you are in heaven. The vocal just glides around the music and the punchy beat evokes memories of hazy nights in a smokey nightclub. It is all quite glorious - the electric guitar in the middle 8 and the fuzzy vocal effects are deliriously delicious and then it's back to that 80s meet 00s chorus that i have a feeling will be very hard to get bored of. Oh VanShe ~ I'm not done with you yet (see what I did there?!)
Link: Much more Van She here and here

Axel Whitehead ~ I Don't Do Surprises:
Considering Axel is not averse to a bit of exhibitionism, his single is surprisingly restrained. That's not a bad thing - it's not all about getting your willy out you know. You have to know how to deliver the goods and this song certainly does that. Axel has a great cruisy vocal that floats around a demure melody and a soaring chorus. It's actually a lovely summery laid back pop tune and it reminds me a tiny bit of Chris Martin if he would lighten up a bit. Having said all that, I'd love to see what Axel can do if he just lets rip. Willies at the ready then...
Link: More Axel here

The Presets ~ This Boys in Love:
Ooo this is a bit intense after the other two. It reminds me vaguely of sadly failed British act Protocol (remember them? no? Boo you whores) and perhaps I like it even more after Adem's hilarious interview with the boys on his site. Not averse to a bit of gay flirting and bro-mancing, the song is a relentless electro beat with a powerful vocal delivery and some lovely plinky plonky (yes that's a technical term!) piano sounds littered carefully throughout this groovy tune. Fancy things a bit swirled around? Then be sure to check out the remixes of the song - Kims remix is particularly funky. I haven't heard anything of the boys beyond this, but I will be popping off to investigate the first album right now. For infact I have decided that they are like a more productive Dangerous Muse :P
Link: The Presets can be found here

More ozpop that I quite like right now...

• Vanessa Amorosi ~ Perfect
• Cut Copy ~ Hearts on Fire
• Delta Goodrem ~ You Will Only Break My Heart
• Muscles ~ Sweaty

OK so my time management is all over the place again this week so "The Riga Diaries" won't be on here till this weekend at least. I will get round to doing them though! What a great holiday that was - at least the weather was good, unlike the torrential rain which soaked me not once, twice but three times today :( Add to that what feels like a dislocated shoulder after being a bit too enthusiastic with my "Edward Scissorhands" impersonation in the garden last night....you can say Wednesday wasn't the best day I ever had. Still, it's almost the weekend!!

On the plus side though I've been checking my site visit stats and I'm absolutely delighted that so many of you have visited this little blog over the past week - possibly more visitors than I've ever had before, so thanks to each and every one of you, you're all welcome and hopefully you enjoyed what you've been reading. Thanks again!!

So, you've just finished with one of the world's biggest and most amazing pop groups ever. You could probably do anything you darn well wanted to. So why on earth would you make a musical about a romance at a chess match set during the cold war? Because you are a genius that's why. Benny and Bjorn Abba teamed up with lyricist Tim Rice to create something that on paper sounds an absolute snooze but on disc (and live for it's 21st Anniversary Concert) is an absolute corker. The thing that is so noticeable about Chess is that it's actually a musical full of great pop songs. And these pop songs are originally for the musical, rather than songs taken from the catalogue of pop and inserted into a musical (a la We Will Rock You, Mama Mia, Tonight's The Night et al). There are elements of opera, rock, balladry that ranks up there with the most heartbreaking of Abba's songs, electro-tinged pop and even choir type numbers that almost indicate what Opus Ten would have been like if Abba had stayed together. The musical had a rocky run on Broadway back in the 80s but went on to be well known if only for the concept album that launched it. 21 years later, the Royal Albert Hall in London was packed out for the all star cast revival...

And what a cast. Idina "Elphaba" Menzel takes the role of Florence (the lover), while Josh Groban does an outstanding job with the reluctant protaganist husband Anatoly. Adam Pascal is electrifying as the selfish, manipulative, spiteful and desperate for money American Freddy. Tim Rice came out at the beginning to introduce the cast and launch into the presentation of the Chess he always wanted to make - a subtle political commentary through the focus on a game of chess. And it was cast brilliantly. Idina was received as pretty much a superstar while Josh's voice was perfect for the role he was given - indeed his Act One Finale number "Anthem", well you could almost hear a pin drop during it and the place erupted when he released the last note. An incredible performance. The dancers and chorus were also flawless throughout the whole show - an utter delight to listen to and watch. However, you could almost sense people waiting for the "big numbers" - the ones that had hit the pop charts in the 80s, and subsequently been covered by Steps, A*Teens and uh, C-21. One Night in Bangkok remains a terrific little pop number - all pseudo rapping and a dark menacing chorus disguised in a perky but slightly ominous pop beat. Adam Pascal did an excellent job and his projection and diction on the song were right on the money. Kerry Ellis (who has also played Elphaba) duetted with Idina on "I Know Him So Well" and while both gave an incredible vocal performance, Kerry was just - wow. It really was a wow moment. I never realised how sardonic the song is before either... All in all, a winning performance of a much maligned musical that I can't wait to come to DVD...

LINK: Stage shots courtesy of Ice The Site
LINK: Download the concert recording at Singing Stage

With "Black and Gold" still in the UK top 10 singles chart, and remaining this blogger’s favourite song of 2008 so far, much was expected of the Aussie soul man’s debut album.

I was inspired to write this post today when a rather "kid" like thing happened to me on the way to work. There I was jamming away to the extended version of You Win Again by the BeeGees on my mp3 player, when I arrived at the office and pulled the ear phones out of my ears. One of the bloody little rubber end pieces of the ear phone remained in my ear!! Rather than maturely assessing the situation, i totally freaked out, dancing around like I had ants in my pants until Amanda my work buddy removed it with tweezers (which despite my distress I made her run under a hot tap for a while). I just hate foreign bodies in me! I think it's remnants of having cancer all those years ago!! Anyway, with thanks to my icky experience lets do it for the kids...

I'm always a little surprised by how often i forget how much i love Barenaked Ladies (these ones, not these NSFW ones. Oh lord!) They quietly plod along with occassional mainstream success, but never failing to churn out a jangly little pop tune, witty ode or sweeping folk tune type ballad. When singing of love, they can be quite insightful and mature, but mainly they are gleefully youthful in their punny pop tunes. Which is why making an album "that children will like" was probably a very good idea indeed. It's not their first foray into the world of children's entertainment - in 2002, they had a song called La La La La Lemon on a "For The Kids" compilation cd. Now they have gone about 23 steps further and released "Snacktime" - a joyous celebration of all things kid. What the album does incredibly well is breathe life into the mundane things they sing about whether it be hungry number 7, snack food at a party, or raisins (the shrivelled grapes, not Murphy). And although it's a kid themed album, they still have kept their pop sensibilities, their sense of humour and knack for creating ridiculously catchy tunes. I just find this whole album incredibly charming and frothy, so instead of rave on about it all day here are a few of the highlights...

• On the song "Ninjas" it is learnt that 'ninjas are deadly and silent/they're also incredibly violent/they speak Japanese and do whatever they please/and sometimes they vacation in Ireland" Brilliant! Lovely harmonic tone to the chorus too...
• "Popcorn" is a sneaky little song that would probably work incredibly well in a young kids music class. It's actually a voice exercise song disguised as a lesson about onomatopoeias. Sneaky and amazing...
• "Food Party" is a talky jam (not literally) about the foods being guests at a party. Spicy is loud and obnoxious, Chocolate is smooth and lounge lizardy and the best of all is Orange Peel who is incredibly bitter. As you would be...
• "Raisins" is a lot like the rap bit in One Week- a pretty nonsensical jumbled stream of consciousness that has you trying to keep up with the lyrics after just one listen. Now if only I could summon fish to the dish, I hope you like the chalet swiss, etc...
• There is a rather ace bit in the middle of the title track where a bunch of celebrities describe their favourite snack foods (janeane garofolo, sarah mclachlan, gordon lightfoot, the bands kids) and it's very cute indeed.
• Crazy ABCs is bloody hilarious. That's all i can say without giving away the genius of it...

If you are looking for an alternative to BNL then you might do worse than to check out the mighty They Might Be Giants kids album Here Come The 123s. No "7 ate 9" jokes here, but an incredibly canny marketing move that retains their aging fan base as well as winning over a new generation (and all those people who saw their song on Pushing Daisies!!). They not only teach the kids the essential things like numbers, but they do it in a variety of quirky pop styles all of which are quite lovely. Check out High Five, which sees the giants go a little bit disco and a little bit B52s. One Everything is slightly weird but the more you listen to it, the more it makes sense. And that's the thing here - if you are looking for the slightly off kilter sound TMBG are well known for, you'll find it here, but you'll also find the precise meaning of zero and what exactly infinity is. Overall, i give the edge to BNL but i may very well be biased because I do love those crazy canucks so...

Related kids stuff:

• Moxy Fruvous actually created the best kid song ever back in the 90s called The Kids Song. Download it legally for free here
• Download Barenaked Ladies "789" legally for free here

Related barenaked ladies stuff:

• Is it me or does The Ting Tings current UK number one "That's Not My Name" sound eerily familiar to parts of BNL tune "Grade 9"???

that is all.

Det brukar ta en dag eller två att anpassa sig till ett normalt liv igen. Att leva i en eurovision-bubbla fungerar i 10 dagar men sen brukar orken ta slut. Denna gång har det vara extra heltiskt pga allt jobb i form av tidningsskrivande. För att ha något att skriva om så måste man ju hänga med vad som sker, såväl dag- som nattetid.

Rysslands presskonferens avslutades i natt vid ca 2. Den gick betydligt bättre än efter semifinal 1 då Dima Bilan fullständigt spårade ur och ingen fick några svar på sina frågor och än mindre förstod vad han yrade om. Efter detta var det bara att gå till Euro Club och säga hej då till alla. Standardfrågan var "kommer du till Ryssland nästa år"? Innan jag svarar på det vill jag nog ha lite distans och smälta intrycken från årets tävlingen. Det kan också vara intressant att få veta om det blir i Moskva eller St.Petersburg. Jag är så glad för att ha träffat nya fantastiska vänner. Bl.a Mark och Mathew från Belfast som också bodde på ArkaBarka. Och Serhat från Istanbul, som jobbar med en massa olika saker t.ex sångare, artist manager, programledare för turkiska Jeapardy mm. Det visade sig att vi har gemensamma bekanta i Istanbul och detta kom vi på bara för att vi satt bredvid varandra under semi 1. Världen är bra liten.

Natten fortsatte på Continental Hotel där de nordiska deltagarna, utom Sverige, hade samlats. Jag fick möjlighet gratulera norska Maria till hennes nordisk topplacering, och ställa lite frågor. Hon är en jättegullig tjej som "har en del av sitt hjärta i Sverige" sedan hon jobbat på diverse Wallmans Salonger här. Danska Simon var på plats. Han är lite blyg av sig och det gör honom ännu sötare. Islands EuroBand var på plats och jag har träffat deras manager så jag hoppas vi kan ses i samband med deras spelning under EuroPride i Stockholm i slutet av juli. Teräsbetonis sångare J.Ahola hade släppt loss och jag undrar vad han tycker mina svanduns bo'or som han försvann med innan jag hann stoppa honom. Men so what - slit dem med hälsan. Även en hårdrockare kan behöva beklä sig i annat än läder och nitar.

Det bestående intrycket från ESC och Belgrad är mycket positivt. Trevliga och hjälpsamma människor. Staden har jag sett alldeles för lite av men det lilla jag hunnit med är fint. Många restauranger och uteserveringar överallt i gamla delen. Nu ska jag läsa igenom tidningarna och se vad de skriver om Charlotte och alla andra, samtidigt som jag lyssnar till danska Simons nya CD. Den är riktigt bra. Charlotte och hennes två barn var på samma plan hem och hon såg inte alldeles för ledsen ut. Hon fick applåder i gaten av alla svenskar. Hon har trots allt gjort ett toppenjobb och hon gjorde ett par lysnade framträdande. Synd bara att det inte räckte längre än till en 18:de plats.
PS: Thomas Lundin uppträder i Kronoby i juli. Tyvärr är jag inte där då. Annars hade jag bjudit honom till villan.

Bilderna är uppifrån och ner:
- Israel
- Spanien
- Ryssland
- Bosnien & Herzegovina
- Kroatien
- Grekland

Jag har hela tiden haft en känsla av att Norge kommer att gå långt i denna ESC. Så slutade de också på en 5:te plats och bäst av alla Nordiska länder. Hela altet vanns av Rysslands Dima Bilan. När det stod klart att vare sig Ukraina eller Grekland skulle kunna komma ifatt försprånget gick luften delvis ur publiken. Bland större delen av fanser var det precis den vinnare man inte ville ha. Dima Bilan har inte gjort sig populär här under den tid som Eurovisionen pågått.

Störst skandal är det nog för Sverige. Man kan ju undra hur Christer Björkmans tankar går just nu? Resultaten från semifinalerna publicerades direkt efter finalen och då kunde man se att Perelli egenligen hamnade på 12 plats, men pga juryn så kom hon till final.
Nu är det snart dags att åka mot flygplatsen efter en sömnlös natt och flyga JAT mot hemmaplan. Jag får återkomma med detaljerna när vi landat.

Iceland: exceptional, didn't put a foot wrong, done themselves proud.

Turkey: decided this was a cross between Calogero, the Stereophonics and Barbados' "Varlden Utanfor" which was good. He was a good singer too.

Portugal: highly regarded after its qualification from the semi-final although its fado feel would never impress the whole of Europe.

Latvia: now I'm just back from that country and so I won't be too unkind to the 'pirates' who were 'robbing you blind' . Good fun.


Sweden: and so after all the build-up, Charlotte still (for me) failed to deliver the knockout performance of "Hero" which we expected.

Denmark: foot-tapper (if eventually irritating) song with a memorable catchy chorus. This is the kind of song that used to do so well.

Georgia: I feared the worst but this wasn't too bad actually.

Ukraine: no complaints regarding the highly professional staging/performance of "Shady Lady" which I viewed as a possible winner.

France: Great stuff. Not really one for Eurovision I know, but I liked everything about this, right down to the backing singers' shades and beards.

Azerbaijan: laugh if you must, but after a couple of listens/viewings "Day After Day" became quite popular at EuropeCrazy HQ. Proof that Terry Wogan's time is up: he couldn't even deliver classic quips about this one.

Greece: Britney Spears meets Helena Paparizou. We decided tonight that we didn't like this at all, and that it was possibly our least favourite of the night.

Spain: By this point I'd consumed so much red wine that I even appreciated this one and even worse, was able to rap with the lyrics. My mum liked this.

Serbia: now if "Beli Jablan" had done it, Serbia would have been in my top 5 on the night. As it is, it was just a Serbian woman wailing in a big frock. Mum wants to hear "Baila El Chiki Chiki" again.

Russia: Dima Bilan's name's been dropped here at EC HQ on many an occasion, so it was inevitable that this would attract our attention. Mum thought he was quite hot too. "You never told me he was good-looking!"

Norway: we were both impressed by Maria's performance of "Hold On Be Strong" and given the draw, thought that it would do rather well.

Interval Act: some Balkan folk thing, dare I say it was interminable again?
Voting: after 6 countries, Russia were in the lead.
10.29 pm: UK received 6 points from San Marino. Best-friends-forever status now guaranteed. Likewise to Ireland, who gave us out only other votes: 8 points.
After 9 countries, Greece in the lead. Speculating on horror of further Greek win.
And the 12 points from Serbia goes to ....Bosnia-Hercegovina!
Stian Barsnes Simonsen was Norwegian voting spokesman, sparking uncontrollable scenes of delight at EuropeCrazy HQ.
Ditto Mikko for Finland :)
"12 points goes to Sweden": possibly the funniest moment of the night as Bjorn Gustafsson delivered the votes for Sweden. Oh, it was 12 for Norway. Quelle surprise.
And so the voting went on and on and on. Here's how it ended:

1. Russia
2. Ukraine
3. Greece
4. Armenia
5. Norway
6. Serbia
7. Turkey
8. Azerbaijan
9. Israel
10. Bosnia & Hercegovina
11. Georgia
12. Latvia
13. Portugal
14. Iceland
15. Denmark
16. Spain
17. Albania
18. Sweden
19. France
20. Romania
21. Croatia
22. Finland
23. Germany
24. Poland
25. United Kingdom

For us Librans, "Making Your Mind Up" is not the easiest of tasks.

So do not be surprised that I have not arrived at a winner for tonight's Eurovision final. Instead, I'm predicting that it will be any one of the six on this list:

Iceland (please please please)
Sweden (Charlotte needs to do better than her semi-final performance)
Denmark (if he performs as well as in the semi final, this is dangerous)
Ukraine (professional performance in the semi-final, will do very well)
Russia (foregone conclusion by law of averages, ruined by ludicrous stage act)
Norway (I've always had a feeling about this one: possible best result in years?)

May the best song win, as long as it's "This Is My Life"...

Good luck to Andy Abraham for the UK, he's a good singer but the song is quite weak and (IMHO) wouldn't really appeal to a Eurovision audience. Royaume-Uni has also taken up annual residence near the foot of the scoreboard, so I wouldn't really expect that to change.

I'll be back later tonight with some ramblings. I've got the wine and the Twiglets ready!!

In the meantime, enjoy Eurovision night everyone and may the best song win (although it usually doesn't)!!!

...from a very wonderful five days in the Latvian capital, Riga. We both had a great time, the sun never stopped shining, the scenery was beautiful, and as usual there was lots of good food and drink to be had.

Full review on the way, I've been writing my travel journal and I'll publish little excerpts on here in the next few days.

Call me predictable, but I did my duty and popped into a record shop where I purchased a Prata Vetra CD and live DVD, and a compilation album of recent Latvian pop hits. I've still to listen to these and will review them on here soon.

I'm still coming to terms with the outcome of the two Eurovision semi-finals, (both of which I managed to catch the last 5 minutes of). It's good to see all five Nordic countries through to the final (we anticipate many a comment by Mr Wogan about the Nordic bloc vote) - but on the other hand I'm disappointed that Switzerland and Belarus didn't make it.

Also, I realise that many of my predictions from the other week were way off target! No Malta or FYR Macedonia or Andorra...oh and if we're gonna talk about Croatia, let's just say that I had some nice fillet of computer and keyboard in barbecue sauce :))))))

Oh what a week it has been. A good one though. And busy! I had a ton of stuff to do for work as I have a week off next week, so of course all of next week's work needed to be up to date too. I finished our firm's environmental audit too (which I implemented about a year ago)... and was all annoyed with the branches that STILL don't recycling facilities. I got all preachy and "it's disgusting in this day and age that you are only just doing something about it" etc., then realised I was sounding a bit of a twat. But still - did live earth teach people nothing? Sheesh. Anyway, off soap box and on with a round up of the week (a week that contained some potentially very exciting news for me. Ooo intruiging)...

American Idol finale:

• Despite sucking harder than an top 24 contestant on his/her knees on Tuesday night (ooo how inhabited with the spirit of d'luv was that!), Mr David of Cook beat cherubic looking David Archuleta. Of course all of that was deemed irrelevant by the appearance of a very dapper looking Ryan Tedder. Take some fashion notes Archie. Jeans and a jacket will only get you so far in life... (Download video here)
• The other highlight was who was arriving on the red carpet! Some WTF moments came from Thomas Dekker (great new crew cut, but that top? Jesus!) and Jon Peter Lewis (either a VERY unflattering angle or someones been drowning their sorrows in cup cakes!) Still at least Blake Lewis looked quite decent in a sort of boffable way...(click links for piccies)
• I'm temporarily changing my opinion of Jason Dreadlocks. His version of Hallelujah was quite good.
• The rest of the show was mainly filler. Seal was good. As was Donna Summer, though one girl in the group tribute did not look happy to be singing in a group! Oh well. X Factor to look forward to now then...

Movies:



Oh I am so very very behind with movie watching. I think it's because I have developed an allergy to the cinema. It's full of talking people, chewing with their mouths open and discussing the plot continuously through the film. And so uncomfortable (oh what a little ray of sunshine I am!). Anyway, DazPecs and I did date night again and went to see Indy. Some very great moments, (brilliantly outlandish) including the ridiculous car chase/sword fight through the jungle which was quite entertaining. Shia did a decent job and Harrison tried not to look as old as he is. Despite some great moments not a particularly great film, though nice enough. I need to desperately catch up on Prince Caspian, Made of Honour, Speed Racer, Iron Man and ooo Sex and The City next week. Viva Carrie Bradshaw!

Pop bytes and bloggy gossip:

• Oh Laura are back! Well they never went away. But they do have a stunning new video for Release Me. Sigh. It's lovely.
• Monsieur D'Luv is remembering when Madonna wore blouses in videos and he wore denim shirts. Fashion disasters that have come back to haunt them both :P
• Bobby puts some ridiculously good looking bloke on his site and gets spammed by an overzealous Doe Deere fan. Crikey!
• Yuri has Olga begging him for Mercy! Oh my days :P
• Poppostikipediagirl has been fervently following Eurovision and notes that the brits got it oh so right with putting all our points in Sweden's basket. Shame the brits got it oh so wrong by letting Andy "my greatest hits is out this week. No really!" Abrahams be our less than stirling entry...
• DanUK has all the great comics gossip. I feel slightly ashamed that I downloaded some comics this week and spent ages wondering what the fuck a .cbr extension was. Worked it out now...
• DanUSA and Heidi are guilty. And not just of love in the first degree....
• XO is critiquing all the necessary album covers. The Zuton's one almost makes up for their music...
• Digital Spy has an endlessly amusing look at flop boybands.

Fizzypoptastic Top 21 Songs of the week

21 ~ Mariah Carey, Bye Bye (NE)
20 ~ Last Shadow Puppets, Age of The Understatement
19 ~ Sergey, Flyer
18 ~ Jesse McCartney, Leaving
17 ~ Enrique, Can You Hear Me (NE)
16 ~ Duffy, Warwick Avenue
15 ~ Jason Mraz, Lucky
14 ~ Captain, Keep An Open Mind
13 ~ Kylie, In My Arms
12 ~ Ola, Love in Stereo
11 ~ Blake Lewis, How Many Words?
10 ~ Rongedal, Just A Minute
09 ~ David Jordan, Move On
08 ~ Alphabeat, 10,000 Nights of Thunder
07 ~ Caracola, Smiling in Love
06 ~ Madonna, 4 Minutes
05 ~ The Feeling, Without You
04 ~ Jack McManus, Bang on Your Piano
03 ~ Jesse McCartney, Bleeding Love
02 ~ BWO, Lay Your Love On Me
01 ~ Maroon 5 ft Rihanna, Never See Your Face (1 week)

Previous 2008 Number Ones: The Feeling, I Thought It Was Over (4 weeks); David Jordan, Sun Goes Down (4 weeks); Jesse McCartney, Leaving (3 weeks); Madonna, 4 Minutes (2 weeks); The Feeling, Without You (4 weeks); BWO, Lay Your Love on Me (3 weeks)

THE FIZZYPOP CHRONICLES START HERE...

Kommer den bastanta damen från Porugal att skrälla i morgon?












Spanska bidraget är inte speciellt populärt bland fansen.



Sebastien Tellier anländer i golfbil.

Serbien har en vacker men förutsägbar balkan-ballad, skriven av programledaren.







Jag vill börja med att säga TACK till mina fotografer MIKE från London och ROGER från Årsta. Utan er hade det inte blivit några foton, eftersom min nya kamera har havererat.
Efter gårdagens semifinal har Portugal seglat upp som en dark horse. Som ni vet vid det här laget så är hela Norden i final imorgon. Dethär har resulterat i att vi nu går under epitet ”The Viking Empire” här i Belgrad. Vi konkurrerar med Balkanblocket och östblocket. Vi har också intervjuat ett antal personer om vad de tror Finland har för chans imorgon. Av svaren att döma kommer det inte att bli någon seger. Den går till Ukraina. Å andra sidan är inte besökarna här särskilt representativa för de som i slutändan röstar.
Det har varit en fullspäckad dag med leverans av artiklar till tidningarna, intervju med Teräsbetonis gitarrist och första genrepet inför finalen. Nu ska äntligen Serbien och The Big 4 (Storbritannien, Tyskland, Spanien och Frankrike) få stå på scen.
Silver är helt klart årets färg. Såhär ligger det till:
- Rumänska sångerskan har bytt klänning sedan semi 1. Hon är nu i silver
- Israels Boaz har silverväst.
- Isis från Polen har silver stripes in sin turkosa klänning.
- Svenska Charlotte är i silver hela hon.
- Diana från Georgien har silver stövlar.
- Man kan nästa tro att Charlotte och gjort en överenskommelse med Ukrainas Ani Lorak. Hon är också helt i silver.
- Franska Sebastien Tellier har silverkavaj.
- Azerbajdzjanska danserskorna och änglarna har silverbyxor.
- Kalomira från grekland har silvermönster i klänningen.

Programledar paret har en stor garderob. De byter kläder ca 4-5 gånger per tävling.

Tyvärr har Eurovision Song Contest drabbats av huliganism. Det är inga slagsmål mellan länderna utan buande fans som saknar vett och etikett. En del klarar inte av att hålla sig till den gyllene spelregeln som säger att man inte uttrycker sitt missnöja med högljudda bu-rop. Självklart kan man inte gilla alla bidragen men man då får man hålla det för sig själv eller låta bli att applådera. Vi hoppas att Charlotte är i toppform. Jag har gjort vad jag kunnat och införskaffat en gul topp men silverinslag och nya silverskor. För första gången sedan vi kom har vi idag besökt gamla stan och shoppingkvarteren under dagtid. Det hektiska schemat har gjort att vi tidigare bara cirkulerat mellan presscentret, arenan och vårt boende. Tro det eller ej men vi har en egen ”Carola-fläkt” på vårt rum.
Även Bosnien & Hercegovinas artister var ute på stan och vi fångade dem på bild. De är redan klara för final sedan i tisdags. Nu laddar vi med en liten tupplur inför kvällens spännande tillställning. Vi håller tummarna för Perelli. Det spekuleras nu rent allmänt om att även Ungern ska klara sig vidare med sin vackra ballad som sjungs både på engelska och ungerska. Och det ser också ljust ut för Portugal.





Har ju glömt att säga att Polens Isis (finalklar i semi 1) blev mycket imponerad av mina fjädrar i rött och vitt under efterfesten. Här får ni bildbevis.

Ah, what a strange and wonderful tv season it has been. Interrupted post coitus thanks to those "greedy" writers, it managed to get salvaged for "sweeps" (huh?) and just in time for an actor's strike to ruin next autumn's new programmes. Shouldn't all these people be doing it for the love of their creativity? No? Oh well ok then... Here are some as-condensed-as-I-can-be-considering-i'm-known-for-waffling observations of the boss and dross shows of 2007-08...

ABC ruled the roost this season. Desperate Housewives (the last few minutes? Aces!); Lost (i need a notebook everytime I watch it, but i can then pretend tv is challenging and intellectual); Grey's Anatomy (derek and meredith getting back together. Pick her. choose her. love her); Brothers & Sisters (slightly disturbing Sharon-Dennis Eastenders type incest but not ending but brillo as ever. Greg Berlanti rules); Pushing Daisies (whimsical and magical, it really was a fairytale bought to life - ooo see what i did there. Boo the short season though); and Ugly Betty (which was pretty dismal all year but had some good episodes here and there - almost as if by mistake - and does seem to be getting back on track. Hurrah)



The netlet CW may have angered me by renewing One Tree Hill over Veronica Mars (style over substance really does win out) but reeled me back in with the not-nearly-as-annoying-as-i-thought-it-would-be Reaper (Sock was ridiculously irritating to start with, then less so - or I just became more tolerant. Gay demons, questionable parentage and a doozy of an ending that changes everything for next year) and Josh "The OC" Shwartz Gossip Girl, which has to be the most deliriously gooey prime time soap I know of. Pity about the rehash of the Oliver storyline from year one OC with Georgina (Dawn! The Key! Unlocking Serena's secrets!) taking that role, but hey, it gave me Penn Badgely...The Hardy Boys (Supernatural) were as watchable as ever, btw...



Shorter shows ~ proof that everything doesn't have to be stretched out over the normal non-striking 22 episode season run. Dexter got bloody gory and successfully deviated from the books in year 2 (though that fucking annoying English bint got right up my jacksey) while Henry Cavill may have lured me to the tudors, but the sudsy take on politics and power has me hooked. Poor Anne Boleyn. I may even feel a little bit sorry for her... odd pacing though - it sometimes seems to be racing against the other boleyn girl movie to see who can behead first!! Dazpants is very sorry to see the 4400 depart again from this time period :(


We are family ~ is ABC Family the new CW (it might as well be cos I won't be watching the fucking gaudy looking 90210 regeneration)? Kyle XY was a bit confusing in the second year, but it knows how to pull off a cliffhanger and was a nice contrast to the Porkys for teens Greek, which is semi watchable though not particularly brilliant. Perhaps best to stick with the reruns of Gilmore Girls and pre-convulted history Smallville...


Downright disaster (yet i kept watching) ~ How long did bloody Hiro need to stay in feudal Japan? He seemed to be there forever and his bloody love story wasn't very bloody interesting. Veronica Mars shone in her anti Hayley Pantyshares role but by the time Story 2 was done, the writers were on strike and it could possibly be a death toll for the show unless year 3 is outstanding. Ditto Prison Break - everything I say about the loathsomely ludicrous 24 is true about Prison Break yet for some reason I seem to cut PB more slack. Smallville has gone pretty crap - you can almost hear the cast and creative crew counting down the days to when they can call it quits...

Best of brits:

• Shameless
• Benidorm
• The Office (US version - year four has been lovely. Great final few moments!)
• The Apprentice (Raef has gone. Woohoo! Viva Lee and Lucinda! Is it very wrong that I felt sorry for Michael this week?)
• Gail's gay long lost dad on Corrie. Brilliant
• Doctor Who
• M.I. High

New shows worthy of your time:

Not many next year due to the strike. As I said 90210 looks god-awful but new shows from the normally reliable Joss Whedon (dollhouse with eliza dushku! FAITH!) and JJ Abrams (Fringe with Pacey Dawsons Creek!) will be worth tuning into....

Last years season finale wrap up...
2006 season finale wrap up...

Om några timmar vet vi.

Awww. I'm on a Cathy Dennis kick today. Reasons why in a mo. Anyway, Cathy Dennis was worshipped by me in the early 90s. Not only did she churn out delectable little dance-pop tunes like Just Another Dream (where i'm reliably informed that the lyrics are not "some say you're my best lover - matched up like sugar on a pig" but probably sugar on a cake) and the criminally underrated You Lied To Me (ooo, "fierce", etc), but she fulfilled 2 very important functions in my pre-out-and-proud-bum-loving life. These will be revealed to you if you just cast your eyes about 1 centimetre south of where they are currently placed:

1. She started my love affair of lengthening people's names to something that was not their real lengthed name e.g. Cathy became Cathedral Dennis. It sounded grandiose. Now she is the slightly more common Cathedral City Chedder Dennis. Though to be fair that is a more middle class cheddar than your common garden variety Tesco own mild. And actually I blame Cathy for my dog's name (Blackie) which eventually became Blackard Stanley Matthews Babcock Babe Chicken Licken Lickity Split Reynolds the Dog Boo Flower Pop esq.
2. She was my "beard" when asked "ooo what pop star do you fancy". Because at 16, saying 'I'd spread that jason donovan like marmite across my bed and eat him up' was liable to get you a bit of male contact that you probably wouldn't enjoy (ie, a fist to the noggin). So Cathy was my answer, because Kylie seemed too gay and Debbie Gibson had bad hair back then.

I digressed a little bit there. Anyway, today is not about Cathy's brillo first album (which contains one of my all time favourite songs Too Many Walls) or her beat-tastic second album (which not only had a roaring dance tune in You Lied To Me, but also the lovely languid Being With You). No, in the wake of all these "oh i got soul and i'm all about the 60s" popstars littering the charts (Duffy, Amy, Adele, Gabrielle Climi et al), I thought i'd go back to an album that just effervesces 60s appeal ~ Am I The Kinda Girl...

Before Emma Bunton released the 60s-pop perfection of her Free Me album (and then her ok but sometimes quite boring Life in Mono set), Cathy Dennis bought charming 60s influenced pop to the masses. It actually was quite the departure for Cathedral and those expecting danceability got more of a gentle beats not bombs type affair. But luckily it was a quite lovely affair and one that still plays well on a summers day over 10 years later. There are several elements of the album that work incredibly well...

• Cathedral's voice is perfectly suited to the production levels of this album (i hate to say but it was a bit tinny on some tracks on earlier albums)
• The lyrics are quite poignant in places and melody is strongly emphasised
• In retrospect it was probably a bit ahead of it's time (Madonna didn't do Beautiful Stranger until the late 90s)
  
  

The lead off single from the album was the guitar jangling sound of West End Pad. It showcased that Cathy was perfectly capable of writing and performing songs outside the dance arena, but that still had all the decent elements of a pop tune to it. The lyrics also set up a running theme to the album - that the trappings of fame and success are fickle and hollow without those who are nearest and dearest to you. It's a great sing a long tune, that was followed by her near perfect update of the Kinks Waterloo Sunset. Cathedral takes an incredible song, gives it a bit of a 90s sheen yet still lets the 60s magic shine through - and doesn't ruin it! Interestingly, Ray Davis must have been a bit of a fan as he co-wrote the gorgeous song Consolation, which appeared on the British cd-single and fits in perfectly with the album (as does her cover of another Kinks song Sunny Afternoon) All three of these songs make good use of fuzzy guitar sounds and layered backing vocals to recreate the 60s sound. And Ray Davis co-crafted my favourite song on the album, the cute as a button The Date. Narrating the process of preparing for a date (duh), it's actually a commentary on changing yourself to fit in - "bend me shake me, but be careful you don't break me" are actually fairly heartbreaking when taken in that concept. After all, who doesn't want to fit in at some point in their lives?

Other highlights on the album include the title track (which features an amazing guitar riff ~ something i rarely notice) which was co-written by XTC's Andy Partridge and confirms that Cathedral could subtlely mix the sounds of brit pop with 60s pop and create a marvel. The gorgeous ballad When Your Dreams Turn To Dust just seems to float on the air like a feather so light and beautiful is the melody. The whole album is an absolute triumph and always cheers me up (despite it's quite downer lyrics) whenever I listen to it. Aces. Modern pop stars gain is our loss...

MP3: Consolation
MP3: Sunny Afternoon

Igår var det invigningsfest på något som vi trodde skulle vara ett palats. Det visade sig vara i ett riktig ”palatset” som ligger 5 minuter från vårt hostel Arka Barka och som måste vara en typisk kvarleva från kommunisttiden. Som tur var såg det betydligt trevligare och pampigare ut på insidan är vad betong utsida angav. Det var inte en tillställning i samma klass som fjolårets i Finlandiahuset i Helsingfors. Å andra sidan är det svårt att slå det arrangemanget.
Hysterin var däremot värre än någonsin och de artister som betraktas som extra hotta fick nytta av sina bodyguards. T.ex. Ukraina, Sverige. Jag tror Charlotte försvann efter 45 minuter. Det kan jag förstå efter alla envetna fans och pressfolk med kameror i högsta hugga. Jag är sååå trött på alla fans som ska bli fotograferade tillsammans med alla artister. Nej – schlagerstjärna vill jag inte bli. Vi minglade runt i 4 timmar tills fötterna sa ifrån och sedan var vi ordentliga och promenerade hem via parken till vårt compact living hem.
Idag har vi agerat statister på Arka Barka för BBC som var där och med ett reportage team. Verkar vara ett populärt ställe att skriva om. I söndags var de omnämnda i Svenska Dagbladet. Hela eftermiddagen har vi tillbringat i arenan där det första genrepet gått av stapel för publik. Ytterligare ett genrep ska hållas ikväll och ett i morgon eftermiddag, som vi också har biljetter till. Hoppar över i kväll för att hedra det Isländska partyt med vår närvaro.
Här kommer en personlig resumé av låtarna i semi 1. Att plocka ut vilka 10 som går vidare är lättare sagt än gjort, men jag börjar hoppas på att Finland har en chans efter att ha sett ”Betonggossarna” på scen. Jag kanske gillar hårdrock trots allt.
1. MONTENEGRO: Stefan Filipovic sjunger strålande och den söta pojken har blivit allt bättre sedan jag pratade med honom på invigningen i går. Kanske finalplats.
2. ISRAEL: Ger associationer till gamla tiders israeliska bidrag. Boaz framträdande är i tråkigaste laget men han sjunger bra. Både på engelska och hebreiska. Finalplats.
3. ESTLAND: Deras enda möjliga karriär är för dagisbarn. För mig – NEJ TACK. Gräsligt. Ingen finalplats.
4. MOLDVIEN: Årets jazzlåt. Barfota sångerskan Geta Burlacu wailar för mycke. Snyggt trumpetspel. Men ingen final.
5. SAN MARINO: Nykomlingarna från pyttelandet nån slags U2-influerad låt på italienska. Ingen finalplats.
6. BELGIEN: Bästa med denna låt är den snygga ljussättningen. Men trallåtar på låtsasspråk får va för min del. Final – knappast.
7. AZERBAJDZJAN: Debutanterna står för årets operainslag i form av djävul och en ängel. Pyroteknik och too much av allt. Går till final.
8. SLOVENIEN: Småfalskt men snygg klänning när kåpan fallit. De hjälm- och maskförsedda dansarna förstår jag mig inte på. Finalplatsen hoppas jag uteblir.
9. NORGE: Skönt gung i låten sedan man speedat upp tempot en aning. Finalplatsen borde vara klar.
10. POLEN: Isis Fee ser ut som en artificiell barbiedocka men hon har snygg klänning. Kanske final men jag hoppas inte det.
11. IRLAND: Av två onda ting, Estland och Irland, så är denna minst värst. Techno disco framförd av kalkondocka. Låten blir ännu sämre när man måste se eländet. Tyvärr kan det bli en finalplats.
12. ANDORRA: Giselas Casanova kunde ha platsat i Melodifestivalen. Troligen ingen final för tjejen.
13. BOSNIEN & HERZEGOVINA: Årets knäppaste låt men på ett positivt sätt. Sångaren Leka sjunger och hans syster hänger tvätt innan hon börjar löpa gatlopp. Hysteriskt men jag hoppas på final.
14. ARMENIEN: Häftiga arabtongångar och Ruslana trummor. Håller Sirushos röst blir det en topp-10 placering i finalen.
15. HOLLAND: En av mina favoriter och årets bästa turklåt. Hind sjunger toppenbra. Kan tyvärr missa finalplatsen eftersom hon kommer efter Armenien.
16. FINLAND: Det tar sig och killarna är superbra på scen och det ser häftigt ut i tv-rutan. Det finska pyroteknik gänget får visa vad de går för. Det sparas in på krutet. Jag hoppas på final.
17. RUMÄNIEN: Min favorit och en underbar klassisk italiensk ballad. Äntligen en hederlig modulation. Jag vill se dem i finalen.
18. RYSSLAND: Dima får stående applåder och Ryssland har redan räknat hem segern. Jag hoppas de har fel fel fel. Gillar inte låten, Dimas röst och hans ålande. Tror dock på finalplats - tyvärr.
19. GREKLAND: Bra låt men har svårt för Kalomiras skrikiga röst. Mycke rekvisita på scen. Till final.