Melodifestivalen snippets, #2

Second week of MF, and I just listened through the one-minute snippets posted on SVT's website.

I am worn out after a long, stressful week, I think I am developping a flu and my shaky judgement is still intact, but here goes with my rating:

OLA - Love In Stereo
A very good opening - the song finds its way straight into your ear, and Ola delivers it in a tuneful and convincing way. Ola is another Idols-reject (of the same year as Måns Z) who also went on to have a lot more success than the people who won the final competition. He has many fans and they will all be prepared to vote for him tonight. I love the electronic elements in this song, that feel both retro and progressive at the same time. A very possible finalist when all votes have been cast.

LASSE LINDH - Du behöver aldrig mer vara rädd
On the other hand, this is a genre that has become far too over-populated for my liking lately. Sensitive young man with a guitar makes up arguably cute naïve rhymes over a soft melody line, and I shake my head and conclude that there is already too much of this in the world. Both song-wise and singer-wise.

THE NICOLE - Razborka
This is funny and uplifting. I like the voice and I like the attitude, and this could have been a Ukrainian ESC-entry had it only been stronger. I don't care much for the lyrics and if dear old Torbjörn at Aftonbladet is anything to judge from, The Nicole is too lightweight to do well. Not that I could see Sweden vote their phones to bits on this one anyway. Good try, but a lost cause.

ALEXANDER SCHÖLD - Den första svalan
Another assortment of male singers I don't care much for. Sensitive young man with a soft, almost whispering baby voice and no attack what-so-ever. I like the arrangement of the song, the mix of electronica and the grand-piano, but unless the lad is charming enough to blow apart a house, I can't see this go down well.

RONGEDAL - Just A Minute
The most easily recognisable twin backing singers in the history of Swedish pop goes Scissor Sisters wearing aggressively red outfits, singing an almost equally aggressively upbeat falsetto rock song. It leaves me a bit cold (could be the flu) but I could imagine that more than one Swede would fall for this. A dark horse in a bright red suit.

SANNA NIELSEN - Empty Room
This is my song of the week, judging from this tiny clip. I always had a soft spot for Sanna, and this song gives her enough space to develop her voice without getting all loud and screechy. I just wonder if this clip is the very last minute of the song - in that case I would hope for more of an explosion (think "To nie ja!" by Edyta Górniak) and will be left disappointed. But I keep my fingers crossed for this one. Go, Sanna!

ANDRA GENERATIONEN - Kebabpizza slivovitza
A great idea to make some kind of balkanic ska-mix with Swedish lyrics. Really good idea. I applaud it. But the song leaves me with a headache. Sorry. I don't find it funny, I don't find it particularly good. I wish I did, but I don't.


ANDREAS JOHNSON & CAROLA - One Love
Impeccably produced and perfectly polished to do well on the radio. Carola is surprisingly subtle on the recording and it all sounds good enough to go straight to the Globe. Unless... There is one big BUT in this. Will Carola manage to keep her lid on when the cameras start working for real? Will she put in her overdrive and drown the entire number in wailing? What a thriller. And even though this is an almost masterminded pop single, it is not direct enough to win the Swedish final, is it? Is Carola heading for a third place in March?

My prediction:

Final
Carola & Andreas
Sanna Nielsen

Second Chance
Ola
Rongedal

5. Lasse Lindh
6. Andra Generationen
7. Alexander Schöld
8. The Nicole

This week, the prediction seems less mad than last week. In an parallell universe, Ola could surprise the world and kick Sanna out (or, if she runs amoch in her own little galaxy of sounds, Carola could find herself relegated to Second Chance).