Euroviisut 2008

Tonight, at Kulttuuritalo in Helsinki, the 2008 Finnish final will be held, in which the Finns by televote will determine who will fly the Finnish flag in the semi final on May 20th.

I really dug deep inside my soul to try and write something witty and positive about the finalists, but there is nothing. I am so sad to say this, but for the first time since the last ice age, I couldn't really give a toss about who wins in Finland.

I can't see any of these 12 songs in the running go through to the big final. You should never say never, and sometimes songs work surprisingly well once they end up in the final mix, that is true. But my enthusiasm is low. There are good singers, but their songs are really weak. All the songs sound like OK album tracks rather than promising hit singles.

Two songs could possibly do the trick with a bit of luck. Teräsbetoni could stand out a bit, since the songs of the first semi aren't the strongest, but there is a turkey and the Estonian goofheads to stel their thunder. Movetron could possibly fit into the seemingly popular retro 90's trend that seems to be going on. But I have my doubts.

However, sometimes all a country needs is a complete flop and quality meltdown. One serious flop can make a national broadcaster renew the entire selection procedure, and if there is anything Finland would need, then it is a complete change of formula. Maybe the low quality of Euroviisut is the first step towards better times?

So, I will pull myself together and make a prediction. I think the two songs going through from the Second Chance round will be Jenna and Crumbland or, if the Cristal Snow fans tune in as early as this, Ninja could be a surprise. But I doubt it.

The final ding-dong will go on between the three respective winners of the semi finals, or I would be very surprised. The top three will, thus, consist of Kari Tapio, Mikael Konttinen and Teräsbetoni. Kari and Mikael will split the schlager vote between them, Teräsbetoni will win, and Finland will promote heavy music for the third year running. Any chance that Europe is getting a wee bit tired of that?