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New Zealand-born Welsh girl, music fan, rugby fan, football fan, likes a laugh and people being happy.
Read full biographySF 2 predictions and updated reviews
Posted 21/May 2010 at 00:36 by Kylie Wilson. Topics: armenia, azerbaijan, bulgaria, croatia, cyprus, denmark, esc 2010, eurovision, georgia, ireland, israel, lithuania, netherlands, romania, slovenia, sweden, switzerland, turkey, ukraine
Unlike the first semi-final, this one is a pretty tough one. Anyone could end qualifying, so all the countries lumped into this group have to work their socks off if they have any chance of scraping through.
Lithuania - This is another song which I am really surprised about a lot of people hating. The light effect behind them (which I won't spoil for you) adds to the amusement, if you don't find this the slightest bit enjoyable then you are officially made of stone. Realistically it's chances of qualifying are borderline, but if it was up to me it would win the whole contest! Let's have Vilnius 2011!
Armenia - I do not like this song, and the giant seed in the background is pretty naff. And people seem divided, there are a few people who like it, but there's a fair few people like me who say that this is arguably the worst Armenian entry since they first entered. If it was up to me this wouldn't qualify, but this may unfortunately sneak in.
Israel - There's no orchestra like in the Israeli NF which is a bit of a shame, but it is sung very well and with emotion as well. I imagine it would win over the juries, so it has a decent chance of qualifying.
Denmark - I've said in my first review that I do not like this song purely because it blatantly rips-off two songs. But it seems to be pretty popular for some reason. The live singing is a bit off-key, so unless they're saving themselves for Thursday, they're in for a shock when the results come through.
Switzerland - It's a nice little song with a good performance, but it doesn't really stand out amongst the other songs, so it's doubtful that this will qualify.
Sweden - This is a strong performance of the song, out of all the ballads in this SF it is arguably the best one and apparently the audience will wave glo sticks during the song like in Melodifestivalen which will add to the atmosphere. This should have a good chance of qualifying, and if it was up to me it would finish high in the final.
Azerbaijan - This is one of the bookie's favourites and there is a huge amount of promo and money spent to make sure this wins, but I have to say, what's the big deal? It is a pretty ordinary song in all honesty and the choreography really doesn't match the song. It just doesn't seem genuine. No question this will qualify, but I don't want this to win. But then again in 2008 I hated the Russian song and wanted France to win, so what do I know?
Ukraine - I'm not so keen on the song but the singer has a strong live voice which could carry the performance. Qualifying chances are 50/50 as most of the songs in this SF are ballads and it's yet to be seen if it will stand out against the rest.
Netherlands - The circus organ in the back is quite cute and it's a nice retro shlager song, but in reality this has got little chance of qualifying.
Romania - A lot of people seem to like this song and it's easy to see why. It's fun, catchy and sung well, the performance is a bit static but there's not an awful lot you can do when both singers are playing piano (I really like the perspex dual piano by the way). This should easily qualify.
Slovenia - I appreciate that they're trying to mix up some styles but it's a bit of a mess. A lot of people seem to think so as well, so it has little chance of qualifying.
Ireland - A previous winner at the helm. She has a really good voice, and apparently she has a cold at the moment so imagine how she'll sound when it's cleared up! Not too sure about the podium however. This should qualify, it'll be a real surprise if it doesn't.
Bulgaria - Another song which I was pretty indifferent to when hearing first time round, but the performance warmed me to it. They've made a slight change to it as well, part of the song is now in English. The singer does have a good voice, however I still feel that he's pretty smug. If they keep it up at this rate, this could well sneak into the final.
Cyprus - The singer is a fellow Welshman, so I'm trying not to sound biased. Him and his backing band put in a strong performance which warms me to the song more, and this could do the same with a lot of viewers which could give them a slight chance of qualifying.
Croatia - It's a bit of an understatement that these ladies can sing live and in harmony, so this is another one in which the strength of the performance could make or break their chances. The song seems to be a fair amount of fans so they could well gather enough televotes to qualify. Not too sure about the prop at the end though (again, which I won't spoil).
Georgia - The singer does do well to hold her notes while being pulled around like a puppet by her dancers, so you have to give her that. It is another ballad however, so it remains to be seen if it will stand out from the others and go through.
Turkey - A refreshing and moody rock end to this SF after all those ballads. Be careful watching due to the flashing strobe lights. People seem to like the dancer in the background, and the band themselves are pretty popular so this should qualify.
So, in no particular order, my prediction of who will qualify to the final:
Lithuania
Ireland
Romania
Turkey
Cyprus
Sweden
Azerbaijan
Israel
Bulgaria
Croatia
Good luck to everyone!
Lithuania - This is another song which I am really surprised about a lot of people hating. The light effect behind them (which I won't spoil for you) adds to the amusement, if you don't find this the slightest bit enjoyable then you are officially made of stone. Realistically it's chances of qualifying are borderline, but if it was up to me it would win the whole contest! Let's have Vilnius 2011!
Armenia - I do not like this song, and the giant seed in the background is pretty naff. And people seem divided, there are a few people who like it, but there's a fair few people like me who say that this is arguably the worst Armenian entry since they first entered. If it was up to me this wouldn't qualify, but this may unfortunately sneak in.
Israel - There's no orchestra like in the Israeli NF which is a bit of a shame, but it is sung very well and with emotion as well. I imagine it would win over the juries, so it has a decent chance of qualifying.
Denmark - I've said in my first review that I do not like this song purely because it blatantly rips-off two songs. But it seems to be pretty popular for some reason. The live singing is a bit off-key, so unless they're saving themselves for Thursday, they're in for a shock when the results come through.
Switzerland - It's a nice little song with a good performance, but it doesn't really stand out amongst the other songs, so it's doubtful that this will qualify.
Sweden - This is a strong performance of the song, out of all the ballads in this SF it is arguably the best one and apparently the audience will wave glo sticks during the song like in Melodifestivalen which will add to the atmosphere. This should have a good chance of qualifying, and if it was up to me it would finish high in the final.
Azerbaijan - This is one of the bookie's favourites and there is a huge amount of promo and money spent to make sure this wins, but I have to say, what's the big deal? It is a pretty ordinary song in all honesty and the choreography really doesn't match the song. It just doesn't seem genuine. No question this will qualify, but I don't want this to win. But then again in 2008 I hated the Russian song and wanted France to win, so what do I know?
Ukraine - I'm not so keen on the song but the singer has a strong live voice which could carry the performance. Qualifying chances are 50/50 as most of the songs in this SF are ballads and it's yet to be seen if it will stand out against the rest.
Netherlands - The circus organ in the back is quite cute and it's a nice retro shlager song, but in reality this has got little chance of qualifying.
Romania - A lot of people seem to like this song and it's easy to see why. It's fun, catchy and sung well, the performance is a bit static but there's not an awful lot you can do when both singers are playing piano (I really like the perspex dual piano by the way). This should easily qualify.
Slovenia - I appreciate that they're trying to mix up some styles but it's a bit of a mess. A lot of people seem to think so as well, so it has little chance of qualifying.
Ireland - A previous winner at the helm. She has a really good voice, and apparently she has a cold at the moment so imagine how she'll sound when it's cleared up! Not too sure about the podium however. This should qualify, it'll be a real surprise if it doesn't.
Bulgaria - Another song which I was pretty indifferent to when hearing first time round, but the performance warmed me to it. They've made a slight change to it as well, part of the song is now in English. The singer does have a good voice, however I still feel that he's pretty smug. If they keep it up at this rate, this could well sneak into the final.
Cyprus - The singer is a fellow Welshman, so I'm trying not to sound biased. Him and his backing band put in a strong performance which warms me to the song more, and this could do the same with a lot of viewers which could give them a slight chance of qualifying.
Croatia - It's a bit of an understatement that these ladies can sing live and in harmony, so this is another one in which the strength of the performance could make or break their chances. The song seems to be a fair amount of fans so they could well gather enough televotes to qualify. Not too sure about the prop at the end though (again, which I won't spoil).
Georgia - The singer does do well to hold her notes while being pulled around like a puppet by her dancers, so you have to give her that. It is another ballad however, so it remains to be seen if it will stand out from the others and go through.
Turkey - A refreshing and moody rock end to this SF after all those ballads. Be careful watching due to the flashing strobe lights. People seem to like the dancer in the background, and the band themselves are pretty popular so this should qualify.
So, in no particular order, my prediction of who will qualify to the final:
Lithuania
Ireland
Romania
Turkey
Cyprus
Sweden
Azerbaijan
Israel
Bulgaria
Croatia
Good luck to everyone!
More blogs by Kylie
- May 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
