Episodes
Published 03/26/24
Eurovision superfan dudepoints joins us to delight in the bleeps and bloops of five more entries from this year's first semi-final. We discuss the songs from Moldova, Lithuania, Poland, Croatia, and Cyprus, as well as dude's experience at the Eurovizija.lt Grand Final. SFX Appeal Summary Welcome back, dudepoints! (0:52) 🇲🇩 Moldova - Natalia Barbu - "In the Middle" 🎻 (3:43) 🇱🇹 Lithuania - Silvester Belt - "Luktelk" 📻 (9:50) 🇵🇱 Poland - LUNA - "The Tower"🗼 (17:44) 🇭🇷 Croatia - Baby Lasagna...
Published 03/26/24
We kick off Eurovision 2024 Review Season with our special guest Sam Gavin! We discuss the entries from Slovenia, Ireland, Luxembourg, Ukraine, and Finland as well as reminisce about My Neighbor Totoro, pre-internet software, and cringe content from back in the day. Encarta Summary Welcome, Sam Gavin! (0:46) 🇸🇮 Slovenia - Raiven - "Veronika" 🧝‍♀️ (3:59) 🇮🇪 Ireland - Bambie Thug - "Doomsday Blue" 😱 (11:04) 🇱🇺 Luxembourg - Tali - "Fighter" 🤺 (19:01) 🇺🇦 Ukraine - alyona alyona & Jerry...
Published 03/19/24
We're at the end of Eurovision Selection Season and get caught up with internal selections from Australia and Greece plus the conclusion of Sweden's Melodifestivalen and Portugal's Festival da Canção. ... what do you mean there are still some unknown tracks?! Scrunchy Face Sounds Summary Electric Fields to represent Australia with "One Milkali (One Blood)" (0:51) Greece rolls the dice with Marina Satti's "Zari" (4:13) Marcus and Martinus win Melodifestivalen with "Unforgettable"...
Published 03/12/24
Several internal selections join the Eurovision 2024 field this week and exactly zero of them are holding back. Serbia's national final goes harder than necessary while Iceland... also made a selection this week. We're in the homestretch! Maximal Summary Nemo breaks "The Code" for Switzerland (0:47) Joost Klein is the Netherlands' "Europapa" (3:51) Silia Kapsis calls out a "Liar" for Cyprus (9:08) The United Kingdom's Olly Alexander is "Dizzy" for Eurovision (11:37) Austria declares "We...
Published 03/05/24
In a relatively quiet week in Eurovision land we check out Belgium's selection from Mustii, recap Una Voce per San Marino, and say meow to Baby Lasagna. We also check in with Sweden's Melodifestivalen, Iceland's Songvakeppnin, and the first semi for Portugal's Festival da Canção. Go Tiffany Summary Belgium releases Mustii's "Before the Party's Over" (1:23) Spain's Megara wins Una Voce per San Marino with "11:11" (4:35) "Rim Tim Dagi Dim" by Baby Lasagna dominates Dora (11:13) Melfest Heat...
Published 02/27/24
5 Eurovision national finals took place this past weekend with mixed results. Well, results that were mixed weirdly due to jury/televote score conversions. We discuss Germany, Estonia, Moldova, Lithuania, and Denmark, plus Poland's internal selection. Conversion Summary Isaak is "Always on the Run" for Germany (1:00) Eesti Laul Grand Final (5:44) Natalia Barbu represents Moldova again with "In the Middle" (10:12) Saba wins Dansk Melodi Grand Prix with "Sand" (14:11) "Luktelk" and...
Published 02/20/24
With Ben traveling back from Finland's UMK, guest Trip Payne taps in to discuss that national final, Latvia's Supernova, and Italy's Sanremo Festival. Then we prepare for the biggest Super Saturday of the Eurovision season coming up next weekend. Imaginary Beef Summary Petra Mede and Malin Åkerman will host Eurovision 2024 (2:27) Windows95Man wins UMK with "No Rules" (4:05) "Hollow" by Dons wins Latvia's Supernova (9:40) "La Noia" will go to Malmo with Angelina Mango (14:29) Lithuania's...
Published 02/13/24
It was a Saturday so Super it stretched into Sunday... not by choice, but Ukraine loves drama. Norway, Spain, and Malta also made their Eurovision picks, Latvia and Sweden kicked off their processes, and Lithuania is almost done with their heats. Oh, and The Draw added some structure to the 2024 Contest. Technical Difficulties Summary The Draw handles the Semi-Final Allocation (0:27) VidBir (eventually) selects alyona alyona & Jerry Heil & "Maria & Teresa" (4:08) Gåte wins NRK...
Published 02/06/24
Eurovision season clicks into second gear this week with Ireland and Luxembourg making selections, Norway setting its final field, Lithuania's holding its third heat, and Malta, Spain, and Ukraine getting ready to decide. How will The Draw shake up things in Malmö? Squiggle Line Mouth Face Summary Romania won't be part of The Draw (1:15) Ireland chooses Bambie Thug's "Doomsday Blue" (3:17) Tali will be Luxembourg's "Fighter" in Malmö (10:56) Iceland announces its intentions (20:44) Norway...
Published 01/30/24
Eurovision calmed down a bit this week with qualifying heats from Lithuania and Norway plus the semi-final for Estonia's Eesti Laul. Slovenia turned up the drama with Raiven's "Veronika" and Austria announced their artist for Malmö. Be warned: this is the last bit of calm until March... That's SLO Raiven Summary Raiven's "Veronika" debuts for Slovenia (1:02) Austria announces Kaleen for Malmö (3:40) Portugal and Germany release National Final details (5:29) Eesti Laul Semi-final...
Published 01/23/24
The search for the next Eurovision winner began officially this week, with Moldova holding auditions, Norway kicking off NRK MGP, and Lithuania launching its new process Eurovizija.lt. Georgia announced their artist, and everybody had to issue a press release the week that Mike is home alone 😱 Floodgates Summary Georgia announces Nutsa for Malmö (1:33) Video links for The Draw, Semis, and Grand Final are live (3:44) Cyprus and Belgium release some song details (4:31) Songs revealed for...
Published 01/16/24
Eurovision 2024 barely took a break for the holidays! We get caught up on Albania's Festivali i Këngës, the results of the ESC 250 Countdown, and look forward to Moldova, Norway, and Lithuania this coming weekend. Trickle Summary Albania chooses Besa and "Zemren n'dore" (0:46) The Eurovision 2024 Stage Concept (5:31) Eurovision announces The Draw and a new sponsor (7:04) "Cha Cha Cha" wins the ESC250 Countdown (10:07) National Selection updates: Ukraine, Serbia, Ireland, Croatia, Finland...
Published 01/09/24
We finally have a (tentative) roster for next year's Eurovision Song Contest! Czechia has selected their entry, artists have been announced for the Netherlands, Slovenia, and the UK, and national final season details are coming into focus. What a way to wrap 2023! 37ish Summary 37 countries confirmed for Malmö (so far) (1:03) New color scheme! (6:38) Czechia's ESCZ puts Aiko on a "Pedestal" (8:33) Internal artist selections: Netherlands, Slovenia, United Kingdom (14:51) Holidays sidebar:...
Published 12/19/23
FRANCE has jumped the gun and released their song for Eurovision 2024. Greece has announced their artist, a handful of countries have named their contestants for their national finals, and tickets were already on sale... it's barely December? Join us as we peruse Eurovision Song Contest headlines. Allons-y! Summary 🇫🇷 France surprise announces Slimane and "Mon Amour" (0:53) 🇬🇷 Greece will send Marina Satti to Malmo (6:15) 💚 United by Music Forever (8:45) 🎫 Tickets Wave 1 Happened...
Published 12/05/23
Ireland Gut Rehab We welcome back Alex McMillan to discuss the state of Ireland's Eurovision Song Contest selections and reflect on the nation's historical successes and recent failures. Is Eurosong on the Late Late Show the best selection method? Is Ireland stuck in the nostalgia for their dominance in the 90s? What risks can the delegation take to make a splash in Malmö? Alex McMillan Alex is a game designer, question setter, and American Song Contest apologist, best known for their...
Published 11/21/23
It's been 30 years since a small town in Ireland took on the challenge of hosting Eurovision while the concept of Europe was undergoing a transformation. We look back at Millstreet 1993, the accommodation of several new countries wanting to join the party, and... the Bartman? Millstreet Summary The Journey to the 1993 Eurovision Song Contest (1:14) A Tour of Millstreet (4:58) A Tour of Europe in 1993 (8:16) The Eurovision 1993 Contestants and Their Performances (12:55) Reflections on the...
Published 11/07/23
As we continue to wait for the full guest list for Eurovision 2024,: Cyprus announces their artist, a bunch of selection processes release start dates (FRIDAY?!), end dates, and a few name changes (EEK!), plus we start filling out this winter's TV calendar. Calendaring Summary Cyprus internally selects Silia Kapsis for Malmo (1:22) 35 Countries Confirmed So Far (3:24) Malmo Budgets and Planning (5:16) Eurowhat AV Club (6:50) National Selections 2023: Malta, Estonia, Albania...
Published 10/24/23
Discussing Valérie Lemercier's "freely-inspired" Celine Dion biopic — What do you do if your pop culture idol doesn't sign off on you making a biopic about them? Change their name, tweak some of the facts, and play all the roles so you can make a movie like Aline! We have A LOT of questions about the film: Aline! Summary EuroWhat AV Club: Aline! (3:53) 🎥 What is Aline? (6:14) 🎤 What is your relationship with Celine Dion? (7:55) 😲 At what point in the movie did you go “Uhhhhh, what?!”...
Published 10/10/23
Greece and Turkey have had a tense relationship and Cyprus is often in the center of disputes. We take a look at these dynamics and how they may have shifted over the last 50 years at Eurovision. Obvious Points Klaxon Summary Greece debuts at Eurovision (1:43) Greek Politics (5:40) Cyprus (8:11) Greece, Cyprus, and Turkiye at Eurovision (13:33) Do Greece and Cyprus always give each other 12 points? (23:07) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts....
Published 09/26/23
We get caught up on September 2023 Eurovision Headlines, of which there are a surprising amount. We already have an artist, details on multiple selection processes, and more than 2 dozen countries ready to party in Malmö, Sweden. Efficiency Summary Belgium selects Mustii (1:02) Christer Bjorkman and Per Blankens join the production team (3:07) The EBU debates AI (6:53) Show Business: Patreon and the Great American Pop Culture Quiz (9:16) National Selections: United Kingdom, Switzerland,...
Published 09/12/23
From "Waterloo" to "Tattoo", Sweden has been a dominant force in the Eurovision Song Contest for more than 50 years, winning the competition seven times. We dive into the ESC history of next year's host country. Welcome to Sweden Summary Sweden: A Land of Contrasts (2:23) Sweden's Overall Record at Eurovision (4:19) The "Waterloo" Era (8:13) The "Digaloo" Era (13:36) The Carola Era (16:33) The Charlotte Era (22:54) The "Euphoria" Era (34:31) The "Heroes" Era (38:55) Cover image by...
Published 08/29/23
We say farewell to our host nations by discussing one area where Ukraine and the United Kingdom overlap: iconic runner-up entries. But what does "iconic" mean for Eurovision entries? Using data from the annual ESC Top 250 countdown, we construct a rubric to identify songs from across the decades that could be part of a Eurovision Hall of Fame. In this episode, we highlight the entries that finished in second place and have a perfect ESC Top 250 record. Iconic Summary Saying farewell to...
Published 08/15/23
With one month to go until Eurovision New Year and next year's host city and dates announced, it's been a fairly quiet month for the Contest. We check in with some of the national selection processes that are already casting for the upcoming season. Drought Summary Malmö, Sweden will host Eurovision 2024 (1:03) Norway Suggests Jury Changes (6:09) Patreon, Social Media, Guest Spots (8:48) Luxembourg is ready to play (12:37) Eurovision 2023 Impact Report (16:07) Sam Ryder Emmy Nomination...
Published 08/01/23
Finland went all out in supporting their Eurovision entry "Cha Cha Cha" in ways that continue to reverberate weeks after the contest. We spoke with University of Helsinki researcher Zoë Jay and UMK associate producer/"Cha Cha Cha" dancer Matti Myllyaho about Finland's Eurovision 2023 experience. Zoë Jay Dr Zoë Jay is a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Helsinki and the Centre of Excellence in Law, Identity and the European Narratives. She has a background in international...
Published 07/18/23