Sweden’s most popular television programme continues into its second week tonight. The second semifinal of Melodifestivalen 2018 takes place in Göteborg. We’ve taken a look at the entries and the procedure below, so here is the XTRA Preview & Review!
XTRA Preview: Melodifestivalen – Deltävling 1
Seven acts will be taking part tonight in order to make it through to the final of the Swedish national final for Eurovision, Melodifestivalen. Among them: a two-time finalist and a former Polish national final fan favourite.
The host of tonight’s show is David Lindgren. The singer returns for his second hosting job in the contest he tried winning a couple of times before. SVT 1 will air the show at 20:00 CET. Two acts will qualify for the final, two more will make it to Andra Chansen. For the other three, it’s over after tonight.
We will be tweeting throughout the show, live at @ESCXTRA!
XTRA Review: Melodifestivalen – Deltävling 1
Samir & Viktor – Shuffla
Dan: Disliked their debut, liked their 2nd attempt, absolutely LOVE this! It’s the type of song we lacked last week which made the semi final so dull. This is what you call making the absolute most from every second of your song.
Score: 8/10
Dominik: I love this song! It’s very modern, danceable and so much fun. It’s of course what you expected, but Samir & Viktor always deliver. Should get direct to the final!
Score: 9/10
Nick: Somehow, everything these two do sounds the same to me. From Groupie to this. It is more of a comedy act without them realising it’s funny.
Score: 4/10
Sami: This is probably their best Melodifestivalen entry ever. They always bring some fun to Melodifestivalen, but this time the song is also very well produced. The only thing I don’t like is the part where they list Swedish cities. I really love the choreography, we didn’t really have anything like that at Melodifestivalen yet this year.
Score: 9/10
Ida Redig – Allting som vi sa
Dan: This one song is miles better than any of the entries performed in Swedish last week. Whilst I think it will miss out on a final and Andra Chansen spot, it’s bound to chart well in Sweden.
Score: 6.5/10
Dominik: I already see this being very high in the charts. Like the music elements and the Swedish language. Such a bop. Hope she will get to AC at least.
Score: 8/10
Nick: A classic Swedish pop song. The kind Björkman needs to fill his semis with diversity. This is not bad, but will normally come fifth or lower.
Score: 6.5/10
Sami: It’s not very modern, but it doesn’t bother me that much. The chorus is very catchy, but the verses aren’t as good. I doubt this can make it through from this spot.
Score: 6/10
Jonas Gardell – Det finns en väg
Dan: An interesting contrast to the previous song and will stand out, in being stripped back. Like Kikki last week however, I think the audience may just fall asleep during the performance.
Score: 3/10
Dominik: It’s standing out in the semi, but I don’t think in a good way. It has its own charm, but I don’t think this will make people vote for it. Still a nice song.
Score: 4/10
Nick: I just can’t get past the fact that this man doesn’t sing. Mainly because he can’t sing. The lyrics will do a whole lot, but this doesn’t grab me
Score: 5/10
Sami: This is a very traditional ballad and I’m not really a big fan of those. Jonas doesn’t have the most pleasant voice either. This is just very boring.
Score: 2/10
Margaret – In My Cabana
Dan: Not quite sure how to feel about this. Sure it’s uptempo and current but with major similarities to Camila Cabello’s “Havana” – heck it even rhymes! I feel like it’s been ripped off a bit too much with the ‘Na Na Na’ sounding like a direct copy and paste job from Cabello’s song. It will qualify, but not directly to the final. (And still not a touch on ‘Cool Me Down’)
Score: 6/10
Dominik: It’s not “Cool Me Down” – part 2. Still a very good song. Hope she can deliver all the energy on stage. This will fight for an AC spot and I would love to see this in the final.
Score: 7/10
Nick: When you want to launch a career in Sweden, you need to deliver something credible and current. Margaret does that, even though I’m not fully on board. It feels empty and lazy.
Score: 7/10
Sami: It’s not as good as Margaret’s best songs, but it’s still enjoyable. The lyrics are extremely stupid, but I like the tropical vibe. The short clip of the performance isn’t getting me excited, but I hope the whole performance takes this to a next level and helps it to reach at least the andra chansen.
Score: 8/10
Stiko Per Larsson – Titta vi flyger
Dan: For me the best Swedish driven song as of yet this year. Cheerful, authentic and a very catchy chorus. Would not be surprised if this goes direct to final.
Score: 7/10
Dominik: This is a good song and I get summer vibes from it. It’s that kind of feel-good-song that could also come from Hasse Andersson. I like this very much, but it’s probably not strong enough to go far this year.
Score: 6/10
Nick: The wildcard man of them all is usually chanceless. And I fear that will also be the case this time. The song is a tad forgettable and the performance doesn’t look like they have much hope.
Score: 6/10
Sami: Stiko seems so lovely, but the song isn’t that special. It reminds me of summer and the warm weather, but the verses are bit boring.
Score: 6/10
Mimi Werner – Songburning
Dan: It’s okay but just not very original – I feel like this same song was in last year’s selection but just wrapped in new lyrics. It doesn’t really change pace and I think the audience may feel the same about it.
Score: 5/10
Dominik: Country didn’t work that well in the first semi, but this is another world. It’s super catchy and the chorus is amazing! I already see me listen to this again and again. This has to get to another round of Melfest! Love this!
Score: 8/10
Nick: Now this is more my thing. Mimi sings this well, the lyrics sound good and the song gets stuck in my head. I hope the Swedes can follow the country trend.
Score: 8.5/10
Sami: It’s very uplifting but also a bit repetitive. I love the drums and Mimi’s voice is very sweet.
Score: 6/10
LIAMOO – Last Breath
Dan: So apparently this is not only the big favourite to win the semi final but also one of the contenders to win the entire selection. Sure yes, the chorus is rather nice but the rest is all a bit ‘Meh’ for me and honestly, there are better songs in this heat than this one.
Score: 6/10
Dominik: Rap is not my thing. That’s why the verses are not absolutely my thing. However, I like the chorus very much and I like that he sings there. It has a great melody and I think that LIAMOO will have a great stage presence. The pics looked stunning and I see this in the final
Score: 7/10
Nick: It is rap. A key rule is that I do not like rap. This sounds pretentious. The song Björkman wants to see winning, but will also fall short in the final. This is not for me at all.
Score: 3.5/10
Sami: The song is very radio-friendly but also a bit middle of the road. It just goes by and leaves nothing behind. The performance looks great though, so I think it will help him to reach the final. I don’t think it’s a winning song, but I don’t mind listening to it more than once.
Score: 7/10
Who do we want?
The XTRA Jury, this time consisting of Dan, Dominik, Nick and Sami has spoken. Below you can see the average each song achieved. Their favourite for tonight’s show is Samir & Viktor’s “Shuffla”!
- Samir & Viktor – “Shuffla” – 7.5/10
- Margaret – “In My Cabana” – 7/10
- Mimi Werner – “Songburning” – 6.9/10
- Ida Redig – “Allting som vi sa” – 6.8/10
- Stiko Per Larsson – “Titta vi flyger” – 6.3
- LIAMOO – “Last Breath” – 5.9
- Jonas Gardell – “Det finns en väg” – 3.5
Which of this week’s competitors do you like best? Make sure to let us know who you like by commenting!
Comments on XTRA Preview & Review: Sweden – Melodfestivalen 2018: Deltävling 2