ESCXTRA are live from Lisbon for day 5 of rehearsals ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest 2018! The countries rehearsing today, in chronological order, are Azerbaijan, Iceland, Albania, Belgium, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Israel, Belarus, Estonia, Bulgaria, F.Y.R. Macedonia, Croatia, Austria, Greece and Finland.
We’re streaming live from the press centre
Furthermore, read our handy guide for a more detailed look at this contest’s rehearsal schedule.
In addition, for our immediate reactions to every single rehearsal, you can follow our live stream from the press centre at the Altice Arena by visiting our YouTube channel.
The latest artist to rehearse for the second time is Eugent Bushpepa for Albania. Iceland was due to perform before them, but Ari is stuck in a traffic jam caused by a traffic accident (but don’t worry, Ari was not involved!) We have just watched their latest run through of Mall live on screen and here is our initial reaction.
Staging
The performance appears to be mostly the same this time round as it was on day 1. As a reminder…
The Albanian delegation have their full quota of performers on stage, with Eugent backed by two female backing vocalists, a drummer and two guitarists. The guitarists begin the performance to the side of the stage, joining Eugent by the first chorus. At this point, the lighting switches from a dark blue into red and black which brightens up the performance.
Camera shots in this performance: 60
Vocal
Eugent is, as expected, vocally flawless. The backing vocals work in perfect harmony with him. Spot on!
Costume
Eugent’s costume is the same as it was in day 1. However, the backing vocalists’ outfits have changed from being black leather to black glitter. We like this even more!
To qualify or not to qualify?
We have taken a flash poll from around the ESCXTRA table here in the press centre and 8 out of 9 of us say…
NO!
Watch the rehearsal!
Stay tuned for our reaction to Ari Ólafsson as they rehearse Our Choice next for Iceland (as previously mentioned, their rehearsal was delayed as Ari was stuck in a traffic jam!). If you want to know what to expect for the rest of the day, check out our rehearsal schedule here. Meanwhile, remember to tune in to our live stream from the press centre for instant reactions to each rehearsal.
