Many felt that this year was a bit of a miss for Melodifestivalen – the Swedish national selection. It came over as more of a national talent show than a national final, a popularity contest, determined to win the ratings battle. The acts seemed more bothered with their Swedish chart positions than how they might fare at Eurovision. It’s perhaps not surprising then, that the winner was was Ingrosso, a reality TV star.
The end result sounds like an SVT contractual obligation, as if the Swedish broadcaster is marking time until they’re ready for their next win.
On one hand, the production and vocals remind me of something from the late 70s, when everyone wanted to be the Bee Gees. On the other, a sprinkle of Daft Punk lends it a more modern feel, but ‘Dance you off’ really doesn’t excite me. There’s no hook, and it goes nowhere. It’s quite American, well-produced, but charmless.
As for Benji, I’m not sure his appeal will travel. Fair enough at home the Wahlgren family are seen as the Swedish Kardashians, but on the international stage, he comes over as ‘production line twink’.
It’s hard to call, the Swedish team know how to stage their songs, and their performers usually sound great live, so I can’t see it being the first Swedish song in years to miss the final. That said, it’s probably going to disappoint those hoping for a top five – or maybe even a top ten.
There may well be calls for change to how the song gets picked the day after.