@@ShanesEurovisionReview Yasss! Maybe what's missing in Ulrikke's performance, is that it's predictable and familiar, so there's nothing new about it. I also felt like it was missing something.
I agree. I think Ulrikke really deserves to win, but there is something missing. My favourite was Eirik, his song will be the one I will listen to. But I think Alessandra will be the best choice for Norway/us in Liverpool..(so far)
It is really hard as I LOVE Ulrikke AND her song - but watching Alessandra tonight...I was like ummmmmm - not sure what is best for Norway moving onto Eurovision!
Alessandra was by far my favourite. Honestly, I don't get the Ulrikke hype... Or the hype for her song I should say, she's great. Personally, I don't need this in Eurovision, but if Norway chooses it, good for them I guess
As much as I think Ulrikke deserves to represent Norway in Eurovision, it’s hard to ignore Alessandra. Especially after her live performance - she just nailed it! Still there are two more semifinals to come.. It’s going to be an extremely good and exciting final at the end. 🙈
Such a good night! So gutted for Kate, but there were so many acts that deserved to qualify and sadly only 3 could. I'm still all aboard #TeamUlrikke. I know that they'll be able to get it even better for the bigger stage rather than the small TV studio.
PS. About something missing - I thought a few times I would have liked LED's and pyro. Which they aren't doing this season. I think Alessandra came across so well because she didn't need it with the choreo. While LED's and pyro probably would elevate the Honestly visuals quite a bit, if it was to move on to Eurovision :)
I'm happy to see that Alessandra's live performance convinced you !! 😊 I'm happy with the qualifiers! Alessandra was amazing live her vocals, the choreo and the staging were all on point. I also like the added 20 second prelude to the song it made for an epic start. It was definetly my favourite of the night. I agree with you about Ulrikke it was good performance and it ticked all the boxes but it felt like it was missing something. Hopefully she can elevate her live performance in the final like Elsie did last year. Geronimo grew on me as a song live but I agree with all your points about the live performance.
I'm obsessed with Tresko and was so sad he didn't qualify when his staging was iconic. However I didn't care for Honestly before these performances but Ulrikke gave me goosebumps and absolutely sold me on it here. But Alessandra is still my favorite of the qualifiers so far
That was my top 3 😉 Umami Tsunami were great vocally. Maybe that's why they didn't dance much. They wanted to sound good and dancing could have prevent it. Alessandra was MAGNIFICENT! She eleveted this song so much. I was totally blown away by this performance. And my favourite Ulrikke made me emotional. Literally I had tears in my eyes, and I've heard this song probably 50 times this week and it never happened before! But one thing was missing in that performance, as you said. And I think I know what. I would use LED screens with some inspirational videos, people, landscapes, etc.
Apologies for the incoming novel, lol! So... I went into this FULLY expecting to be wowed by Ulrikke's performance. And by all means, she's got the voice and they are throwing all of MGPs most effective visuals at it (and kind of doing it "well" too..?) I just found myself not being moved by it. For the first 30 seconds something felt "off" to me. I think for me, even though she absolutely delivers vocally, it feels like she's givng 80-100% all the way through, and that just doesn't give the song a lot of chance to feel dynamic. Like, there is nowhere to go after that first "full voice" chorus, you know? Maybe I am being overly harsh because I was expecting a lot, I don't know. Could also be the fact that she wants this so much that she wasn't able to hold back. Alessandra was fabulous, and I am SO relieved. I did not have faith that mgp would be able to deliver staging with her, but they really did. Just for the love of god, get a little bit more light on those backing dancers, and she'll be good. Her song/staging also has so much potential to grow if it gets to the big ESC stage, so I'd love to see what they would do with it. Umami Tsunami is still a bop, but you could really tell they got the most help from the autotune, so I'm not sure about that one as a winner. But it will absolutely make it to my spotify playlist. So far it feels like Alessandra is the best choice for Norway, but I do have a feeling that my fellow Norwegians really want Ulrikke to be able to get her ESC moment, and that the "you only get 1 vote" system this year might get her a landslide victory.
Maybe technically but that’s not everything and doesn’t mean it’s always best. For me it’s another ballad, I prefer to see some fire which Alessandra clearly has
Seeing your reaction i kinda agree with you! Ulrikke really has a amazing song that could do really well but Alessandra kinda pulled a SloMo here so i'm really excited to see who is gonna win :) My hopes are still on Ulrikke but i would not mind Alessandra taking the win
My favorite is Ulrikke Brandstorp "Honestly", She won Esc 2020 but it was not eurovision this year because Coronavirus come and now i will She win and represent Norway again. She have a beautiful voice and the song are good and have power. Im #TeamUlrikke too. :)
I thought Ulrikkes staging was fine - but maybe a little stiff. I think she should've moved more. Maybe start off sitting on the floor princess-style, like Loreen with Euphoria or Emmelie with Only Teardrops. Then stand up and move a bit once the song "comes to life." I also think something that NRK frequently underestimates with ballads (or any song with simple staging) is the importance of camerawork. I think camera angles are crucial if you're gonna have this intimate power ballad with an emotional connection with the singer. They did a couple "moments" with it - like turning around during the bridge, or the side profile shot when she hit the "big note."... but they needed MORE moments like that. Because otherwise, it felt very, been-there done-that. Just the standard, basic cameras. Some wide shots, some closeups, zooming in sometimes but not really in a surprising or particularly intense or emotional way. I don't think they need pyro or anything extravagant, I think they just need more interesting camera angles. Think of something like France's "Voila" in 2021. Extremely basic staging, but elevated because the camerawork was absolutely brilliant. Or even "Only Teardrops" in 2013. Pretty basic, but elevated with moments like the second verse when she turns and interacts with the flute player, giving that intense eye-contact. So what I really want is more dynamism. Not with more effects like fire and smoke, but with making it more "cinematic." Emotion, camera, movement.
I am afraid Honestly will be forgotten if it goes to Eurovision. I have a feeling it will be treated the same way like Greece did last year. It was overlooked by the public because of it being the power ballad that it is. Ulrikke needs to get rid of that dress tho. Another red flag since it reminds me a lot of Greece's too!
None of the contestants are allowed to use pyro this year for some reason.. Ulrikke was planning on using pyro, and when they got the news that they're not allowed to, they tried to come up with other alternatives. Such as the smoke in the background with the bright orange lights behind, kind of making it look like fire.
Hey hey Shane, finally getting round to catching up with all the news from last weekend after a very busy last few days on my end. Heat 1 was indeed a very strong selection of live performances. I would say all 7 improved on the studio versions, so it was sad we had to say goodbye to any of them in the end. Although I do understand what you are saying in regards to Umamu Tsunami having a slightly messy choreography. Also, I know you didn't react to it here. But I loved Kate's performance and was really sad to see her miss out, but heyho. Rasmus did indeed deliver a very fun and infectious performance, and it has grown massively on me. You are right he was giving some "Grandma Realness" there. Tho sadly I hear after the show he bumped into Subwoolfer and met a bit of a grisly end 🤣 Alessandra probably gave the best overall package and the song is also massively growing on me. If I didn't have that emotional connection with wanting Ulrikke to go to Eurovision, I might be rooting for her more than what I am doing currently. On the subject of Ulrikke, I do feel their is some work that can be done with staging and styling. The dress I was okay with, I wasn't feeling the hair style very much tho, I felt it made her look older than she is. I also felt the staging was quite similar to "Attention" in a way, so I think a bit of work needs to be done to make them a bit more different. In actual fact in the battle of the big female ballads in national finals over the weekend Ulrikke was overshadowed by Alika in Eesti Laul. But I will save my thoughts about that for the appropriate video 😉
I completely agree with you about Ulrikke and Alessandra. I feel like Ulrikke deserves to go to Eurovision but the song and performance are a little predictable, while Alessandra brings something new and fresh. I do wonder if Alessandra’s vocals will be as good without autotune, I heard they’re allowed to use that in MGP. Geronimo is really catchy but that performance felt kind of messy. I would have liked for Kate to have gone to the final but am not top devistated about it as the 2 best songs went through
I completely forgot about autonune when I reacted to this Charlotte! I hope Alessandra did not use it. I heard it was optional. I did think Alessandra was note perfect!!!
Both Ulrikke and Alessandra had a really great performance. As for the boys I still like the song but a lot has to change, because if they are getting inspiration from kpop they really need to upgrade the performance. I loved Kate's performance - she was outstanding.
hey Shane :) loooved alessandra.. ulrikke was good too, but agree, they need to do something with the staging.. I really don’t understand how Geronimo qualified over tresko.. hmm..
Happy new year to you too!! Hope you you started well into the new year? Yeah I needed a Eurovision Break.. as during the Final we had to rush one of our cats to the vet clinic, where he then passed.. but now slowly I start getting into my Eurovision Mood again.. so you’ll surely see more of my comments again 😋 but didn’t catch up with all the NFs yet..
Great review as usual Shane. We really are still in the dark here though. Vocally, yes the qualifiers sounded great. Ulrikke we know can belt a tune out...no doubt about it. The others im afraid have a question mark next to their name. MGP allows auto tune this year, so can we believe what we think we are hearing?......we won't be enlightened in this contest and we will only find out if one of them makes it to Liverpool unfortunately. As per Ulrikke's staging. I was hoping to see a string combo, preferably cellists sitting and playing their instruments as an accompaniment to Ulrikke. Something similar to Elsie Bey's MGP final performance last year. There is still time to tweak her staying I'm sure. Overall, the right 3 qualified here though Well done everyone 👏👏
Honestly has so much thrown at it re staging that it ends up a bit boring due to predictability. I outwardly groaned at the wind machine and the backing dancers coming forward for the clapping section. A wee bit too much cheese on the cracker for my liking... Also, is it MGP that they used autotune in this year? I don't really know what that technically means but I wonder how much of a difference it made to the live performances (of all not ulrikke specifically).
What was missing from Ulrikke's song was the pyro effects at the end. Think about where they came in Attention in 2020 and place those in similar places in Honestly and I think it will elevate the staging at the points when it's needed. I am assuming of course that there will be pyro at the final in a bigger setting.
@Marita Svendsen OK, that's interesting. I really think it would make a difference here given the nature of the song. I think they've used as much as they can within the limitations in place.
I have opinions. What a shock. haha. Overall, the 3 songs I thought would qualify when I listened to them all, qualified, so, I'm not disappointed with the result at all. Queen of Kings was my personal winner of the night as well! Seeing it live definitely elevated the song and she has great charisma and energy on stage to sell the song, not to mention solid vocals. I lowkey liked it more than Honestly tbh. The staging of Honestly fell a bit flat for me as well and I also don't know why! ahaha. It actually reminded me quite a bit of Elsie Bay's staging from last year, but with a lot more thrown at it. Wouldn't be surprised if it was the same designer on both. I just feel like the emotion Ulrikke brings to the song through her vocals wasn't highlighted as well as it could have been with the staging. There was bit of a disconnect for me. I have no idea how to tweak it to make it better, though. It might be a framing issue? Like, I'm looking for a bit more intimacy and vulnerability, especially in the verses and the first chorus and the camera keeps moving around like "look how epic and magnificent this is!!" Hopefully they'll tweak it a bit in the final so it leaves a bit more of an impact because I See the potential, and I want her to reach it! haha. Ulrikke smashed it vocally, though. As always ^_^ Geronimo's staging gives me the impression that they originally intended to dance as well but changed their minds last minute to focus on delivering their vocals (wise choice btw), because there was quite a bit of unnecessary focus on the backing dancers over the group. Hopefully they will incorporate the dancers a little more naturally in the finals performance, because I quite like the song. The song itself slaps, so, I get why people voted for it. I loved everything about Rasmus's performance! So entertaining, and it's a cute little song too. I was lowkey pulling for him as well.
I am not sure when best to do this because I found out yesterday that we wont know who qualifies for a few weeks - a VERY strange decision! So was thinking about watching all QF at a later date. Not sure what to do about it yet, but I will be doing something on my channel for sure 😊
@@ShanesEurovisionReview Yeah I found that weird too! Take your time because I think the results will be revealed in February! Tho I would love to see your reactions because there were some songs that flopped 😅
I agree with you on Unami Tsunami. I didn't like the choreography - they were not performing enough either. Loads of room for improvement though. It sounds like Ulrikke has a trick up her sleeve for the final performance - but (obviously) didn't want to go into details. I do think we can expect it to be a good bit better visually.
The opening (in Norwegian?) to Alessandra’s song wasn’t on the audio release, and there may have been a couple of tweaks. I think broadly it was difference between live performance and recording, though. And yeah, I agree that this is better live than Klara was at melfest last year. I kinda wanted kate or rasmus instead of UT, but I can kind of understand why they got through. I like Honestly better live but there’s something just not quite there for me. Plus the marching band drums in places make it sound like it belongs in Les Mis
I think the right decision was made for the qualifiers (although Geronimo still does nothing for me) those were the best songs on the night. As it stands I would say Queen of Kings is a clear winner
I absolutely agree! I really hope that they will floor us is in Trondheim. NRK has had a very limited budget this year... So yeah. Maybe it's just lacking audience and pyro. And I am not sure about that fringe. I ADORE her though.
@@ShanesEurovisionReview Yes, me too, fingers crossed. And watch out for Atle Pettersen in the last semi, he is the dark horse of the competition, I think. That song is just beautiful! For me it's between those two.
If Alessandra isnt going to Liverpool I will not be watching🥲 her vocal is so strong and clean, Ulrikke is a good singer but the song just wasn’t it for me this year.
The two I liked the least was the first and last song, sorry, all did a good job, but that's just how I feel. I love Grap the moment more than Freaky for the Weekend. When both Ulrikke and Umami Tsunami got through, and it was between Alessandra and Kate I knew I wouldn't be so lucky to get all my three favorites through, and I was right. Maybe Kate was compared to Ulrikke being the two ballads, and even with beautiful voices and both strong lyrical songs, Ulrikke may to a lot of people have had the more power full delivery.
Queen of the kings by far the best. I was also not expecting it to blow me away like that! 😆 love her! Smooth but powerful voice 👌🏽 Love ulrikke but let’s not mince our words here. Honestly is NOT good enough. It fell so flat for me. I loved Attention and her vocals are great, but not this year, and not this song 👎🏽
After watching all the performances I wanted Rasmus to qualify! 😂🤣 I mean if Norway doesn’t send an awesome, quirky entry who will‽?… I thought most live performances were better than the studio versions… i know I’ll be skinned alive for this by your audience but to me Ulrikkes song sounds so much like Malta’s last year and that song didn’t qualify for the final… I had the same feelings about Umami Tsunami
How do you say YIKES in Belgian? Anyways... I liked Ulrikke best even though the staging is too much. Going through the cheesy Melfest motions a bit, missing an edge, sth that gives an element of imperfection. But that can be changed and also the studio is small. I think she should have another dress The other two arent doing it for me. I liked Rasmus better. Alessandra doesnt give queen, giving pedestrian. Geronimo is weird
I think Geronimo singers didn't dance to much because 2 out 3 didn't perform as good vocally the guy with curly hair did good but the 2 others could work on it a bit, so for the singing I think keeping the dancing at a low is better but for a show dancing would be better
Love ulrikke but many say is Just the same song as show your self from frozen so many also belive here inn Norway is borring they iven Said this a Disney Song. So ulrikke is allready called a copy cat
Not sure! I am not a stylist so I guess I shouldn't comment...I am just trying to put my finger on what was missing from the performance. I think the dress was a bit simple/safe I guess...I don't know....I am probably talking rubbish 💖 ☺️
Who was your favourite tonight? Any of these potential winners of Eurovision 2023? Let me know in the comments below 👇 ⬇
Alessandra for me but closely followed by ulrikke
Alessandra really slayed! She was my favorite tonight!
She SLAYED! I was VERY impressed! ❤️
@@ShanesEurovisionReview Yasss! Maybe what's missing in Ulrikke's performance, is that it's predictable and familiar, so there's nothing new about it. I also felt like it was missing something.
I agree. I think Ulrikke really deserves to win, but there is something missing. My favourite was Eirik, his song will be the one I will listen to. But I think Alessandra will be the best choice for Norway/us in Liverpool..(so far)
It is really hard as I LOVE Ulrikke AND her song - but watching Alessandra tonight...I was like ummmmmm - not sure what is best for Norway moving onto Eurovision!
All love and respect to Ulrikke, but Alessandra was the favourite of the night for me!!
We are in the same boat Robert ❤️
BUT #TeamUlrikke 😊
Ulrikke has a eurovision winner vibe song at its best. Norway HAS to let her win!
Alessandra was by far my favourite.
Honestly, I don't get the Ulrikke hype... Or the hype for her song I should say, she's great. Personally, I don't need this in Eurovision, but if Norway chooses it, good for them I guess
As much as I think Ulrikke deserves to represent Norway in Eurovision, it’s hard to ignore Alessandra. Especially after her live performance - she just nailed it! Still there are two more semifinals to come.. It’s going to be an extremely good and exciting final at the end. 🙈
Yeah Norway needs to take Alessandra seriously for a song for Eurovision 💖
Alessandra is amazing, good luck from Spain! You're doing great Norway
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Alessandra all the way!!!
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Umami Tsunami was my favourite of the 3 that went through
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Wow……wow 🤔🤣
Such a good night! So gutted for Kate, but there were so many acts that deserved to qualify and sadly only 3 could.
I'm still all aboard #TeamUlrikke. I know that they'll be able to get it even better for the bigger stage rather than the small TV studio.
PS. About something missing - I thought a few times I would have liked LED's and pyro. Which they aren't doing this season. I think Alessandra came across so well because she didn't need it with the choreo. While LED's and pyro probably would elevate the Honestly visuals quite a bit, if it was to move on to Eurovision :)
#TeamuUlrikke here too 😍so good 😄
I really hope so as I love Ulrikke and her song!!!
Just to clarify I am also STILL #TeamUlrikke haha !
@@lillecathrine What?? No pyro at all this season?? :'O
Norway did a great job on who to vote for. All three songs are great.
Honestly can, in my opinion, win eurovision
I'm happy to see that Alessandra's live performance convinced you !! 😊
I'm happy with the qualifiers!
Alessandra was amazing live her vocals, the choreo and the staging were all on point. I also like the added 20 second prelude to the song it made for an epic start. It was definetly my favourite of the night.
I agree with you about Ulrikke it was good performance and it ticked all the boxes but it felt like it was missing something. Hopefully she can elevate her live performance in the final like Elsie did last year.
Geronimo grew on me as a song live but I agree with all your points about the live performance.
Alessandra is now a real contender for.me after that performance. I need to check if she used autone though!
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Yeah that’s a good point I forgot that auto tune was now allowed in MGP, makes it hard to judge acts when they can’t use autotune at Eurovision
I'm obsessed with Tresko and was so sad he didn't qualify when his staging was iconic. However I didn't care for Honestly before these performances but Ulrikke gave me goosebumps and absolutely sold me on it here.
But Alessandra is still my favorite of the qualifiers so far
I am glad you were won over by Ulrikke's performance...it was the best song in this SF for me ❤️
Ulrikke has plenty of time to polish the staging due to there being so many rounds.
Finally someone else that liked Tresko :D
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Ulrikke was best ❤
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Geranimo for the win! 🏆
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That was my top 3 😉
Umami Tsunami were great vocally. Maybe that's why they didn't dance much. They wanted to sound good and dancing could have prevent it.
Alessandra was MAGNIFICENT! She eleveted this song so much. I was totally blown away by this performance.
And my favourite Ulrikke made me emotional. Literally I had tears in my eyes, and I've heard this song probably 50 times this week and it never happened before! But one thing was missing in that performance, as you said. And I think I know what. I would use LED screens with some inspirational videos, people, landscapes, etc.
All the performances were good.
Glad you liked them Ada 😊 💖
My Top 3 Favorite Songs
1. Ulrikke Brandstorp - Honestly
2. Alessandra Mele - Queen Of Kings
3. Kate Gulbrandsen - Tårer i Paradis
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Same!
Apologies for the incoming novel, lol! So... I went into this FULLY expecting to be wowed by Ulrikke's performance. And by all means, she's got the voice and they are throwing all of MGPs most effective visuals at it (and kind of doing it "well" too..?) I just found myself not being moved by it. For the first 30 seconds something felt "off" to me. I think for me, even though she absolutely delivers vocally, it feels like she's givng 80-100% all the way through, and that just doesn't give the song a lot of chance to feel dynamic. Like, there is nowhere to go after that first "full voice" chorus, you know? Maybe I am being overly harsh because I was expecting a lot, I don't know. Could also be the fact that she wants this so much that she wasn't able to hold back.
Alessandra was fabulous, and I am SO relieved. I did not have faith that mgp would be able to deliver staging with her, but they really did. Just for the love of god, get a little bit more light on those backing dancers, and she'll be good. Her song/staging also has so much potential to grow if it gets to the big ESC stage, so I'd love to see what they would do with it.
Umami Tsunami is still a bop, but you could really tell they got the most help from the autotune, so I'm not sure about that one as a winner. But it will absolutely make it to my spotify playlist.
So far it feels like Alessandra is the best choice for Norway, but I do have a feeling that my fellow Norwegians really want Ulrikke to be able to get her ESC moment, and that the "you only get 1 vote" system this year might get her a landslide victory.
Ulrikke was the best tonight by far
Definitely not.
Alessandra was the Queen tonight!
I am relieved to hear you say that David! Maybe my reaction is the minority...I hope so ❤️
Maybe technically but that’s not everything and doesn’t mean it’s always best. For me it’s another ballad, I prefer to see some fire which Alessandra clearly has
Seeing your reaction i kinda agree with you! Ulrikke really has a amazing song that could do really well but Alessandra kinda pulled a SloMo here so i'm really excited to see who is gonna win :) My hopes are still on Ulrikke but i would not mind Alessandra taking the win
I am now lime you..mate this stage I am #teamulrikke but I NOW would not be dissapointed with an Alessandra win Quinto 💖 ☺️
SloMo? I don’t think so
Alessandra ❤❤❤❤❤❤
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My favorite is Ulrikke Brandstorp "Honestly", She won Esc 2020 but it was not eurovision this year because Coronavirus come and now i will She win and represent Norway again. She have a beautiful voice and the song are good and have power. Im #TeamUlrikke too. :)
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I thought Ulrikkes staging was fine - but maybe a little stiff. I think she should've moved more. Maybe start off sitting on the floor princess-style, like Loreen with Euphoria or Emmelie with Only Teardrops. Then stand up and move a bit once the song "comes to life." I also think something that NRK frequently underestimates with ballads (or any song with simple staging) is the importance of camerawork. I think camera angles are crucial if you're gonna have this intimate power ballad with an emotional connection with the singer. They did a couple "moments" with it - like turning around during the bridge, or the side profile shot when she hit the "big note."... but they needed MORE moments like that. Because otherwise, it felt very, been-there done-that. Just the standard, basic cameras. Some wide shots, some closeups, zooming in sometimes but not really in a surprising or particularly intense or emotional way. I don't think they need pyro or anything extravagant, I think they just need more interesting camera angles. Think of something like France's "Voila" in 2021. Extremely basic staging, but elevated because the camerawork was absolutely brilliant. Or even "Only Teardrops" in 2013. Pretty basic, but elevated with moments like the second verse when she turns and interacts with the flute player, giving that intense eye-contact. So what I really want is more dynamism. Not with more effects like fire and smoke, but with making it more "cinematic." Emotion, camera, movement.
umami sunami for the win 100% 🤩
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I am afraid Honestly will be forgotten if it goes to Eurovision. I have a feeling it will be treated the same way like Greece did last year. It was overlooked by the public because of it being the power ballad that it is. Ulrikke needs to get rid of that dress tho. Another red flag since it reminds me a lot of Greece's too!
Greece finished in top ten, though. Public or not, it's a great result.
I have a feeling they will improve staging and/or camerawork for the final.
I hope so Kennet ❤️ 😊
None of the contestants are allowed to use pyro this year for some reason.. Ulrikke was planning on using pyro, and when they got the news that they're not allowed to, they tried to come up with other alternatives. Such as the smoke in the background with the bright orange lights behind, kind of making it look like fire.
Thank you for the context here. It makes sense 💖 ☺️
I can't believe they banned pyro this year. What is MGP/Eurovision without it? #strømprisene?
Hey hey Shane, finally getting round to catching up with all the news from last weekend after a very busy last few days on my end.
Heat 1 was indeed a very strong selection of live performances. I would say all 7 improved on the studio versions, so it was sad we had to say goodbye to any of them in the end. Although I do understand what you are saying in regards to Umamu Tsunami having a slightly messy choreography. Also, I know you didn't react to it here. But I loved Kate's performance and was really sad to see her miss out, but heyho.
Rasmus did indeed deliver a very fun and infectious performance, and it has grown massively on me. You are right he was giving some "Grandma Realness" there. Tho sadly I hear after the show he bumped into Subwoolfer and met a bit of a grisly end 🤣
Alessandra probably gave the best overall package and the song is also massively growing on me. If I didn't have that emotional connection with wanting Ulrikke to go to Eurovision, I might be rooting for her more than what I am doing currently. On the subject of Ulrikke, I do feel their is some work that can be done with staging and styling. The dress I was okay with, I wasn't feeling the hair style very much tho, I felt it made her look older than she is. I also felt the staging was quite similar to "Attention" in a way, so I think a bit of work needs to be done to make them a bit more different.
In actual fact in the battle of the big female ballads in national finals over the weekend Ulrikke was overshadowed by Alika in Eesti Laul. But I will save my thoughts about that for the appropriate video 😉
Tresko was just the best performance ever!! I loved Rasmus so much!
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I completely agree with you about Ulrikke and Alessandra. I feel like Ulrikke deserves to go to Eurovision but the song and performance are a little predictable, while Alessandra brings something new and fresh. I do wonder if Alessandra’s vocals will be as good without autotune, I heard they’re allowed to use that in MGP. Geronimo is really catchy but that performance felt kind of messy. I would have liked for Kate to have gone to the final but am not top devistated about it as the 2 best songs went through
I completely forgot about autonune when I reacted to this Charlotte! I hope Alessandra did not use it. I heard it was optional. I did think Alessandra was note perfect!!!
Both Ulrikke and Alessandra had a really great performance.
As for the boys I still like the song but a lot has to change, because if they are getting inspiration from kpop they really need to upgrade the performance.
I loved Kate's performance - she was outstanding.
Ulrikke was best, and she didn’t use autotune like others did👍❤️
❤️ 😊
hey Shane :) loooved alessandra.. ulrikke was good too, but agree, they need to do something with the staging.. I really don’t understand how Geronimo qualified over tresko.. hmm..
YOUR BACK! HEYYYYYY!
I am surprised Tresko did not qualify! It HAD to have been close!
Happy New Year Gijo x
Happy new year to you too!! Hope you you started well into the new year?
Yeah I needed a Eurovision Break.. as during the Final we had to rush one of our cats to the vet clinic, where he then passed.. but now slowly I start getting into my Eurovision Mood again.. so you’ll surely see more of my comments again 😋 but didn’t catch up with all the NFs yet..
@@gijo3531 sorry to hear about you're cat Gijo :-(
Great review as usual Shane.
We really are still in the dark here though. Vocally, yes the qualifiers sounded great. Ulrikke we know can belt a tune out...no doubt about it.
The others im afraid have a question mark next to their name. MGP allows auto tune this year, so can we believe what we think we are hearing?......we won't be enlightened in this contest and we will only find out if one of them makes it to Liverpool unfortunately.
As per Ulrikke's staging. I was hoping to see a string combo, preferably cellists sitting and playing their instruments as an accompaniment to Ulrikke. Something similar to Elsie Bey's MGP final performance last year. There is still time to tweak her staying I'm sure.
Overall, the right 3 qualified here though
Well done everyone
👏👏
I am looking forward to a few more tweaks in Ulrikke's performance John!
❤️ 😊
Honestly has so much thrown at it re staging that it ends up a bit boring due to predictability. I outwardly groaned at the wind machine and the backing dancers coming forward for the clapping section. A wee bit too much cheese on the cracker for my liking... Also, is it MGP that they used autotune in this year? I don't really know what that technically means but I wonder how much of a difference it made to the live performances (of all not ulrikke specifically).
What was missing from Ulrikke's song was the pyro effects at the end. Think about where they came in Attention in 2020 and place those in similar places in Honestly and I think it will elevate the staging at the points when it's needed.
I am assuming of course that there will be pyro at the final in a bigger setting.
No pyro this year as far as we know. NRK has a lower budget. And pyro is expensive :/
@Marita Svendsen OK, that's interesting. I really think it would make a difference here given the nature of the song.
I think they've used as much as they can within the limitations in place.
@@jimw859 yeah. I think it would too. But like you said. They did as much as they can with all they could on a lower budget. Sucks though 😯
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:-(
I have opinions. What a shock. haha.
Overall, the 3 songs I thought would qualify when I listened to them all, qualified, so, I'm not disappointed with the result at all. Queen of Kings was my personal winner of the night as well! Seeing it live definitely elevated the song and she has great charisma and energy on stage to sell the song, not to mention solid vocals. I lowkey liked it more than Honestly tbh.
The staging of Honestly fell a bit flat for me as well and I also don't know why! ahaha. It actually reminded me quite a bit of Elsie Bay's staging from last year, but with a lot more thrown at it. Wouldn't be surprised if it was the same designer on both. I just feel like the emotion Ulrikke brings to the song through her vocals wasn't highlighted as well as it could have been with the staging. There was bit of a disconnect for me. I have no idea how to tweak it to make it better, though. It might be a framing issue? Like, I'm looking for a bit more intimacy and vulnerability, especially in the verses and the first chorus and the camera keeps moving around like "look how epic and magnificent this is!!" Hopefully they'll tweak it a bit in the final so it leaves a bit more of an impact because I See the potential, and I want her to reach it! haha. Ulrikke smashed it vocally, though. As always ^_^
Geronimo's staging gives me the impression that they originally intended to dance as well but changed their minds last minute to focus on delivering their vocals (wise choice btw), because there was quite a bit of unnecessary focus on the backing dancers over the group. Hopefully they will incorporate the dancers a little more naturally in the finals performance, because I quite like the song. The song itself slaps, so, I get why people voted for it.
I loved everything about Rasmus's performance! So entertaining, and it's a cute little song too. I was lowkey pulling for him as well.
React to MESC 2023 Quarter Final 1 songs 🙏🙏
I am not sure when best to do this because I found out yesterday that we wont know who qualifies for a few weeks - a VERY strange decision! So was thinking about watching all QF at a later date. Not sure what to do about it yet, but I will be doing something on my channel for sure 😊
@@ShanesEurovisionReview Yeah I found that weird too! Take your time because I think the results will be revealed in February! Tho I would love to see your reactions because there were some songs that flopped 😅
@@eurovisionnnn ok 👌 I will have a think about how to do it tomorrow 💖
@@ShanesEurovisionReview Well if you have time then great but if you dont have time then leave it for next time ❤
you're so adorable, love your genuine smile❤
Fliiiiirt!
Hahaha 😝
Thank you 😊
I agree with you on Unami Tsunami. I didn't like the choreography - they were not performing enough either. Loads of room for improvement though. It sounds like Ulrikke has a trick up her sleeve for the final performance - but (obviously) didn't want to go into details. I do think we can expect it to be a good bit better visually.
Looking forward to more tricks from Ulrikke ❤️ 😊
Is it just me or urlikkes vocals sound wierd in some parts. Still Alessandra was my fav of the night
The opening (in Norwegian?) to Alessandra’s song wasn’t on the audio release, and there may have been a couple of tweaks. I think broadly it was difference between live performance and recording, though. And yeah, I agree that this is better live than Klara was at melfest last year.
I kinda wanted kate or rasmus instead of UT, but I can kind of understand why they got through.
I like Honestly better live but there’s something just not quite there for me. Plus the marching band drums in places make it sound like it belongs in Les Mis
Your right Dave! The opening is new for Alessandra. Ultimately the song came alive live! 💖
@@ShanesEurovisionReview there's something fun about songs that do that, and conversely it's frustrating with ones that don't!
I think the right decision was made for the qualifiers (although Geronimo still does nothing for me) those were the best songs on the night. As it stands I would say Queen of Kings is a clear winner
I absolutely agree! I really hope that they will floor us is in Trondheim. NRK has had a very limited budget this year... So yeah. Maybe it's just lacking audience and pyro. And I am not sure about that fringe. I ADORE her though.
We ALL adore her! Hoping for something more magical staging wise in the final from Ulrikke 💖 ☺️
@@ShanesEurovisionReview Yes, me too, fingers crossed. And watch out for Atle Pettersen in the last semi, he is the dark horse of the competition, I think. That song is just beautiful! For me it's between those two.
If Alessandra isnt going to Liverpool I will not be watching🥲 her vocal is so strong and clean, Ulrikke is a good singer but the song just wasn’t it for me this year.
😁 💖
She is like the modern Carola...
Ulricke’s staging was predictable because the song is predictable lol
Hahaha the staging made that slightly apparent - but I still like the song 😊
The two I liked the least was the first and last song, sorry, all did a good job, but that's just how I feel. I love Grap the moment more than Freaky for the Weekend. When both Ulrikke and Umami Tsunami got through, and it was between Alessandra and Kate I knew I wouldn't be so lucky to get all my three favorites through, and I was right. Maybe Kate was compared to Ulrikke being the two ballads, and even with beautiful voices and both strong lyrical songs, Ulrikke may to a lot of people have had the more power full delivery.
I though Ulrikke will win but after seeing Kings and Queens live....it will be close for Ulrikke
Agree 100% 💖 ☺️
React to Alika’s live from Eesti Laul. Really epic
I am going to check out the live performances of all the Eesti Laul final qualifiers tomorrow most probably :-)
Queen of the kings by far the best. I was also not expecting it to blow me away like that! 😆 love her! Smooth but powerful voice 👌🏽
Love ulrikke but let’s not mince our words here. Honestly is NOT good enough. It fell so flat for me. I loved Attention and her vocals are great, but not this year, and not this song 👎🏽
tresko means: Treeshoe😅
Oh hahahaha....ummmm ok 👌 Is that supposed to make sense haha?
ulrikke is my winner but in a week Elsie Bay will show everyone how its done
I still need to check out Elsie's song. My job for tonight 😁
After watching all the performances I wanted Rasmus to qualify! 😂🤣 I mean if Norway doesn’t send an awesome, quirky entry who will‽?… I thought most live performances were better than the studio versions… i know I’ll be skinned alive for this by your audience but to me Ulrikkes song sounds so much like Malta’s last year and that song didn’t qualify for the final… I had the same feelings about Umami Tsunami
my favourite was Ramuss Thall, i think Norway will choose Alexandra. Ulrikke's song is good but imo prodictionwise a mess and i don't like the staging
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How do you say YIKES in Belgian? Anyways... I liked Ulrikke best even though the staging is too much. Going through the cheesy Melfest motions a bit, missing an edge, sth that gives an element of imperfection. But that can be changed and also the studio is small. I think she should have another dress
The other two arent doing it for me. I liked Rasmus better. Alessandra doesnt give queen, giving pedestrian. Geronimo is weird
I think Geronimo singers didn't dance to much because 2 out 3 didn't perform as good vocally the guy with curly hair did good but the 2 others could work on it a bit, so for the singing I think keeping the dancing at a low is better but for a show dancing would be better
Semi-1 was weak for me I didn't watch only the song wave somewhat interested me , semi 2 and 3 much stronger in my opinion I'll be watching them 🤩😍♥
I am getting a bit behind now Birkinater11...I will try and catch up with Semi final 2 tonight ☺️
...wasn't autotune allowed for the fist time in this semi?
Yes! And I forgot this in my reaction!
Ulrikke is too boring, i want some pop to represent norway in esc like geronimo😍 i love them
Alessandra?
@@ShanesEurovisionReview ehh i like her but not for esc
@@angelikajespersen9507 😃 💖
Love ulrikke but many say is Just the same song as show your self from frozen so many also belive here inn Norway is borring they iven Said this a Disney Song. So ulrikke is allready called a copy cat
Remember that MGP allows Autotune this year...
YES - I forgot that in this reaction - I won't forget tomorrow ❤️ 😊
Den italienske vikingdronningen vil ta det hjem og vinne kampen !!!
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Kate was robbed
There was allot of love for Kate going into this SF...allot of people had Kate in their top 3 💖
@@ShanesEurovisionReview She was my favourite out of all 21 songs, it even had me in tears even though I don't know Norwegian
We only had 1 vote. The ballad lovers chose Ulrikke over Kate.
Ulrikke's song is so boring, I hope she wont win
What is wrong with her dress?????
Not sure! I am not a stylist so I guess I shouldn't comment...I am just trying to put my finger on what was missing from the performance. I think the dress was a bit simple/safe I guess...I don't know....I am probably talking rubbish 💖 ☺️