Romania 2012 - Mandinga - Zaleilah

Romania were hanging on so long before they announced their finalists that I kind of hoped they'd be presenting us with something pretty special. Sadly though there few pop thrills in among the usual mawkish dead-eyed balladeer blokes, and those tiny shrieking girls wearing not quite enough shiny fabric they always seem to dig out.

So this song stands out like a sore thumb amongst the mediocrity that surrounds it. It's not particularly great, but it's been all over Romanian TV all year, and by the look of the official video - that sees the glamourous singer cavorting inappropriately in tiny garments the length and breadth of Dubai - they've got a bit of money behind them. So if the Romanian public isn't sick of the song by the time it comes to chose, they've surely got to be in with a decent shout.

Actually, I'm not sure that the girl is even a regular member of the band, as most of the videos of them on YouTube show them to be a cracking little six piece marching band. So which loyal member are they going to dump if they get to Baku? My bet's on the tiny trumpeter.

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clip

Greece 2012 - Velvet Fire - No Parking

Greece have just presented their four songs to the public. The conceit is that they're not going to say who any of them are by, so as not to influence the voting public into chosing their favourite act before the song.

The thing is, all four of them sound like they're by the same girl singer.

This is the best of the bunch - a punchy little Kelly Clarkson-alike stomper. A ludicrous lyric, to be sure, but at least it's got a bit of gusto about it. I wonder who it's by?

***STOP PRESS***

Turns out it's by a rather interesting looking twosome called Velvet Fire. Apparently they've already had a decent sized hit towards the end of last year, so we can only but hope!

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Sweden 2012 - Björn Ranelid featuring Sara Li - Mirakel

Every year this contest throws up a few songs that pretty much defy explanation. The thing is, you never expect them to come from Sweden. Usually the home of happy-go-lucky schlager and eerily over-wrought ballads, nobody's quite sure what chain of events led to this one getting into the Melodifestivalen.

Quite how a cuprinol-treated crime novellist with the complexion of my old nan's sofa ended up barking randomly over a nice slice of formula Europop is unclear, but we're especially glad it did.

Nobody expected this song to even crawl its way out of its semi-final, but somehow it charged through direkt til Globen, and is building up such a head of steam that serious Eurovision commentators are now beginning to fear that it might actually win the thing. And with a host of parodies and spoof websites filling up the internet there's half a chance that might just happen. And then where will we be?

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Estonia 2012 - Mimicry - The Destination

I love Mimicry. They've got to be just about my favourite Estonian band with their tasty brand of early 80s style electronica, all infused with contemporary club dance flavour. I love their aimiable persistance, too.

Every year they send a cracker of a song to Eestilaul, only to have their hopes thwarted at far too early a hurdle - curse that Estonian public! This year's attempt was a gorgeous mash up of Human League keyboards and New Order dance beats, with the singing boy looking cool and disaffected and every bit like a pre-acid Julian Cope, and the keyboard gal just looking cool.

I hope they don't take it to heart and give up trying, because hearing their annual effort is one of my favourite bits of Eurovisionism every year! Keep it up kids, you're flipping ace!

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Slovenia 2012 - Eva Boto - Verjamem

Finally we've got a top notch ballad in the competition proper. As much as I loved the Prusnik sisters and their delightfully kooky ways, and reckon they'd have lit up Baku like a beacon of fun, Verjamem was clearly the best song in the Slovenian final by a street.

Very much in the tradition of the more successful Balkan buildo ballad of recent years, despite her young age Miss Boto has both the voice and the personality to carry it off, and could well table their best result in years.

I'm not sure if this this song can mount a realistic title challenge, but it's certainly one of the outsiders to watch.

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Netherlands 2012 - Joan Franka - You And Me

What in heaven's name have The Netherlands just sent to Eurovision? Admittedly it's the best thing they've picked in at least a decade, but are we really allowed to dress up like Native Americans in Western Europe any more?

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Finland 2012 - Stig - Laululeija

As the Finnish process ambled along, a bit of a bandwagon began to build behind an enigmatic character known only as Stig. And while there were livelier and better written songs in the competition, the folks from the North gradually came to love the curiously laconic chap.

It's still unclear if he's for real or simply a made up character. After all, he made his name locally with his R'n'B parodies on the internet. But one thing's for sure - his shuffling, understated demeanor is a sad loss for Eurovision.

Let's have a look at what you could have won...

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Estonia 2012 - Tenfold Rabbit - Oblivion

You can always rely on the Eestilaul to throw up a couple of absolutely stunning songs that don't have a cat in hell's chance of winning. But at least Tenfold Rabbit managed to battle their way into the final tonight.

Just sit back and enjoy what is possibly the coolest song of the year so far. It's not winning anything any time soon, but the way that boy sings sends shivers down the spine.

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Finland 2012 - Freeman & Uusi Fantasia - Noitanainen

In all the excitement over both Trackshittaz and Jedward making it through last night, we nearly missed the last elimination in the long and laborious Finnish UMK process. And we're gutted at the result.

Veteran singer Freeman has been around for almost as long as Finland itself, and his collaboration with local prog pop act Uusi Fantasia was one of the few singalong songs in the process. In fact Mrs Hacksaw is prone to shouting out "Noitanainen!"at the top of her lungs at inappropriate moments. Scares the life out of me every time...

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Belarus 2012 - Litesound - We Are The Heroes

In a curious case of sudden about face the kind of which only usually comes from Belarus in this contest, no one less than the country's President, Alexander Lukashenko has come out in support of the narrow losers Litesound, claiming that the result was rigged.

And of course, with such a heavyweight supporter behind them, poor Alena Lanskaya has been stripped of the title, sending the fresh-faced young lads with the curious biker get up to Baku after all.

The boys, are of course, overjoyed, their Jacopo Massa proclaiming: "we were epic winners in any Belarussian poll so far. That's one more reason we should deserve something more." Quite what the exact nature of the previous winner's cheating was has yet to be confirmed, but it seems like Belarus will be sending a far lively song after all.

If they don't decide to change it again, that is...


Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Italy 2012 - Nina Zilli - L’amore è Femmina

No sooner did was it announced that Nina Zilli had bagged the ticket to Azerbaijan at Sanremo last weekend, then rumours emerged that her competition song might not necessarily be the one that she'd be singing in Baku.

News emerging from Italy today suggests this to be true, and that she's deciding which of three songs from her current album to sing at the big show. The rather fine Per Sempre you already know from Sanremo; another tune, Per Le Strade, is a little less impactful, preferring a cool purr to a Nina's signature sassy growl.

But our favourite is the title track from her album,  L’amore è Femmina - a gently stompy little number with the faintest whiff of rockabilly punctuating its nether regions. We fancy that it's their best chance of another impressive result in May - so they'll probably go with Per Le Strade, then...

***STOP PRESS***

Thank the lord they went for this one! Huzzah!

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Slovenia 2012 - Eva & Nika Prusnik - Konichiwa

The long hiatus since the Slovenian semis has finally been dented with the release of the six competing songs - three for each finalist. And while we're reasonably sure that the incredibly young Eva Boto is most probably going to win with her uber-ballad Verjamem, we really wouldn't mind if this perky little dose of whimsy earned the nod for Baku.

OK, so it might be slightly hamfisted with its Far Eastern cliches (Chinese musical themes over Japanese words? Hmm...) and perhaps even borderline blasphemous in places to the more religiously sensitive types, its simple, happy-go-lucky refrain is immensely likable, hooking into your brain in an instant, and the girls' quirky sense of fun just about keeps it the right side of irritating.

Just about...

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Turkey 2012 - Can Bonomo - Love Me Back

So Turkey did their traditional reveal during a micro-gig in the middle of the national news. The boy Bonomo began the show with somewhat of a difficult tune in a very unfamiliar time signature, and the Eurovision forums lit up in fear that this was actually the song. Hold hard, young folk, you've got some waiting to do yet.

Next came a short chat with that Azeri woman who's been cropping in finals all over the place, before a nice little films about Can himself. then came the moment. All was poised, the song began, and... oh...

His folksy little sea shanty is kind of OK, but sounds as though he's specifically written a song for Eurovision, rather than treating us to some of his more energetic usual schtick. I sense though it might be a grower. Which is alright for we fan types, but not much cop for a televised competition.. Hmm, the jury's out on this one at the mopment.

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Albania 2012 - Dr Flori - Personale

That awkward moment when someone forgets to cue the orchestra...

Actually, when the song does eventually kick in, the good Doctor offers up some pretty decent Eminem-gone-Balkan hip hop stylings - even if he does look like the bloke who came to mend my fridge last week.

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips

Ukraine 2012 - Vitaly Halay - I Want To Love

Sometimes it's not the a complete song that's worthy of note, but the odd small passage within. Even the biggest duffer of a tune can harbour a dynamite sequence that'll thoroughly knock your socks off.

Likewise, an otherwise untoward little ditty can hide something of such ear-popping splendor that you just have to share the joy. Which is what I'm doing here.

Poor Vitaly. His unremarkable little mid tempo trawl is plodding along nicely, minding his own business, when at around the 2:15 mark he begins to go feral, and for a few short seconds reaches a peach of true screeching fabulosity that even his own nan was probably shaking her head in dismay.

See if you've got the bottle to watch it twice!

Videos from YouTube. Underlying © lays with the owners of the clips