The 2015 “Expert” Panel – PORTUGAL

Há Um Mar Que Nos Separa (Eurovision 2015 – Portugal)

The ESC United “Expert” Panel is back once again reviewing all Eurovision songs and rank them accordingly.

You are probably asking yourself on how we pick our panel and the criteria. We looked at people from all walks of life to bring together a unique group of panelists with a wide range in taste. They all bring different skills and tastes to the table so who are they?

Anselm – The Alternative Guy
Arie – The Professional Musician
Daniel – The Noob
Katja – The Schlager Queen
Mike – The Smart One
Olivia – The Journalist

You can read more about them HERE

Disclaimer: While we picked, what we perceived individuals with a wide range in taste, it is subjective to a certain degree so just enjoy their thoughts and if you don’t agree, feel free to post your comments below.

Portugal’s success at Eurovision has been limited. Leonor Andrade is trying to change that. Our Panel thoroughly reviewed and ranked it. Let’s see what they came up with.

Anselm – The Alternative Guy
The verses of “Há um mar que nos separa” sound really promising and create an exciting atmosphere. They remind me a lot of the well-known Portuguese electro-pop band Amor Electro. But then the chorus happens. Compared to the verses, it’s as generic and bland as it can get and a huge letdown in general. The key change towards the end doesn’t help much either. Personally this is quite a big disappointment as Portugal could’ve been one of my favourites if only the chorus didn’t destroy the whole thing.
Points: 5/10

Arie – The Professional Musician
Unfortunately being unable to understand the lyrics (I really need to brush up on my Portuguese), this critique will have to focus on musical merits alone.   It has a strong beat, it’s melody is accessible, and I like the key change.  Apart from that, nothing really jumps out at me.  The singer is serviceable, but never truly dynamic.  The ornamentation is interesting, but not necessarily thrilling.  It’s good, but not great.  Reminds me of a song one would hear during the montage moment of a soap opera.  If 5 is dead average, then so is this song.
Points: 5/10

Mike – The Smart Guy
A very uneven song unfortunately.  The verses are edgy and show off the lead singer’s vocal abilities.  The minimal accompaniment emphasizes her talent.  However the refrain is so simple and upbeat as to deny the verses’ complexity, despite its occasional use of Portuguese “ugly” nasals.  And unfortunately again, the refrain will be what Eurovision viewers will remember and will be encapsulated in the highlights video that viewers use to vote.  Unfortunately (for the third time) this will be another Portuguese song that will be more popular in the years to come than it will be this year.
Points: 7/10

Olivia – The Journalist
“Oh no. What happened? What is that first verse? Oh dear… oh wait the chorus is actually a bit more listenable…” This was my exact trail of thought when listening to Portugal’s entry for the first time. For a county so rich in culture and music, this is poor. There’s just not much to it. The verses are distinctly average, the only thing which injects life into the song is the chorus – which is actually, upon second listen, quite nice. Even a key change can’t really salvage this one. It’s a shame as Leonor’s voice is spot on.  But it just doesn’t stand a chance against the other entries.
Points: 5/10

Katja – The Schlager Queen
The intro kicks off and I’m getting flashbacks to late 90s/early 00s, when such adult contemporary songs were everywhere on the radio. I love that it’s in Portugese, it’s an intriguing language. We come to the chorus and I get flashbacks to ESC entries from that time, it’s very retro and anthemic. Ooooh, a keychange! Now we’re talking! Bless Portugal for keeping the spirit of oldskool, happy Eurovision alive! I hope Leonor delivers live like her life depended on it. I’d be beyond happy seeing this qualify.
Points: 7/10

Daniel – The Noob
Usually I am no fan of songs in another language other than English and my mother tongue of course because I love listening to every single word. If I do not get the context of a song, it’s going to be more difficult to “get” the song. Even though Portugal’s entry is in Portuguese, you are able to feel the emotions Leonor put into this song. So never mind that I don’t understand one single word. Making an emotional song vibrant is a very difficult task. It’s even more difficult to make me like an emotional and slow song. What more could I say: Portugal made me like an emotional song. Points deductions because Portuguese sometimes sounds quite vicious.
Points: 6/10

Overall: 35 Points

If you check our weekly Ranking Game, you can see that Portugal is usually pretty low and often finished 40th (out of 40 songs) which clearly isn’t a good Omen. But look a the panel who all have different tastes in music. Nobody hated it, they either liked it or were indifferent. So 35 points for Portugal. What does this mean for the ranking? Let’s find out.

Do you think that the panel got this right?!? Share your thoughts below and join the convo on our Forum. See yah soon!