Tonight we will see Denmark pick their song for Eurovision 2022. This will be done through their selection show Dansk Melodi Grand Prix. 8 songs will compete in the selection and we took it upon ourselves to pick apart all of these songs. Who will be victorious in Team United’s review-panel? Let’s find out!
We found four reviewers to give their thoughts today:
- David Popescu, who seems like he doesn’t back any of his country’s options
- James Maude, our Californian based correspondent
- Roy Postema, from the Netherlands
- Tyler Griffith, Our Alaskan correspondent
As always, the opinions stated in this article belong to the person quoted and do not represent ESCUnited as a whole or the views of the other reviewers.
Now let’s start with the reviews!
Patrick Dorgan – Vinden suser ind
David – 2 – “A touching love ballad as you would expect it, just in Danish. The heavy piano, the deepfelt lyrics and emotions… I don’t know, this just goes nowhere.”
James – 4 – “This is both boring and dodgy. He counts one hundred steps from his ex-lover’s apartment to his, references his own mother’s interfering advice in their affairs, and keeps rambling on about his cold bed. My advice to his guy is stop obsessing over the little things, never bring your mother into your love life, and get a cat for the cold bed. The only plus I get out of this joyless exercise is that the composition is so limp and depressing, it may actually be based on a real break-up and the sad sap is pouring his heart out. Either way, I am not interested in hearing this on a Eurovision stage.”
Roy – 4.5 – “I dig Patrick’s voice quite a bit, but the song is a tad too generic to stand out. I do think it works perfectly well as a show-opener. It also lends itself quite well for a good staging and I have this feeling that this might surprise a few people with how well it could do.”
Tyler – 6 – “I think “Vinden suser ind” is fine! If I could leave it at that I would, but let’s keep trying. I like the fact that it’s in Danish so I can’t be annoyed at the English lyrics, and perhaps Patrick’s singing is good? The song though isn’t my thing, and I somehow get Netherlands Junior Eurovision 2021 vibes from the instrumentation. Look, I realize I don’t make that much sense, but it sounds like it to me! I think this song is fine, but doesn’t have a whole lot of elements to it that I can truly appreciate it.”
Total score: 16.5 (avg. 4.1)
Conf3ssions – Hallelujah
David – 3 – “This is very typical Scandinavian, very schlager style over it, which really ain’t my thing. Very innocent with that catchy beat, but it just stretches out and easily gets boring over time. There is a hook in the lyrics, but just barely. It works fine the first few times you listen, but it dies out even faster.”
James – 6 – “Oh great. Another European song with an imitation of a Southern American gospel choir thrown in. And considering the song has some British writers on it, I am surprised their usage of “stitched up” is incorrect. Otherwise, this sounds like a mid-tempo romantic club track that late career Kylie Minogue may be partial to. For its errors and some corny religious metaphors to symbolize a new romance, there is a goofy charm to this, and Denmark has a history of creating memorable duets at Eurovision with goofy charm.”
Roy – 7 – “Definitely one of the three main options for Denmark if you ask me. I love the little horn-toots added in the chorus, they really make the song stand out a bit more. I do think that I will like this a whole lot less in the live performance. Also with groups, there is more chance to have a weak link that might hinder the overall feeling of the song. Let’s see how it will sound and look, but it is definitely an okay option for me.”
Tyler – 5 – “Hallelujah” at first pass seems quite basic to me. Not trying to imply I’m that much of a connoisseur of taste, but it feels like a song that would never be used as a charted single from an album. Filler more than anything to me. I don’t mind the opening for the song, but don’t care for when the new voice comes in, and by the end, I’m just waiting for the song to end. This song feels just fine, nothing too crazy, so this score it gets!”
Total score: 21 (avg. 5.3)
Der Var Engang – En skønne dag
David – 2 – “This is just a Danish lullaby for the most part. It hits me, but not in a good way, made me sleepy listening to it, very innocent and quite pure. However, this is not what I would be looking for, especially not if I’m asleep.”
James – 8 – “I refuse to believe there are still acoustic guitar duos running around singing about enjoying nice days in 2022! But here we are with this unexpected little indie folk charmer that appears to have been drafted in to MGP 2022 from another era. This is just too pleasant to hate. Indeed, I want to take a hammer to anyone who complains about this because they would be ruining my fine day. But as the lyrics say, a fine day is found where you want the wind to take you, so I will drop the hammer, grab a pina colada, and this Rasmussen fan will find some sunny ground and chill.”
Roy – 5.5 – “I like that this song is very chill, jolly, cheerful and bubbly. This can be a good thing, but it can also mean that the song could get swallowed by a lot more outstanding songs in a big group. I am also not a massive fan of them singing together the entire time. If they sang alone for a bit more, it would have made the song a bit better in my opinion. The girl’s voice is really nice to listen to as well. It is definitely an okay song, but it doesn’t get me overly excited either.”
Tyler – 7 – “En skønne dag” is a pretty cute song! I normally go for the cute stuff, as too much saccharin makes my waistline get even longer, BUT. I think this would be fun to see on stage, even if it has no chance. The song doesn’t have a whole lot of bite to it, but it doesn’t feel like it’s trying to be bigger than it is either, so I wouldn’t mind seeing this do decently well in the national selection. I just think this is nice 🙂”
Total score: 22.5 (avg. 5.6)
Fuld Effekt – Rave med de hårde drenge
David – 1 – “I absolutely CAN’T stand this kind of trashy music! This is how you sneak filthy lyrics into a song here in Denmark, you focus on that hard bass and beat and then you’re free to sing about anything. This is pretty much a slutty sex anthem. The boys could sneak this through Europe for singing in Danish, since most people won’t understand the lyrics, but yea… they don’t sneak through me.”
James – 4.5 – “Right off the bat, this reads Jan Bloukaas’s novelty Afrikaans ear violator “Kaas Elke Dag.” It is repetitive, loud, and the individual rappers have the flow of a clogged bus station toilet. The lyrics are some cobblers about a woman choosing between bad boys and suburban boys and the ludicrous extremes the latter go to make themselves look like the former. What’s considered bad boy in modern Denmark, anyway? He doesn’t sort his recycling? And why don’t we just hear from the bad boys directly instead of the suburban Dads who always make this kind of song? I am down to hear Nicklas Bendtner’s “I raw dog royalty” for Eurovision 2023.”
Roy – 8.5 – “This is the perfect amount of controlled chaos for me. Just a wonderful rave song that I didn’t expect to see in any selection, let alone in Denmark. I really like it a lot, but will it be good live? I honestly couldn’t tell you. This will have its fair share of people who hate this as well, but you can never downvote a song. Wouldn’t mind Denmark going for this!”
Tyler – 7.5 – “Pleasantly surprised by this entry, as I haven’t heard anything like this in recent editions of Dansk MGP. “Rave med de hårde drenge” reminds me of those techno dance house songs from like Chemical Brothers, but definitely more Danish but also more crude. Which isn’t a bad thing to me, definitely feels unpolished, and the performance would have to be wild to get people to pump their fists in the air like back on the Shore. I’m not sure if there’s room in Eurovision for this, even if it is definitely unique, but I guess we’ll have to see what the staging hath wrought.”
Total score: 21.5 (avg. 5.4)
Josie Elinor & Jack Warren – Let Me Go
David – 4 – “Very camp and relaxing, usually songs like this don’t really go well with me, but this has it’s charm. A sweet build up into a duet, with a great composition. However, one thing that pulls it down a lot, is how it’s a rip-off of “Love Yourself” by Justin Bieber. The similarities just jump right into your face and that heavily distracts me.”
James – 2 – “A tedious, meandering break-up song with some wally grade similes (“Our love ran out like cash from a gambler’s account!”). This is of the “if you love, let me go” variety, which I have always found to be suspicious (the idea you’re a prisoner, the implied counterpart of “if you hate ‘em, hang on to ‘em,” the saying and not doing, etc.) in the way popular culture presents this trope in song. If this makes it to Turin, I am fairly certain this song will be let go in the Semi-Finals. I just can’t imagine there being too many wine bar couples out there in numbers sufficient to vote this through to the Grand Final.”
Roy – 3 – “This song is just a bit too simple and drags on for a bit too long. It is just a dreary break-up song and the lyrics are just way too up front and in your face for me. In the end this song just doesn’t work for me.”
Tyler – 5.5 – “Let Me Go” is fine. The chemistry between Josie and Jack on the track is fine. I’m bored though, and the song doesn’t really take me anywhere to really appreciate it. I just want to be let go of this entry and forget about it. I think they both sing the song well, but there’s only so much you can do with lyrics like “but love runs out / like cash from a gambler’s account”. I hate this line lol. Some similes just shouldn’t be made!”
Total score: 14.5 (avg. 3.6)
Morten Fillipsen – Happy Go Lucky
David – 2 – “A calmer 80’s vibe song, and of course it makes good use of that synthesizer. I’m not really catching its drift here, with the English title being the only English used in the song, I don’t get the word play at all. I lose my interest very fast and the song was rather forgettable, song just doesn’t stick with me at all”
James – 5 – “Credit to Morten. He’s not lying with the title with this song. It does indeed sound “Happy Go Lucky.” Not a care in the world, just plodding along. Problem is I forget what it sounds like as soon as the song is over. It’s pop funk delivered by a guy who (sort of) looks like Nathan Fillion, which may help him with middle-aged women who still keep the light on for Firefly’s Captain Malcolm Reynolds and get excited every time a guy in a leather trenchcoat walks by. This song is just fine. But it won’t make much impact at Eurovision in Turin, let alone burn the land or boil the sea.”
Roy – 2 – “This mid-tempo song was perhaps decent the first time I listened to it, but having to hear it more often really makes it annoying and dreadful. Very monotonous and it drains me of energy listening to it.”
Tyler – 6.5 – “Happy Go Lucky” feels like a Melfest reject, and I mean that in the nicest way possible–it’s technically good! But I also don’t think there’s that much there to it in terms of risk or reward, other than it being in Danish. The song is Fine, but it is also catchy as hell. It’s stuck in my mind right now, and hasn’t annoyed me terribly just yet. But soon it will once this review gets posted. Either way, this is kinda good the more I think about it, so this score feels appropriate.”
Total score: 15.5 (avg. 3.9)
Reddi – The show
David – 2 – “Okay, not gonna lie, the song got me in that first half. What a shame it’s not energetic and fun the entire time, I don’t get it, why waste about 40% of the song with a slow tempo ballad style, to switch it into a more modern rock-pop song? I would’ve loved that second half being the full song, instead of waiting so long for it to pick up. Lyrically, nothing special, the focus went onto the music, absolute shame to have something and then ruin it before it even begins.”
James – 6 – “Why the hell did it take a minute and ten seconds to get going? As ‘90s retro pop punk, once this song gets going, it’s great. But the first third is just dead air, a slow acoustic grind that gives no hint of what’s to come. It’s not a great build and apart from lyrics doesn’t connect well at all, so when the electric guitar kicks in, it is a clumsy shock. They’d be better off just doing three minutes of pop punk, or a doing a build that is gradual. Right now, it feels as sudden as being woken up from a nap by a bucket of ice to the face.”
Roy – 9 – “This should easily be the pick for Denmark! I absolutely love songs that start as ballads and then break out into a rock-tune so this is perfectly up my alley. This is insanely stageable as well and the only thing I like a bit less is the slight repetitiveness of the lyrics. For the rest, this song is wonderful and Denmark HAS to go for this!”
Tyler – 6 – “The Show” does a good job of showing off vocal talents (possibly to challenge the people who don’t think rock music is difficult vocally?), and the thing is, while I get that the opening ballad is a build-up, I’m so bored before it ends. And then when the rock comes in, I feel like the rock is a bit generic sounding? It doesn’t feel all that special to me, and yes, I want to like this more, but it just feels like a knockoff more than anything, and I don’t like it nearly as much as I want it to. “The Show” is at least unique-sounding in this selection, so this score feels appropriate, but it’s a solid This Is Fine.”
Total score: 23 (avg. 5.8)
Juncker – Kommet for at blive
David – 1 – “Very uninspiring and boring, very Danish as well. I’m just not connecting with it, feels like there’s barely effort put into it, it’s performed very simply and that’s honestly what it just it is… simple, who would care for that?”
James – 6.5 – “Juncker sounds like a rock relic from the mid-90s, particularly a sober version of Oasis. Lyrically, it sounds like it’s about the aimlessness and malaise in hooking up as a single in your forties. This would be a strange one to have at Eurovision, unless there’s an army of lonely aunts and uncles out there ready to ask each other, after a midweek dinner at a second-rate trattoria in Aalborg, if they want to stay or leave. I quite like the vibe of this one, though when I said Juncker sounds like a rock relic I mean this is less a nostalgia trip into the 1990s and more someone from the 1990s coping as a middle-aged man in the 2020s.”
Roy – 2 – “This is incredibly dated and stale. There isn’t really much in this song that truly excites me. I guess he is singing in Danish and the whistling is cool too. That is not enough to redeem itself and this should not go anywhere in the competition..”
Tyler – 4 – “Kommet for at blive” feels like a garage band’s attempt at blending alternative rock with dadrock with the guitar twangs and riffs in the background instrumentation. If the lyrics and vocals meshed well, then I could forgive this song, but it sounds too discordant for me to really like them together. I don’t like this song very much (but I want to like it), and especially the whistling doesn’t help me either. This is the lowest score I feel like I can justify though since I don’t despise this song at all, but I don’t care for it so bye!”
Total score: 13.5 (avg. 3.4)
And that concludes our reviews! Our top 3 is the following:
- Reddi – The Show
- Der Var Engang – En skønne dag
- Fuld Effekt – Rave med de hårde drenge
Do #YOU agree with our thoughts and winner? Which act would #YOU back to give Denmark the best shot at qualifying for the Grand Final at Eurovision? Let us know in the comments, on social media or on our forum HERE. Alternatively, join the discussion on our Discord HERE.
