Croatia CROATIA 2021 - Albina - Tick-Tock

[escYOUnited]

Tried to fix the broken pieces, now I'm leaving
But you made it loud and clear I’m not enough
Tried to fool me more than once to keep me dreaming
'Cause you knew the truth would tear us apart

If you pull me down then I'll come around
And rise up to come show you who I am
I feel fire inside, my heart’s desire
I'm breaking free from you

Tick-tock, watch the days go
I'm losing track of time
Lost in your playzone
Don't overcomplicate
Now we're in warzone
You're screaming, "Oh no, oh no, oh no"

Tick-tock, I'll take you dancing
In time wе might break
You think you're fancy
I play those gamеs my way and you’ll be beggin’
"Please baby, don't go, don’t go, don't go"

I hear those voices from far away
They help me to escape (Escape)
I found myself and I'm finally free from
Your bad love in every strength

Tick-tock, watch the days go
I'm losing track of time
Lost in your playzone
Don’t overcomplicate
Now we're in warzone
You're screaming, "Oh no, oh no, oh no"

Dancin', dancin'
Think you, think you fancy
Tick-tock
Don't go, don't go, don't go

I hear those voices from far away
They help me to escape (Escape)
I found myself and I'm finally free from
Your bad love in every strength

Tick-tock, vrijeme curi, gdje si više
Usne grizem, sama jedva dišem
Tick-tock vrijeme juri ne mogu više
Oh no, oh no

Tick-tock, I'll take you dancing
In time we might break
You think you're fancy
I play those games my way and you'll be beggin'
"Please baby, don't go, don't go, don't go"

Dancin', dancin'
Think you, think you fancy
Tick-tock
Don't go, don't go, don't go​

 

[wtf]

I think we all knew one pop girl was not going to make it. Just happened to be Croatia. Wouldn't be shocked if the same thing happened tomorrow, Moldova or San Marino perhaps?

 

[VikingTiger]

I am disappointed that Croatia failed. When I first heard the song I called it a guilty pleasure. It stayed one of my favourites as other songs were chosen.
BUT Croatia was in a ridiculously strong semifinal. With many female pops. Most vocals were ok or good. Not many clear NQs here. It's never all "fair" in these semis .... qualifications will also depend on the genres of the other songs (in a semi with sother slow song and ballads I am not sure Belgium would have qualified). It also depends on the other countries in the same semi, we all know the existense of "friendly countries". And maybe also the starting order has something to say.
And of course how it all comes together on stage. ..

 

[Ezio]

I think I found the secret for Croatia's and Slovenia's many Eurovision flops and I am ready for share it for €€€

 

[empo21]

I was never a fan of Tick-Tock, never saw it as a sure Q, not even a borderline Q. Wasn't in my Dora Top 3 even.

But last night the performance impressed me and I thought she might have a slight chance.

Good effort, Croatia, you made a better decision at Dora this year, so fingers crossed for next year.

 

[shameless]

I mean when we saw which nations in the past were close to the finals but where prevented by jury one can not deny that there is a pattern with Balkan countries very often being the victim of that. I guess it comes from the myth they would dominate in the mid 00s. Of course in 2009 Croatia made it thanks to the juries despite only being 13th but ironically it was also on the expense of another former Yugo-country.

Only other act to join her on all of these are Hurricane girls.

What do you mean exactly?

 

[A-lister]

I mean when we saw which nations in the past were close to the finals but where prevented by jury one can not deny that there is a pattern with Balkan countries very often being the victim of that. I guess it comes from the myth they would dominate in the mid 00s. Of course in 2009 Croatia made it thanks to the juries despite only being 13th but ironically it was also on the expense of another former Yugo-country.


What do you mean exactly?

There were times when Balkan countries were unfairly treated by the juries sure, but really N. Macedonia and Slovenia this year final-worthy?

Croatia on the other hand, like I already said before, deserved at least Q, but I am also not shocked about the NQ (we can't say for sure it made it with the televoters either, my guess it did but in the lower part of the top. 10).

And also some Croats and exYugos are going bananas all over the internet claiming this was universally loved, well I think the Eurovision tracker can give us at least some indication: https://esctracker.com/

 

[Ezio]

The difference between Slovenia/Croatia dance bops and Israel bops is choreo:

Israel always has supercute and charming dancers, all smiles and gorgeous. Makes you fall in love.

Slovenia and Croatia (2012, 2013, 2018, 20021) always bring us Robocops, industrial/military bossy attitude. So unrelatable. Who cares about the abs when the faces don't move?

 

[Fluke]

Too bad for one of the slickest, most professional and modern Croatian entries for years, or ever. Maybe it was just too slick and came out heartless and artificial. But i hope this doesn't discourage them to continue in the same vein!

As i just posted about in another thread, i think this year was overloaded with similar entries, and having the singer+dancers on a row staging AND pink/purple background didn't help it from "disappearing" among the other such, especially for first time viewers.

I actually think this is one of the best written songs in the genre this year, but that doesn't mean it's mine or others favorite, it's a bit generic and lacks anything to really motivate anyone voting, other than the country making its first real effort after mostly catering to conservative neighbour votes.

Maybe it could have been lifted a bit by going for a warmer, more personal and less "glossy perfect" staging, but i see why they wanted to go with their original concept, even after finding out it was similar to several others, in the end, this just wasn't their year.

 

[SaladBreak]

The difference between Slovenia/Croatia dance bops and Israel bops is choreo:

Israel always has supercute and charming dancers, all smiles and gorgeous. Makes you fall in love.

Slovenia and Croatia (2012, 2013, 2018, 20021) always bring us Robocops, industrial/military bossy attitude. So unrelatable. Who cares about the abs when the faces don't move?

The one dancer that did smile in Dora performance (Luciano) was not accepted well by Croatian fans, he was accused of doing unnecessary grimaces and taking the spotlight away from Albina.

 

[SaladBreak]

I think we deserved to make it more than Norway and Sweden (and maybe Belgium, but here at least I can see why some juries would vote for it over Albina)

However, with a small revamp like Israel did(it was a big grower for me), it could have been a safe qualifier IMO, not on the border. I assume it was the producer Branimir Mihaljević ( 2010, 2018, 2021) who insisted on no changes.
I love this remix made by an Italian producer, I listened to it more than the original.

However, the flop turned out well for Albina so far because it got a lot of media attention and most people think she was robbed. Maybe better for her than 20ish place in the finals.

 

[Brandt]

I think we deserved to make it more than Norway and Sweden (and maybe Belgium, but here at least I can see why some juries would vote for it over Albina)

Agreed

 

[A-lister]

I think we deserved to make it more than Norway and Sweden (and maybe Belgium, but here at least I can see why some juries would vote for it over Albina)

However, with a small revamp like Israel did(it was a big grower for me), it could have been a safe qualifier IMO, not on the border. I assume it was the producer Branimir Mihaljević ( 2010, 2018, 2021) who insisted on no changes.

Agree with this! For sure much more worthy than Norway and Sweden no doubt!, but I would also throw into the mix that maybe it wasn't so smart to go with a predominately English version? I think it could have stood out better in Croatian (the Croatian part is way catchier to me than the English was)

And yes, a revamp could have been needed, it sounded kinda demo and empty to me, in fact I feel a bit like I did with the first version of "Set Me Free" too... so yes you're onto something there!

 

[SaladBreak]

Agree with this! For sure much more worthy than Norway and Sweden no doubt!, but I would also throw into the mix that maybe it wasn't so smart to go with a predominately English version? I think it could have stood out better in Croatian (the Croatian part is way catchier to me than the English was)

And yes, a revamp could have been needed, it sounded kinda demo and empty to me, in fact I feel a bit like I did with the first version of "Set Me Free" too... so yes you're onto something there!

Difficult for me to say as a native speaker, because they really put the only good Croatian part in the song. The rest (in the Croatian version) sounds like English > Croatian Google Translate

 

[shameless]

Slovenia and Croatia (2012, 2013, 2018, 20021) always bring us Robocops, industrial/military bossy attitude. So unrelatable. Who cares about the abs when the faces don't move?

I know that the bosnian quarter in me feels very relatable to that. In fact I think its part of the Balkan attitude that might be off putting for others whereas I take it as "no-BS"-attitude and prefer it too let's say fake overfriendliness. But maybe I also overanalyse it a bit too much here

 

[Ezio]

The one dancer that did smile in Dora performance (Luciano) was not accepted well by Croatian fans, he was accused of doing unnecessary grimaces and taking the spotlight away from Albina.

Too bad. Well, those serious looking dancers don't help. Someone send a note to HRT and RTV SLO, even if they say hvala, ne.

 

[A-lister]

Difficult for me to say as a native speaker, because they really put the only good Croatian part in the song. The rest (in the Croatian version) sounds like English > Croatian Google Translate

Lol... but most voters don't understand though so... I dunno, I think it could have been a risk taking but too late for that now.

 

[Ezio]

I know that the bosnian quarter in me feels very relatable to that. In fact I think its part of the Balkan attitude that might be off putting for others whereas I take it as "no-BS"-attitude and prefer it too let's say fake overfriendliness. But maybe I also overanalyse it a bit too much here

Israel 2014 flopped hard, and I think it was because of the bossy attitude of Mei and her backup dancers.

Since then, they had supersweet choreos that draw the viewers in. They make you feel like you want to hang around and make out with them

Yes, indeed, the dance choreos of SLO and CRO of the last decade are off-putting (for me), even if it's part of your "heritage", I think you should acknowledge, it's tough to relate to it.

 

[Milos-BC]

I think the song itself was a problem here. It just didn't work out. The performance was great, but I think the song was weak + we had other uptempo songs who left a better impression.

Still sad for Kedzo, I'm sure he would've had an even better song than last time, and he would've qualified. He deserved more from HRT.

 

[Gogerko]

It was an average song. Nothing more, nothing less. Not surprised she didn't qualify.

 

[Sammy]

I think it would have sounded more convincing with a larger part of croatian lyrics.