Estonia ESTONIA 2020 - Uku Suviste - What Love Is

[escYOUnited]

 

[Daybreak]

Merilin's song is one of the more memorable in this Eesti Laul for me. Mainstream-friendly songs like this might come off as more "generic" if you don't understand the language and just go by the general sound, though. Oh, and I find it odd that fans hyped up Elina Born in 2017 and Sandra Nurmsalu last year even with the songs they had, just because they were returning artists, but aren't rushing to support Laura now.

(besides Synne, but let's remain realistic)

Wait, do people genuinely think Synne has the best song in this selection? I thought it was sort of an ironic thing, like that Serhat hype last year.

 

[BorisBubbles]

They have a clear top 10 in the selection though whether you like this years Eesti Laul or not. Last year they finished 14th.

IS "Beautiful Lie" a guaranteed top 10 though? I'm not refuting your statement, but I have my doubts. Estonia nearly always do worse than expected and it comes right after "Arcade", in what will likely become a field with several other entries that will draw inspiration from it.

Choosing "Beautiful Lie" could easily backfire if Estonia can't shake off the "Arcade Clone" label that will inevitably come with it. It will depend on how engaging Jaagup is while singing this song, which can go in any direction.

I am assuming you were refering to "Beautiful Lie", because I doubt anything else could finish top 10 in Rotterdam. Hell, anything else will struggle with qualification.

Merilin's song is one of the more memorable in this Eesti Laul for me. Mainstream-friendly songs like this might come off as more "generic" if you don't understand the language and just go by the general sound, though. Oh, and I find it odd that fans hyped up Elina Born in 2017 and Sandra Nurmsalu last year even with the songs they had, just because they were returning artists, but aren't rushing to support Laura now.

I don't think Laura's song is bad at all, but it suffers from being a somewhat unspectacular song by an artist the ESC Bubble had expectations for.

The indifference appears odd on the surface, but I think both "In Our Out" and "Soovide Puu" had some instant built-in appeal from their genres, which "Break me" kind of lacks. ESC Bubbleboys and -girls get out of their beds for Electro Swing and World Music, but for a quiet midtempo pop song in a selection infested with them? Ehhhh.

Wait, do people genuinely think Synne has the best song in this selection? I thought it was sort of an ironic thing, like that Serhat hype last year.

I genuinely enjoy "Majakad" :-) I love myself some traditional, enjoyable schlager, but it also stands out in the selection as something which goes against the grain. I can't speak for the rest the internet, but my fondness is definitely more genuine than ironic.

 

[tuorem]

Wait, do people genuinely think Synne has the best song in this selection? I thought it was sort of an ironic thing, like that Serhat hype last year.

To each their own of course, but what makes you think it could only be liked ironically? Personally, I think it's truly catchy, there's a memorable chorus and it stands out in this overly homogeneous lineup. It caught my attention instantly and made feel something, which is already more than what the rest did to me.

As far as I'm concerned, I did support Elina and Sandra in recent years because I liked their songs (and they stood out), not because they were familiar names. I do appreciate Laura's song this year, but it did not entirely meet my expectations tbh.

edit: Ok, Boris basically spoke my mind!

 

[Daybreak]

[MENTION=16481]BorisBubbles[/MENTION] [MENTION=9195]tuorem[/MENTION]

I guess that's partly why I don't really consider myself an "Eurovision fan" despite having followed it for quite a while - I'm mostly interested in it simply because I'm a musician and it usually (in recent years, very often) offers something that appeals to me (also, I used to watch it as a kid ). I'm not really into anything specifically associated with Eurovision like the competition aspect or the occasional camp factor, that's probably why the ESC fan "bubble" and their opinions sometimes outright baffle me. I am of course aware that peoples' tastes can vary wildly, and I respect that. The thing is, for me it's obvious that people should look at each song on its own merits, no matter what the competing songs are like or how many vaguely similar songs there are; picking your fave largely because it differs from the rest, just because you didn't instantly connect with the other songs kinda sells them short.

 

[tuorem]

[MENTION=16481]BorisBubbles[/MENTION] [MENTION=9195]tuorem[/MENTION]

I guess that's partly why I don't really consider myself an "Eurovision fan" despite having followed it for quite a while - I'm mostly interested in it simply because I'm a musician and it usually (in recent years, very often) offers something that appeals to me (also, I used to watch it as a kid ). I'm not really into anything specifically associated with Eurovision like the competition aspect or the occasional camp factor, that's probably why the ESC fan "bubble" and their opinions sometimes outright baffle me. I am of course aware that peoples' tastes can vary wildly, and I respect that. The thing is, for me it's obvious that people should look at each song on its own merits, no matter what the competing songs are like or how many vaguely similar songs there are; picking your fave largely because it differs from the rest, just because you didn't instantly connect with the other songs kinda sells them short.

I'm going to speak for myself and myself only: I may follow Eurovision closely, yet I don't judge music through the prism of success and competition. I just happen to like what speaks to me. And logically, I would support "Beautiful Lie" rather than "Majakad" if I cared about final results first and foremost. Same for Albania, I rooted for Bojken and Era, who weren't the safest choices either.

I gave every entry several chances and none have really found favour with me, I didn't settle for snippets to form an opinion. I admit that the general musical influence found in many EL entries this year (folk-country-pop-you name it Spotify-friendly international-sounding music) is not my cup of tea, so I guess that's why this lineup leaves me cold for the most part. At the end of the day, everyone has their own expectations, and one merit for me is to NOT fall into the beige trap, simply because I don't enjoy songs I feel like I've heard a million times before. It has nothing to do with the "ESC bubble taste" or the "camp factor" as you imply imo. If anything most fans seem to be prefer the sad boys squad (Jaagup, Stefan, Uku, Uudo, Rasmus).

By the way, I am a musician too (well, I once was), even though it's not a requirement to fully enjoy a song, is it? But yeah: beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

 

[Daybreak]

I'm going to speak for myself and myself only: I may follow Eurovision closely, yet I don't judge music through the prism of success and competition. I just happen to like what speaks to me. And logically, I would support "Beautiful Lie" rather than "Majakad" if I cared about final results first and foremost. Same for Albania, I rooted for Bojken and Era, who weren't the safest choices either.

I gave every entry several chances and none have really found favour with me, I didn't settle for snippets to form an opinion. I admit that the general musical influence found in many EL entries this year (folk-country-pop-you name it Spotify-friendly international-sounding music) is not my cup of tea, so I guess that's why this lineup leaves me cold for the most part. At the end of the day, everyone has their own expectations, and one merit for me is to NOT fall into the beige trap, simply because I don't enjoy songs I feel like I've heard a million times before. It has nothing to do with the "ESC bubble taste" or the "camp factor" as you imply imo. If anything most fans seem to be prefer the sad boys squad (Jaagup, Stefan, Uku, Uudo, Rasmus).

By the way, I am a musician too (well, I once was), even though it's not a requirement to fully enjoy a well-written song. But yeah: beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I definitely didn't mean to imply that every fan is necessarily into the "camp factor" or that it has anything to do with this year's Eesti Laul. I was using it as a general example to make a point about my own personal tastes - that I treat Eurovision like any other musical platform rather than being drawn to those specific aspects that make it different from the regular music market (which lot of fans, I've noticed, are).

And honestly, I'm not trying to have an argument over differing musical preferences or which kind of music is better It's always going to be subjective, and this is after all the main reason why I don't really care about the "contest" part of the contest. (Of course, what constitutes "beige" is also subjective, and I don't really see all the other songs this way, although it is probably one of the dullest Eesti Lauls for me as well.) I was simply surprised that out of all those 24 songs, this is the one that stands out to so many people, and I got the impression that lots of members here just wrote off most of the songs (besides Jaagup Tuisk) pretty quickly.

I don't want to defend this Eesti Laul too much though, it could definitely be more impressive and I'm hardly a typical-radio-pop follower myself, but it's not like it's a new development. There have been several mostly middle-of-the road Eesti Laul editions before, it didn't start with Tomi Rahula (although he clearly isn't doing much to turn this around either).

 

[tuorem]

I definitely didn't mean to imply that every fan is necessarily into the "camp factor" or that it has anything to do with this year's Eesti Laul. I was using it as a general example to make a point about my own personal tastes - that I treat Eurovision like any other musical platform rather than being drawn to those specific aspects that make it different from the regular music market (which lot of fans, I've noticed, are).

And honestly, I'm not trying to have an argument over differing musical preferences or which kind of music is better It's always going to be subjective, and this is after all the main reason why I don't really care about the "contest" part of the contest. (Of course, what constitutes "beige" is also subjective, and I don't really see all the other songs this way, although it is probably one of the dullest Eesti Lauls for me as well.) I was simply surprised that out of all those 24 songs, this is the one that stands out to so many people, and I got the impression that lots of members here just wrote off most of the songs (besides Jaagup Tuisk) pretty quickly.

I don't want to defend this Eesti Laul too much though, it could definitely be more impressive and I'm hardly a typical-radio-pop follower myself, but it's not like it's a new development. There have been several mostly middle-of-the road Eesti Laul editions before, it didn't start with Tomi Rahula (although he clearly isn't doing much to turn this around either).

I understand.

Sorry if you took my last answer for a start of quarrel! That wasn't my intent, I just wanted to clarify my stance on this specific lineup and Eurovision in general.

And if I have harsh words towards Eesti Laul as of now, it's because I loved some past editions and thus have high expectations that cannot be met all the time. As we say: spare the rod and spoil the child! With that being said, I'm still looking forward to the shows. I wonder what Rahula will improve compared to this year's edition.

 

[BorisBubbles]

I guess that's partly why I don't really consider myself an "Eurovision fan" despite having followed it for quite a while - I'm mostly interested in it simply because I'm a musician and it usually (in recent years, very often) offers something that appeals to me (also, I used to watch it as a kid ).

You're not alone ;-) I've met enough musicians with an academic interest in the contest.

I'm not really into anything specifically associated with Eurovision like the competition aspect or the occasional camp factor, that's probably why the ESC fan "bubble" and their opinions sometimes outright baffle me. I am of course aware that peoples' tastes can vary wildly, and I respect that. The thing is, for me it's obvious that people should look at each song on its own merits, no matter what the competing songs are like or how many vaguely similar songs there are; picking your fave largely because it differs from the rest, just because you didn't instantly connect with the other songs kinda sells them short.

Each to their own! What makes music good has always been a subjective thing. I personally like songs with high replay value or that entice me to interact with the song in some way (miming, acting out, dancing around half-drunk spilling gin-tonic all over the floor, performing whatever onomatopoeia describes my 'singing' the best), but the general vibe is pretty important to me as well. "Majakad" makes me happy. It's not a brilliant composition in my regard, but it possesses a certain earnesty, a certain earthiness which makes it very warm and enticing to me.

and yes, the presentation of a song also greatly influences how I perceive it, but that's part of the game. Eurovision isn't rly a Song Contest as much as it a Live Performance Contest.

It doesn't rly go deeper for me. I'm of the opinion that rankings should be intuitive first and rationalized later. Music is a form of expression and should do the talking by itself.

Ftr if I ever were to stoop to describing a song by its technical aspects, it's usually a sign that I have jack squat to say beyond "this is good/boring/bad), and have just perused my pitchfork review catalogue in search for fancy buzzwords.

 

[Matt]

Thank you for your votes. We received a lot of them so this should be a pretty representative view of the ESC United folks. Here are the Top 14 Eesti Laul songs according to you. Any surprises?

I will add the link to the individual scores shortly.

 

[Mainshow]

Egert Miller getting more points than that trahsy "Break Me" - ESCTODAY got some taste!

#4 for "What Love Is" is atricious, though. I really can't deal with so much cheese at once.It's the epitome of what I hate when it comes to Eurovision.

#2 is a lovely surprise! I wouldn't mind her to win Eesti Laul. #1 well-deserved!

 

[Zonne147]

Leelo and Unistustes are not only my biggest growers but also my guilty pleasures this edition

There are some changes since 30th November, Traffic is growing even more on me and it's my favourite by a landslide, but any of these is nice with me: Jaagup (growed on me a lot too, maybe in my Top 3 now), Rasmus (faded a bit tbh), Egert (I know from a musical point it may be not be the best, but his song is just sooooo pleasant).

I like Laura and Uku very much but I have a feeling they would give not many chances for Estonia to get sth interesting in Rotterdam.

Merilin Maik has also grown on me, but I don't think the song has that much potential, it's interesting at least.
Stefan is close to my bottom 5 on my list, and I understand why people like Shira but that kind of songs isn't just for me, middle of the table on my top.

 

[Nicfedy]

Listing to all the brief clips for the first time, Traffic stands out for me so I played it through. Although again it seems like high quality entries for next year. Safe or bold choices for Estonia.

 

[Daybreak]

ERR's Raadio 2 had their listeners vote for Aastahitt 2019 again (their annual top 40 Estonian + top 40 foreign songs of the year, which is the most prominent and longest-running - since 1994 - event of its kind here). Out of the Eesti Laul songs, Inger's Coming Home finished at 28, Kadiah's Believe was 24th, Victor Crone's Storm 20th and Lumevärv feat. Inga's Milline Päev 16th (oh, and Hatari made it to 30th in the foreign list). A couple of past ESC contestants also made the list. You can check out the full list here and the past lists (they're pretty much full of classic Estonian hits lol) here.

 

[BorisBubbles]

Victor Crone's Storm 20th and Lumevärv feat. Inga's Milline Päev 16th

I just said "wig" irl.

 

[Daybreak]

Uku says Philipp Kirkorov is involved with his song this year again.

 

[AlekS]

Uku says Philipp Kirkorov is involved with his song this year again.

Quoting what I've said earlier:

Uku's song sounds like something from Kirkorov/Kontopoulos recycle bin

 

[LastDreamer]

 

[Daybreak]

The ESCUnited top made the official Eesti Laul website news

Järjekordse Eurovisiooniblogi lugejad valisid Eesti Laulu parimaks Jaagup Tuisu laulu

 

[Mrm]

If somebody accidentally missed the New Year wish from Synne Valtri and her team, I doubt those exist, but still:

 

[Mrm]

One of Väliharf guys has the same name as me: Marko Matvei!