Iceland ICELAND 2024 - Hera Björk - Scared of Heights

[ESC United Mod Team]

 

[hijirio]

You are wasting my time if you are going to compare some of the most corrupt nations in Europe to Iceland.

The superfinal cost Bashar the ticket to malmo not corruption.

Hera is my 29th place but I'll defend her participation

Jesus, it has nothing to do with corruption.

Just the opposite, if Iceland was a corrupt country, they would have found a way to rig it in Bashar’s favor.

I’m talking about voting manipulation from exterior circles, call me a conspiracist, I have no way to prove this, just the way you have no way to prove that the voting system is what cost Bashar the ticket to Malmö.

I just find the whole thing sus, Iceland is a small country, easy to manipulate voting results.

 

[hijirio]

If she didn't plan to make a statement she shouldn't be, as you said, gatekept to do so.

True, that’s why I said that all I can do is to be disappointed and lose my respect for her as an artist…

I hope she says something.

 

[Loindici]

x.com

twitter.com

As I'm aware this is a "dangerous territory" kinds of posts, please be careful with this. I'm just confused whether to take this as allegations or considerable possibility. This also extends to the Israel Breaks Rules account.

Let me know whether another thread is better to place (or to be made) for this topic.

 

[MopManMoss]

Jesus, it has nothing to do with corruption.

Just the opposite, if Iceland was a corrupt country, they would have found a way to rig it in Bashar’s favor.

I’m talking about voting manipulation from exterior circles, call me a conspiracist, I have no way to prove this, just the way you have no way to prove that the voting system is what cost Bashar the ticket to Malmö.

I just find the whole thing sus, Iceland is a small country, easy to manipulate voting results.

Its been proven that a kan employee was trying to get Icelanders to vote again bashar online but its clear that it was mostly an organic movement to send hera

 

[0scar]

True, that’s why I said that all I can do is to be disappointed and lose my respect for her as an artist…

Would you be equally disappointed and lose respect for any of the other artists competing if they don't say something?

 

[gingerale]

Somehow the song is so nice that I don't keep listening. I think Söngvakeppnin had very good songs this year so it's a bit depressing Scared of Heights got the ticket to Malmö.

 

[Wynnter]

Leaves me incredibly bored, which... for an uptempo song is quite "yikes" indeed. This is blander than flavorless yogurt honestly. In the end, the song does have something going on for it when it comes to the beat and the vibes, so it can stay in the "mediocre" territory just fine. However, this does still have a chance to drop down to "bad" in the coming weeks, depending on my mood.

points

 

[Fluke]

I think this is one of the worst ESC entries in many years. As we say in Eurovision Trash Contest, she gives us nothing. The song would be last place in a Melodifestivalen semi. She looks awkward and unprofessional, she can barely sing, and certainly not in English. When she goes up on the platform it looks like she's trying to depict the title of the song literally, but i don't think that's her intention.

I guess for Iceland, it's back from looking promising for a while, to being the Portugal of the North.

 

[Iker]

I relistened to it a few days ago and it is sadly just getting worse in my mind. It has faded on me from "alright but rather on the mediocre side of things" to "bad". It's stale and reminds me Embers and a few songs that ended up close to last at ESCs 2001-2003.

 

[Zeus]

Normally the bottom of my ranking is filled with stupid and simply bad joke entries + tasteless, generic female "bops". Yet somehow this song managed to be so incredibly bland and boring that it's second last for me this year.

 

[MopManMoss]

Normally the bottom of my ranking is filled with stupid and simply bad joke entries + tasteless, generic female "bops". Yet somehow this song managed to be so incredibly bland and boring that it's second last for me this year.

How dare you, Acrophobia is a serious condition

 

[Iker]

Normally the bottom of my ranking is filled with stupid and simply bad joke entries + tasteless, generic female "bops". Yet somehow this song managed to be so incredibly bland and boring that it's second last for me this year.

I think it's my 3rd last. I only have San Marino and Germany below Iceland this year in my personal ranking.

 

[SpiritofKeiino]

It's a poor song in my opinion. Without having a decent performer to elevate it, it's a NQ I think. Not being mean but she has no stage presence in that clip and vocals aren't great.

 

[Lance Esgard]

I suspect there is one height Hera won't need to be scared of: reaching a high position in the Eurovision leaderboard.

 

[cegs5]

I might be a minority here, but I like this one! I have not followed the NF, so had no idea about the drama with the Palestinian guy, but just listened to his entry and I was not impressed... so, well done Iceland!

 

[Yoozek]

B*tch she's so scared of heights she gon' end right at the bottom
Poor Hera, I loved her song and that specific jiggly Destiny-esque choreography/bouncing back an forth, back in 2010. She reminded me of the chieftain's wife in Asterix & Obelix cartoons

 

[MopManMoss]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1772331267956117947

 

[SpiritofKeiino]

Hard to be too harsh on Iceland. Most years they provide a quality entry which is no mean feat considering they have one of the smallest populations of participating countries. This is a blip which is to be expected

 

[slatka]

I unironically love this so much, It may be outdated but so what? not everything needs to be modern.. It's extremely fun and Hera is serving us diva mummy energy! I FEEL IT COMING!!!

 

[ESC94]

It was time for at the ESC kompakt songchecks 2024.

ESC-Songcheck kompakt 2024 (11) – Island: „Scared of Heights“ von Hera Björk - ESC kompakt

Wohl selten gab es um die Auswahl des isländischen Beitrags für den Eurovision Song Contest so viel Aufhebens wie in diesem Jahr. Am Ende setzte sich gegen alle Erwartungen die bereits ESC-erprobte…

esc-kompakt.de

The verdict of the bloggers:

Benny - Yeah, Heras seconds ESC attempt is completely fallen out of time and also produced in a very flat way. Too bad, even though I think she´ll pull out the best on stage. Nevertheless a certain pleasant listening effect has set in for me and now I find "Scared of Heights" quite entertaining, in a guilty pleasure way.

Berenike - I like this much more than I should. Even though it´s absolutely not innovative the melody appeals to me and I just have to rock along. Hera is and stays a Disco diva who´s very present as a person and with her voice, and due to the choir the song gets something hymn like.

Douze Points - Classy, timeless, uplifting - all that is "Scared of Heights". Innovative, contemporary, activating to vote - the entry is sadly none of that. Hera is an ESC icon and and a safe bet when it comes to the vocals.The song may suit her as well, but she´s unlikely to achieve a bigger success at the ESC. Nevertheless I enjoy the three minutes, rock along and give .

Flo - As much affection Hera Björk earns, this entry is simply boring. And she could´ve done so much more with her ESC comeback, because vocally she´s in the forefront of course. But that leaves a title hardly worth of any recogniton and that will have a hard time winning the audience votes in the semifinal.

Manu - Phew, if Hera did herself a favour with this?? "Scared of Heights" struggles somewhere between "Hold My Hand" by Jess Glynne and "Embers" by James Newman for me, but isn´t by far as good produced and is even temporarily sinking a bit in a musical sound mud. I already forget this entry while listening to it, but I´m at least delightet by the choir. But then rather send the original Uschi Blum (stage figure of famous German comedian Hape Kerkeling) to ESC, then the final is possible. This way only .

Max - This year Iceland is standing out with everything - but not with the actual ESC entry. This will presumably a guaranteed failure in the semifinal. The song isn´t even bad, it´s just not impressive and since you´re relying on the audience vote in the semi not even Heras voice can get some jury votes. Iceland can do that better actually...

Peter - Hera is - despite all the complexity when looking at her "life's work" - an icon in the bubble. First of all, it’s great that she “sticks with it”. This year's contribution to Iceland is decent musical home cooking, easy on the ear, but not really distinct and not for ESC eternity. Good groove, danceable, very well sung, relatable but by no means original message. (because it’s Hera)

Rick - I understand the criticism that "Scared of Heights" is a bit old-fashioned in some passages. It doesn´t really bother me though, because it looks like this nostalgic feeling is intentional. In combination with the contemporary dance production the song gets elevated, which makes the whole thing harmonious. Nevertheless it´s not the really big hit though and I think Iceland will have a difficult time to reach the final since the song is just too unspectacular.