![\"Eurovision](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/17C83\/production\/_129111479_eurovision12.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/span><\/div>Mae Muller (UK), Loreen (Sweden) and Iru Khechanovi (Georgia) are among this year’s Eurovision hopefuls<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
By Mark Savage<\/p>\n
BBC Music Correspondent<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
The countdown has begun. This Friday marks 40 days until Eurovision week kicks off with a “turquoise carpet” opening ceremony in Liverpool.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n All 37 songs have now been submitted, with lyrics addressing everything from demonic possession to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n As always, the quality’s about as consistent as a vat of jelly, but there are some gems amongst the inevitable onslaught of power ballads.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n What follows is a highly subjective attempt to rank them all. You’ll undoubtedly disagree, and I’ve inevitably snubbed someone’s favourite. But that’s the beauty of Eurovision: Everyone gets a say, and my opinion is no more important than anyone else’s. (Also, I have a terrible track record in predicting the winner, so there’s that.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n With that in mind, let’s have some fun. You can listen along with an alphabetically-sorted playlist on Spotify<\/a>, on Apple Music<\/a> or on YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In a quirk of typographical synchronicity, Albina is Albania’s representative for 2023. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n A former runner-up on The Voice, she’s performing Duje, a dramatic ballad about families being separated, and the impact that has on children. The performance typically ends with Albina collapsing to her knees in tears. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Albina’s impassioned verses build to an appealing chorus, featuring background vocals from her family – but overall, it’s pretty heavy-going.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Prediction: <\/b>Bottom half of the leaderboard<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n “I just wanna make art, read books and just find someone who likes me enough to kiss my face.<\/i>” <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Brunette is the stage name of 21-year-old Elen Yeremyan, whose got a huge following in Armenia. She wrote this yearning ballad, about a lover she has yet to meet, specifically for Eurovision.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Pairing a pretty, lilting chorus with an anxiety-stricken rap verse, it’s strangely compelling. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n This could be Australia’s final year in Eurovision – as the country’s participation agreement runs out after May.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n For their last roll of the dice, they’ve gone with pop-metal quartet Voyager, who have been campaigning to represent their country since 2015.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Their song gives off unmistakable Duran Duran vibes, with an anthemic “woah-oh<\/i>” chorus, and a wibbly guitar solo that sounds like the theme to Beverly Hills 90210 – which is either a blessing or a curse, depending on your feelings about Jason Priestley.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n It should go down well in the arena, as Voyager draw on their two decades of live experience to get the crowd pumped.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The best song you’ll ever hear about being possessed by the ghost of 19th Century horror writer Edgar Allen Poe. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Daft as it sounds, the song is a pointed commentary on how hard it is for female songwriters to be taken seriously. Claiming demonic possession, Teya & Salena suggest, would gain them more kudos than just being themselves. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The mid-section, meanwhile, is directed at Spotify’s royalty rate of $0.003 per song. “Give me two years and your dinner will be free<\/i>“. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n A wildly inventive Trojan horse of a pop song. What’s not to love?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Prediction: <\/b>A real contender. Top five.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n TuralTuranX are twin brothers Tural and Turan Ba\u011fmanov, who’ve been making music ever since they discovered a piano at school and skipped lessons to practise songwriting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Their entry takes the form of a voicemail, left on an old lover’s phone, reminiscing about their time together and hoping for a reunion. “Just call me back when you get this message,” the brothers sing over a delicate chord sequence that recalls Sixpence None The Richer’s Kiss Me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n It’s all very sweet until they decide to explore their feelings via the medium of clumsy white-boy rap. Ed Sheeran has a lot to answer for.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Prediction: <\/b>Knocked out in the first semi-final<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Fasten your seatbelts tight, we’re going back to the 90s. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Gustaph’s joyous club stomper Because Of You is festooned with chunky piano chords and wobbly synth lines that reference house classics like Kym Sims’ Too Blind To See It and Crystal Waters’ Gypsy Woman (La Da Dee).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The 42-year-old dedicates his song to the friends and allies who constitute his “chosen family, which happens a lot in the queer world”. And while Eurovision is awash with songs about overcoming derision and stereotyping, Gustaph sings it like he means it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n His outfit, meanwhile, will please anyone who’s a fan of frills and oversized hats. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Prediction:<\/b> Lower half of the leaderboard<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Shock-rock band Let 3 are incredibly famous across the Balkans for their provocative, avant-garde performances. For Eurovision, they’ve entered a thinly-veiled attack on Vladimir Putin, which surely tests Eurovision’s ban on political lyrics to the limit.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The “mama” of the title refers to Mother Russia and moustachioed frontman Damir Martinovi\u0107 repeatedly sings “Mama kissed a moron<\/i>“, an apparent criticism of Russia’s political class for their continued support of Putin’s regime.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Musically, though, it’s a travesty. The first minute is essentially the Macarena stripped of any charm or guile. That’s followed by a bewildering cod-operatic section, and a cacophonous finale that sounds like 10 songs being played at once while someone has their chest hairs plucked out one by one. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Prediction: <\/b>Let 3 should qualify for the final, just.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Twenty-four-year-old Andrew Lambrou previously entered Australia’s selection contest in 2022, coming in seventh place. But his Eurovision journey didn’t end there.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Lambrou’s performance made such an impression on Cypriot broadcaster CyBC that they offered him the chance to go to Liverpool in May. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"Short](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/72FB\/production\/_112953492__90021446_test_grey_line_new-nc.png.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nAlbania: Albina & Familja Kelmendi – Duje<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Albina](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/17185\/production\/_129279549_albania.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n![\"1px](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/4BEB\/production\/_112953491__108802839_624_transparent-nc.png.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nArmenia: Brunette – Future Lover <\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Brunette\"](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/3CED\/production\/_129279551_armenia.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nAustralia: Voyager – Promise<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Voyager\"](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/8B0D\/production\/_129279553_australia_2_mike_dann.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span>Image source, <\/span>Mike Dann<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nAustria: Teya & Salena – Who The Hell Is Edgar?<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Teya](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/D92D\/production\/_129279555_austria.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nAzerbaijan: TuralTuranX – Tell Me More<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"TuralTuranX\"](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/1274D\/production\/_129279557_azerabaijan2.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nBelgium: Gustaph – Because Of You<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Gustaph\"](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/2DB1\/production\/_129279611_belgium.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nCroatia: Let 3 – Mama SC!<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Let](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/7BD1\/production\/_129279613_croatia.jpg.webp)
<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/picture><\/noscript><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nCyprus: Andrew Lambrou – Break A Broken Heart<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Andrew](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/C9F1\/production\/_129279615_cyprus.jpg.webp)
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