Totallympics Open International Song Contest 2017

[OlympicIRL 5,532]

My list of 12 points over the years:

 

2013 Open - Italy

2014 Annual - Australia

2014 Open - Canada

2015 Annual - Slovakia

2015 Open - United States

2016 Annual - Denmark

2016 Open - Canada

2017 Annual - Brazil

2017 Open - Chile

 

[dcro 10,210]

16 minutes ago, Wanderer said:

 

Thanks a lot.

I saw Dez was trying to make some sort of official website. I think it would be very cool to have all available data there or in some similar "space" or if it is manageable why not here.

 

Ah yes, there is also a problem of complete results from 2014 Annual which are lost at the moment... Dan apparently has them on his broken laptop and also somewhere in a written format (probably stuffed on the attic?).

[Werloc 3,164]

Anyways, as promised to @Bohemia I'll try to post some of my comments on this year's entries and sorry that I'm not able to talk about each one.

 

I think it will be easier for me to go down my voting list first:

Brazil - As I've mentioned, Brazil's video was blocked for me, so during the 1st listen (before it was fixed) I was listening to this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THGwdK8zu_4

Anyways, what I loved about this entry was its simplicity, the acoustic guitar was music to my ears, his vocals were just where they needed to be, the chorus was very catchy and the melody of it was amazing, which is why I was hooked on doing harmonies 24/7 and yes, I enjoyed this far more than the over-produced version.

United States - Another song that made it directly to the upper bracket after the first round. Enjoyed the tone of her voice, it was pretty distinctive out of the others, good chorus, nice melody and instrumental.

The Netherlands - Another song to go to the upper bracket after stage 1. Somehow when I heard the first few chords of the acoustic guitar, I had the feeling that I would enjoy this and I wasn't wrong. I think that this song has the same key as Brazil - its simplicity. The vocals are controlled, the melody is good, I think I just saw it as slightly less than Brazil, that's why it's third.

France - Another song that quickly went to the top without much moving around. The drums and guitar at the start promise something interesting, her vocals are good, the instrumental is great, yeah, perhaps it is a bit monotone, but the production of the song is very high class, which is why it's up here for me.

Estonia - It's been a while, so I don't know what to expect from Estonia. It's starts with a calming piano and fairly ok female vocalist and then the man joins and I know it's a duet, so the most important thing becomes the harmonies, the pre-chorus/chorus thing is nice, but the harmonies at the end is what bought me over, nice melody.

Chile - Honestly the most haunting/bizzare entry in this TISC, but it's the right kind of bizzare. The interesting instrumental and the colour in her voice is what makes this memorable and interesting and it stands out. Also, this song was a grower, because it originally was lower on my list. The start of the song is still my favourite part.

New Zealand - Do-do-do-do-de-de-de-de, do I need to explain myself more why this song is up here? Also, very nice guitar action, I approve. The vocals are also pretty decent and charming in their own way, reminds me of something that Denmark has sent in a previous competition that I adored.

Canada - Hallelujah is one of those songs that pretty much make me sick every single time when I hear it, but that's probably since it's a go to song for everyone during musical competitions (had to perform this one myself too). The thing that took me in, was the magical performance. The vocal control is amazing, those extended notes were perfect, the vocalist knows when to press forward and when to tone it back and I really respect that.

Argentina - Okay, so Argentina really stood out from the bunch being one of the songs that chose upper-tempo. I remember hearing the start to that instrumental and thinking "okay, what's coming, what's coming, will it be good or will it be bad?". Then I heard the vocals and they were great, the song really woke me up, as I've said, it stood out with its energy and the chorus was fairly nice.

India - Not really a country that has made a huge impression on me in previous editions, only a couple of times close to my points, but when I heard the intro, I already knew that it would score at least some points. Even though I'm not a big fan of how Indian singers use their voice, it didn't bother me that much this time and sounded pretty nicely, but that part with the voices is gold.

Indonesia - Started fairly high, but then gradually fell down to two points as the songs above it had more distint character and this song struggled to make an impact on the songs that had a strong identity, that's why it kept falling down in my list.

Czech Republic - This is where my head starts to hurt, because I had 4-5 different songs on 1 point at every single listen, but it ended with being Czech Republic. The vocals are fine, I enjoyed the wind instruments joining in the chorus and that might have tipped it over.

 

Ireland - In my points during the first three rounds, nice instrument work, the song is good at what its aiming for, but I guess it was something that I heard a million times before and it gradually fell down compared to the songs that brought something fresh into my perspective.

Colombia - Not bad, but perhaps I have something against popular songs? It was considered for points at a few times, but somehow didn't connect with what I was looking for in my top twelve and got stuck in the reserve list.

Malta - Malta is one of the most interesting countries to me. I probably had them in my reserve list for more than 4-5 times, but there's always a small margin that keeps them out of my top twelve. I guess it ended up losing in the battle of the choruses.

Iran - Pretty decent entry, loved the guitar intro. Last year Iran was very close to my points, but I think it was a much much better song (as I believe the quality 6 months ago was much better). Anyways, Iran did good enough to get noticed, so I guess that's nice, since they're always up there in my standings.

Tunisia - A song that I lost somewhere, the intro was too telenovela, I don't also enjoy the constant vibrato of the vocals that is prominent in most Arabic music and that probably put me off.

 

Algeria - Metal is just not in my blood, there are some exceptions, but Algeria wasn't one of them.

Slovakia - Wouldn't call this a memorable song, didn't really make an impression, didn't have that something to rise above other songs.

Serbia - Can't say that it's bad, but it's pretty bland, didn't stand out of the average category and the dance beats are off-putting.

Great Britain - A country I always expect greatness from, but this time I got sentimental sadness, plus I dislike the classical voice position, because I think that's a technique where a voice loses its colour and character. I love how you went with something different, but it didn't make an impact on me, so the song couldn't climb.

Mexico - Fun instrumental, interesting concept, but not good enough to challenge anyone in my top 16.

Uruguay - A song that suffered from its shortness, didn't have enough time to show something good/memorable enough to make an impact on the rankings.

Slovenia - This is that POP that I dislike with a passion. A bland mess with cheap beats.

Croatia - After the last contest I started expecting something interesting. Can't say that it's bad song, good instrumental and vocals aren't bad, but just lacked a bit of character, easily got lost amongst other songs.

Italy - Nice instrumental at the start, promising, but underwhelming vocal line and the song doesn't really go anywhere. I MISS THE ITALY THAT GOT POINTS FROM ME IN EVERY SINGLE CONTEST.

LIKE REALLY REALLY MISS THAT ITALY, as I still have some of your older entries on various playlists.

Denmark - I love the way Denmark always sends something interesting, the intro of the instrumental is good and the vocals are not bad, but unfortunately it is something that I had to re-listen against in order to remember what the song was about and why it didn't move forward in my rankings. Anyway, Denmark usually surprises me once in half a year so fingers crossed for next TISC.

Portugal - I enjoy instrumental music, but in order to outrank the depth of the other songs that have vocals and lyrics in their advantage, the instrumental has to be BEYOND amazing. This one was good, but not that sort of amazing that would beat a melody or a story.

Spain - I don't think there are words that would describe my general disinterest in what Enrique Iglesias does. Throughout so many years, there's no musical evolution for him, everything is the same, the lyrics are always eeeeeeeeeh and I should stop here before I rant further.

Greece - The instrumental didn't appeal to me, this vocal technique is not something I particularly enjoy and in the Tunisia's, Turkey's, Greece's and other countries that overuse this style, Iran and India had a much bigger impact.

Turkey - Another song that I struggled to remember.

Poland - Ok, firstly, this type of beat always brings me down, because it makes the music sounds cheaper, so a big minus on production. Another pet-peeve for me is very very simplistic/meaningless lyrics and broken English. This is why I probably prefered Polish entries in Polish. Also, the forced 'rap' part didn't feel necessary.

Romania - The Eastern European pop production vibe was never too appealing for me, this is why such songs have trouble to score in my list. This is why I prefer such countries not trying to chase the "Western Standards", but sending something authentic that's them, because that's usually a better choice. Really liked Romania last edition, they were my 1st reserve, I think.

Bulgaria - That pretty much falls down the Tunisia, Greece rabbit hole. Iran and India were much better at this type of style, so Bulgaria didn't leave me with fond memories.

 

Anyways, I believe that's all. T'was tough work.

 

[Werloc 3,164]

27 minutes ago, OlympicIRL said:

My list of 12 points over the years:

 

2013 Open - Italy

2014 Annual - Australia

2014 Open - Canada

2015 Annual - Slovakia

2015 Open - United States

2016 Annual - Denmark

2016 Open - Canada

2017 Annual - Brazil

2017 Open - Chile

 

One day, I swear, I'll get in this list.

[Werloc 3,164]

Also, 8 editions of awarding points to the eventual winner, being kicked out from the committee after placing Ireland 13th, kinda sucks

[dezbee2008 819]

Wow, 3rd place, and to think we led for much of the voting round, it was funny that we never left the top 3 (or something like that) the entire time. Also, not bad considering Dia Frampton was a last-minute choice, so I didn't know how it was received, but it seemed to be overwhelmingly positive, and for that, I am grateful.

 

Thank you to those who gave us points

 

12 -  @intoronto @justony

11 -  @Werloc @Dolby

10 -  @kungshamra71

9 -  @Gianlu33 @Henry_Leon @Pablita @SteveParker @mrv86

8 -  @OlympicIRL @bestmen @amen09 @dcro

7 -  @Janakis @uk12points @Damian @heywoodu

5 -  @Herki @Glen @rybak

4 -  @Bohemia @Benolympique @africaboy @konig @LDOG @Matt

3 -  @hckosice @Agger

1 -  @MHSN @Griff88

[OlympicIRL 5,532]

12 minutes ago, Werloc said:

One day, I swear, I'll get in this list.

 

I don't doubt it

 

[OlympicIRL 5,532]

15 minutes ago, Werloc said:

Also, 8 editions of awarding points to the eventual winner, being kicked out from the committee after placing Ireland 13th, kinda sucks

 

I was afraid that potential 1 point loss would come back to haunt me.

 

I guess if the Committee ever goes below a certain threshhold of members they will need to start recruiting again.... you will be first in line according to your near call

 

[intoronto 5,638]

Congrats to Ireland pitty I didn't vote for it

 

Also Americas with 5 top 10 songs!! Not too bad

[Quasit 865]

Congratulations to the winners.

 

And here's one defender of (especially green) olives and anchovis on pizza.