Previewing the Entrants of Eurovision 2019 – Part Thirteen: Finland

Hello and welcome to The Blogging DJ. Today I am continuing to look in-depth at each of the forty-one entries competing in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019. In this post, I am travelling to Helsinki, to analyse the song from Finland, “Look Away” by Darude featuring Sebastian Rejman.

Selection Process

As they did last year the Finnish broadcaster, YLE, internally selected their act for the contest. On the 29th of January, it was announced that Darude – him of 00s hit “Sandstorm” – would be the artist, alongside singer Sebastian Rejman. Three songs were then released to the public one week at a time, before a live national final on the 2nd of March, where “Look Away” dominated the jury and televote segments.

Music Video

The Blogging DJ’s Review

Darude’s hit single “Sandstorm” was released in 2000, and listening to this song, the DJ’s taste hasn’t developed over time. I’m actually not complaining about this, as I enjoy this throwback instead of being bombarded with another dull House track. Lyrically, it isn’t the most complex song (standard themes for Eurovision) but it becomes a decent earworm on multiple listens. However, the big weakness of this song is that the energy of the song drops upon reaching the “Look Away” segment, and this is really highlighted by the lack of power in the vocalist’s voice. Even if the stylish staging in the national final was reused, I’m worried this will fade into the background of more ‘in your face’ dance entries. 6.5

Live Performance Video

Odds

According to Oddschecker, you can currently get odds ranging between 80/1 and 150/1 on Finland winning the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. This suggests that bookmakers and betters see this entry as being on the cusp of qualifying for the Grand Final, but it won’t make much of an impression in the final results.

Record at Eurovision

Finland have entered the Eurovision Song Contest a huge fifty-two times since making their debut in 1961, performing in the Grand Final in all but seven of these occasions. Despite this, it wasn’t until 2006 where they finally lifted the trophy, with the monstrously good Lordi and “Hard Rock Hallelujah”. Last year, Saara Aalto qualified Finland for the Grand Final for the first time since 2014, but she could only finish in twenty-fifth place on Saturday night.

So what are your thoughts on the Finnish entry for Eurovision 2019? Can Darude lead the country to their best result in years? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below and don’t forget to subscribe to keep up with the latest posts on The Blogging DJ. There will be more Eurovision preview posts in the coming weeks so stay tuned!