<!— Text ads —>

The Netherlands

Day 3 Review

ChrisB on Tue, 05/02/2017 - 17:45

Here's my day 3 review:

The big winners of 1st half 2nd semi for me today were:

- Romania.
This is an easy one. The overall package is much more fun than what we have seen in the Romanian National Final.
What they can improve: More camera focus on Ilinca as Alex takes too much space at the moment.

- Denmark.
Just a superb performer in every run through. I can not believe how well she handles the camera interaction.
What they can improve: Change her outfit so it fits better to the color scheme of the backdrop.

The losers of today:

There weren't any losers today. Serbia did not get a lot of love from the press centre, but it was early morning and I have praised for them for the current and clean look of their staging.

So congratulations to all delegations today! Good job!

The Netherlands First Rehearsal

ChrisB on Tue, 05/02/2017 - 13:09

I can only echo Desiree's thoughts on the Netherlands.

The harmonies were flawless and if juries judge vocal capacity they should have this very close to the top of their scorecard.
The backdrop features understated imagery, inspired by the very reason the song was written: it's a tribute to the sisters' ill mother.

The Netherlands first rehearsal

Desiree on Tue, 05/02/2017 - 12:40

Earlier today Lisa, Amy and Shelley from OG3NE already revealed their dresses in a video that was posted earlier on this blog. Happy to see they are wearing them on this rehearsal and I think they look great! Amy is actually wearing a jumpsuit instead of a dress, but they're all very sparkly and glamorous looking.

The backdrop highlights a few parts of the lyrics (for example a candle burning, two hands letting go of each other') which makes clear what the song is about for those who don't understand the song. The colours are quite dark but also the theme of hope is shown with a flowering tree.

I didn't mention the vocals yet because there is no surprise here. It was perfect and I would've been surprised to hear anything else. We've just seen and heard them once by now but I must say I'm very very happy with this rehearsal.

Semi One predictions from Daniel and me

Mike;

Finland No
Greece No
Moldova Maybe
Hungary Yes
Croatia Yes
The Netherlands Yes
Armenia Yes
San Marino No
Russia Yes
Czech Republic Yes
Cyprus Maybe
Austria Yes
Estonia Maybe
Azerbaijan Yes
Montenegro No
Iceland Yes
Bosnia and Herzegovina Yes
Malta Yes

So someone will miss out from my predictions, and sadly I think it will be Austria

From Daniel;

Finland No
Greece No
Moldova Maybe
Hungary Yes
Croatia Yes
The Netherlands Yes
Armenia Yes
San Marino No
Russia Yes
Czech Republic Yes
Cyprus No
Austria Yes
Estonia No
Azerbaijan Maybe
Montenegro No
Iceland Yes
Bosnia and Herzegovina Yes
Malta Yes

Some slight disagreements here, but more or less we agree this year

Anyway what the hell do we know.....though we usually get 7-9 out of 10

Douwe Bob bar opening in Stockholm

Wonder on Sun, 05/08/2016 - 16:04

Yesterday Douwe Bob had a special of opening his bar in Stockholm where you can drink a beer and listen to a music you retro-pop stuff you should like if you're into Douwe Bob's music, 70s pop-rock and intimate atmosphere while spending a nice evening somewhere out.
A lot of delegations have arrived to check the opening - Russia, Finland, Estonia, Spain, San Marino and many others. Cyprus have got a special present for Douwe - Cypriot pomace brandy.
Later everyone have moved to ground floor and Douwe has performed few songs including "Slow Down", then Amir came up to the stage with a cover of Michel Fugain's "Une belle histoire". The set was finished with all guests singing The Beatles' "Hey Jude" on a small intimate stage.

Douwe Bob bar opening

The Netherlands - first rehearsal

Wonder on Mon, 05/02/2016 - 14:39

Douwe with his musicians performs on a small area with a LED-floor showing gigantic clocks. It looks cozy and special with a good contrast to other performances.
I'm still sceptic about this song but it looks more spectacular to look than to listen to in a studio version. Douwe is stable and charismatic vocalist and works with cameras really good.
Basically nothing happens on the stage, it's just Douwe singing and musicians imitating playing instruments. But you're not get bored!
It's difficult to believe in this song but we have unexpected finalists like this with simple but soulful melodic songs almost every year.

The Netherlands Second Rehearsal: Trijntje Oosterhuis - Walk Along

The Netherlands have made their second rehearsal soooo sooo soooo much better.
Trijntje's original dress has left the building and been swapped for a leather jacket and black dress. It's a much better choice in my opinion. The black lace head piece has remained for the first verse of the song.

There hasn't been much changes otherwise in terms of staging, but Trijntje seems to be feeling a lot more comfortable on the stage. I love the camera work that's been done too. Trijntje's more or less singing towards the tv audience and that really works in its favour.

A very good rehearsal for The Netherlands. This semi is already turning into a killer.

The Netherlands First Rehearsal: Trijntje Oosterhuis - Walk Along

Oh Trijntje, dear, dear Trijntje from the Netherlands. For the first time in a long time, we're starting to see many of the outfits artists are wearing for their upcoming semi's as requested by ORF, but Trijntje's making an impact but for all the wrong reasons.

Her performance starts off rather well, very intimate and close with a focus on Trijntje's face, which for the first verse is covered in a black lace, veil. But when the camera zooms out, and Trijntje's dress appears our fears for a fashion disaster become real. With a big low cut, showing a lot of boob, fans in the press center are already speculating Trijntje could win this year's Barbara Dex Award. Trijntje is a beautiful woman, but the dress she's wearing is certainly not flattering her.

Because fashion is so involved with the staging, I'm really unsure about Trijntje's overall staging visually at the moment. There are a lot of elements which look as if they have been thrown together right now and therefore don't work that well. We get a smokey background first, which then all the sudden changes to neon lights and then goes back to a range of metal looking fluo colours. Strange choices. On the other hand, just like last year, the close ups are once again really well done. And that's, together with her incredible voice, the Dutch biggest selling asset.

So in short, a great voice on the stage but visually The Netherlands need a re-think and go back to last year's approach and keep in mind that less is more.

Netherlands Cinq Points!