ESC 2018

Hummmmm, like Mike this is tough but here goes

Albania
Czech Republic
Israel
Estonia
Bulgaria
Croatia
Austria
Greece
Finland
Ireland

Semi final one

Azerbaijan
Albania
Czech Republic
Lithuania
Israel
Bulgaria
Austria or Greece???
Finland
Armenia
Ireland

But you might feel differently

Dress rehearsal one for the first semi-final has just started - we start of course with some opening sequence showing, among others, images of Lisboa, Pasteles de nata, water, football... and of course the various logotypes of this year's contest before we move into the hall where our four hosts all come on stage, still a bit giggly at first!

I'm here liveblogging this semi-final from the hall and will most probably be back in the evening for the jury-final when it really matters, so I'm curious to see where my impressions will differ today comparing the 2 rehearsals!

Check back here from time to time to see all the latest updates, as the performances and more pass by!

1 Azerbaijan
Postcard: Aisel in what seems a typical Portuguese village with white houses before taking a balloon tour.
Peformance: Lots of smoke on stage in the beginning, not sure I noticed that earlier. Vocally ok until th esecond verse where she starts to struggle a bit. It's still very artificial, the glitter effect in the bridge seems to have been developed better now.

2 Iceland
Postcard: More Portuguese villages but Ári gets inside a building where he makes a puppet-on-a-string - Now is that a Eurovision reference or not?!
Performance: Missed camera shots in the beginning where we see cameras through the screen while we should only see Ari. This better not happen tonight or tomorrow night. Otherwise great performance again from Ari who once again shows how good a singer he is.

3 Albania
Postcard: Eugent is taking a boat tour what looks like through the Venice of Portugal.
Performance: In the last part of the song the backings can be heard a lot more now. Vocally this is great once again and I can not see any fault to this performance but I immediately admit I'm biased as this is by far my favourite.

4 Belgium
Postcard: Also Sennek went on a boat trip but this time closer to Lisboa, in fact it seems very close to where we had the blue carpet event yesterday.
Performance: They finally seem to get the opening right, even though I wonder if it's the right opening to this song. After Albania this is really quite relaxing without getting boring. Not completely sure the vocals in the chorus were as perfect as in the last rehearsal.

5. Czech Republic
Postcard: Mikolas finds himself with some very strangely dressed creatures with carnaval masks from the Tras-Os-Montes region of Portugal.
Performance: Mikolas seems more comfortable on stage than in his last rehearsal, he's moving around a lot more, but of course leaves out the backflips that caused him lots of trouble one week ago. Still a lot running and a normal jump on stage though.

6. Lithuania
Postcard: Ieva is taking a trip in the mountains in her now quite trademark comfortable wide pullovers, very similar to what she wore in the second rehearsal.
Performance: On stage she is now wearing a very princessy pink dress. Vocally it is very good and the song is so relaxing and smoothing that it is over before I know it! And, small detail - 2 lines in Lithuanian are back today!

After this performances we get to the greenroom where the host is already asking how Lithuania is doing, I wonder if she'll be back at all at that moment! Will be fun to watch tomorrow.

7 Israel
Postcard: Netta performing at an outside party.
Performance: The beginning now sounds better in the hall than it did during the second rehearsal. However, we get to start over again as apparently there were issues..
Thought the first time sounded better, but it's probably more noticeable in the press area that it didn't go well the first time. As if Netta may have thought she had something to prove after the issues in the beginning, she gave it all at this rehearsal, to send up a bit out of breath by the end.

Another tradition Eurovision location is Euroclub, which opened last night at 11pm (Lisbon time). It’s located at Praça do Comércio in Millennium club. Euroclub this year have two different spots: terrace and 2-leveled dance floor. This year’s Euroclub is three-times smaller than last year’s but this one looks more like a club, and not like exhibition centre.

Last night there were artist from Australia and Portugal performing. And the host was Suzy (Portugal 2014). In conclusion, this year’s Euroclub is more “clubish”, real place where you can rest or party like an animal

Italy 2nd rehearsal. More intensity today from Meta & Moro. The on-screen lyrics remain attention grabbing aspect of this presentation. #Eurovision

— ESCKAZ Chris (@EsckazChris) May 6, 2018

Goosebumps all over here for me. Despite - or maybe thanks to - the projections of the lyrics not being visible in the hall except for the screens hanging everywhere, the performance comes across as very powerful. Vocally both are very good and the song stands out as well for me. Love this.

France 2nd rehearsal. Turtlenecks, blonde hair, eyes blue like the sea piercing through dry ice towards the lense. Camera has made another step forward today and there are quite a few very nice moments here that show you don't always need to bring the fireworks. #Eurovision

— ESCKAZ Chris (@EsckazChris) May 6, 2018

France and Italy seem to have swapped their rehearsal slots today, so Madame Monsieur is the next act on stage. Very impressive performance, looks very well on screen and Émilie sings great, even though I think especially in the first verses she sounds a little breathy. This could and should do very well and needs no fireworks or projections to get the message across.

Shortly before the first run of his second rehearsal Michael seems to be a little bit nervous. This is clearly noticeable during the first performing moments. However, he is gaining confidence as the song continues and develops the strength of his voice at its climax.
The show uses private family pictures sent to the artist by the fans. It is a good idea to create a connection to the audience, for sure. But will that intention be recognized by people who don’t follow the coverage on ESC and just switch the TV in the evening of the event?
All in all: Germany delivers a solid performance and a radio ballade on a very personal topic. That could work. Good luck.

Germany 2nd rehearsal. Michael sings very well today and he needs to bring that level of performance under live pressure to end Germany's run of poor results. #Eurovision

— ESCKAZ Chris (@EsckazChris) May 6, 2018