Slovenia opts for electro pop in their own language
Slovenia has got a questionable reputation when it comes to Eurovision. The country has only reached the final of the contest four times since the introduction of the semi finals back in 2004 and the last time they reached top 10 was in 2001. In the past two editions, nobody expected Slovenia to reach the final and their entry was almost forgotten before the artist boarded the plane home. This year they hope to change things with Lea Sirk, who will perform her song ‘Hvala, Ne’ live in Lisbon.
I hate to say it, but Slovenia’s chances of qualifying this year, seem to be next to nothing again. The bookmakers have Lea Sirk on a 17th position out of 18 in the second semi final and to be fair it is hard to picture who will vote for Slovenia this year. The good news is that Lea is a charismatic performer who knows how to own the stage and vocally she knows how to sell her song ‘Hvala, Ne’ (‘No Thanks’). The song itself however, is lacking in multiple departments. Yes, there is a hook in the part building up to the instrumental drop that is sort of catchy, but viewers are not going to memorize it thanks to the language barrier and her competition. The beat drop and the production as a whole feel more 2013 than 2018. Lea Sirk needs to perform the hell out of this tune in order not to end up in the bottom.
Review of Semi Final Performance:
After Serbia qualified, Slovenia making the final was an even bigger surprise to me. It’s not that Lea Sirk did not deserve it though! I just did not think her Slovenian languaged electro pop would resonate with the rest of Europe that much. Lea knows exactly how to sell the song on stage though. The choreography is well thought out, her vocals are powerful and she works the stage and camera like a proper pop star. I am not sure how many people at home actually believed the rehearsed ‘technical issue’ in her performance, but it might have helped her to gain the attention of the televoters. I don’t expect Slovenia to play a major role in the final on Saturday, but it will be nice to hear that chorus once more!
Review of Final Performance:
Slovenia’s qualification was one of the big surprises in this year’s contest, but based on Lea Sirk’s charisma on stage and screen and her impeccable vocals, she deserved to be here. ‘Hvala, Ne!’ (No Thanks!) was not one of my favourite songs in the competition, but she sure performed the hell out of it with a slick choreography. The moment were the music stopped worked better during her semi final performance, but other than that she was just as good as on Thursday night. Slovenia was never going to play a main role in this final and a 22nd spot is about what I expected, but Lea sure can be proud of her performance and the fact that she made the final in the first place!
Read our other Eurovision 2018 reviews: ALBANIA – ARMENIA – AUSTRALIA –AUSTRIA – AZERBAIJAN – BELARUS –BELGIUM – BULGARIA – CROATIA – CYPRUS –CZECH REPUBLIC – DENMARK – ESTONIA – FINLAND – FRANCE – FYR MACEDONIA – GEORGIA – GERMANY – GREECE – HUNGARY – ICELAND –IRELAND – ISRAEL –ITALY – LATVIA – LITHUANIA –MALTA – MOLDOVA – MONTENEGRO – THE NETHERLANDS – NORWAY – POLAND – PORTUGAL – ROMANIA – RUSSIA – SAN MARINO – SERBIA – SPAIN – SWEDEN – SWITZERLAND – UKRAINE – UNITED KINGDOM