Srbuk flies the Armenian flag in Tel Aviv
Although Armenia sure has one of the strongest track records in the recent history of the Eurovision Song Contest, they have not made it to the top 3 of the final yet. So far, the 4th place (both in 2008 and 2014) is their best result. Although they have only missed a spot in the final twice (of which once was last year), their Eurovision success is not a given anymore, like it seemed to be in the first few years of their participation. This year they are hoping to return to the highest regions of the scoreboard and to achieve that, they selected X Factor Armenia and The Voice of Ukraine finalist Srbuk.
Srbuk is going to perform the song ‘Walking Out’ on the Eurovision stage. The track was co-written by Lost Capital, tokionine and Garik Papoyan. Papoyan also wrote the lyrics of Aram MP3’s ‘You’re Not Alone’ which reached fourth place in Eurovision 2014. ‘Walking Out’ is a powerful pop tune with a contemporary production and expressive vocals. The track has a midtempo vibe with an edge and prominent beats. Srbuk’s vocal performance is full on. She shows off the higher register towards the chorus while she belts out with a whole lot of attitude throughout the tune, but especially the last chorus. The chorus itself is powerful and gets lifted up by a key chance the last time it comes around, but is not necessarily instantly catchy. I found myself having to go back to listen to it over and over to actually have the melody make a lasting impression.
Although ‘Walking Out’ is not one of the most instant tracks of the competition, it definitely has a strong girl power vibe going on and hopefully Srbuk will work on her diction for her Eurovision performance, so viewers can understand every word she sings. Armenia elevated their 2016 and 2017 entries with great visual performances and this theatrical song does need the same. If the performance is not a disaster, they will sail into the final and might return to the top 10, but improving the 4th place as their best score does not seem likely at this stage.
Review on semi-final performance:
This semi-final had a powerful start with Srbuk’s belter ‘Walking Out’. She was all alone on stage, dessed in black and with a lot of attitude, she sold us larger than life vocals packed in an explosive pop tune that is not necessarily the catchiest on first listen. The camera work here kept me on the edge of my seat and Srbuk sold her song well. Although I am a big fan of ‘Walking Out’, I have to admit that I am not completely surprised she did not make it to the final. Her missing the big note towards the last chorus was unfortunate and although I loved the vibe of the performance, I can see how this failed to connect as the opener of the show. Also her English was hard to understand, which caused the message of the song to get lost. I hope Srbuk knows she performed well and I would like to believe she would have made it through in the first semi final. Although we have to miss her on Saturday, I will keep playing ‘Walking Out’ after the contest! Armenia shockingly only reached the 16th spot out of 18 in their semi-final, finishing 15th with both juries and televoters. Robbed!
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