🎶 Eurovision music round-up: September 2022

Other Highlights

There is way too much music released every month to cover in-depth, but here are some of the best and biggest new tracks from other Eurovision artists:

Hatari – “Dansið eða Deyið”

Two months after presenting us with the official audio of not-new but previously unreleased song “Dansið eða Deyið”, Hatari treat the world to a music video to go along with it. The music video, which includes an extended cello intro, features a mixture of shots of the band, recognizable Hatari iconography, and children re-enacting parts of Hatari’s Eurovision performance. (And much more, but describing, let alone analyzing, the full video would take long enough to warrant an article by itself). A great video for a great song.

Montaigne – “making it!” (LP)

We here at That Eurovision Site first mentioned Montaigne’s new album “making it!” all the way back in October last year, when they released lead single “Now (In Space)”. Since then, the Australian artist released a steady stream of new music, including the amazing “gravity” featuring David Byrne last month. As I mentioned then, her album would be out in September, so here it is! “making it!” has been garnering some excellent reviews, defying genres and description, just truly being completely and recognizably something made by Montaigne. For those wanting to dive deeper in the album, I recommend this track by track rundown in which Montaigne talks about the process and meaning behind each song. A music video for the track “sickcrydie” was released alongside the album, featuring the exact bizarre, computerized visuals you’d expect from the Australian artist.

Roxen – “Fool” and “Niciodata inapoi” (with RAVA)

Romania’s 2020 and 2021 Eurovision representative and TES music round-up regular Roxen released two new songs this week. The first track is “Fool,” a dark, beat-heavy pop track about Roxen being a fool for believing their unfaithful lover. The track is written by Joonas Parkkonen (of Rasmus’ “Jezebel” and Blind Channel’s “Dark Side” fame, amongst others) and Katharina Emendörfer. Parkkonen and ACHI (Roxen’s “UFO,” “NONO BAD”) took on production duties.

The second Roxen track this month is “Niciodata inapoi” (Never Back), which sees them collaborating with singer RAVA. The track is part of the soundtrack for the Romanian film “Teambuilding,” which has just started playing in Romanian cinemas. The song is fully in Romanian, with RAVA singing on the verses while Roxen sings in the chorus. In the song, Roxen sings about not being to forgive a former partner even if they wanted to do so.

AWS – “Útvesztő”

Hungarian metalcore band and 2018 Eurovision contestants AWS have released new song “Útvesztő” (Maze). The song was written by singer Örs Siklósi before being diagnosed with and dying of leukemia in 2021. First played live on his birthday, a music video soon followed. Lyrically, the track is about having so much to do and share, but feeling stuck, without a future and drifting through the universe all alone. In a Facebook post, the members of AWS say about the song that “[a]lthough it was not written for this purpose, it is incredible what lines he has inherited to us, what words he has gifted us to say to help us who are left without him”.

Francesca Michielin – “occhi grandi grandi”

Italian singer Francesca Michielin is back with her latest song since “Bonsoir“. “occhi grandi grandi” (big big eyes) is another indie-pop affair by the 2016 contestant. Francesca sings about falling in love with someone on the subway, and not being able to find the words or courage to express it, hoping that her prospective lover would just “come here and hug me”. The song sees Francesca share a composing credit with prolifc Italian composer Stefano Tognini (who has worked with artists such as Elodie, Fedez, and Mahmood) and sharing a lyric credit with singer-songwriter Davide Petrella (Achille Lauro, Emma, MIKA, and many, many more). Francesca also co-produced the song with E.D.D. and Zef (Elodie, Rkomi).

Tusse – “Got To Rise Up” and “Dream Of Gold”

Swedish singer Tusse treats us to two new songs this month. First released was “Got To Rise Up,” a song for Swedish TV show “Tunna Blå Linjen” (Thin Blue Line). The track is a ballad that starts slow and ends bombastic, and is a great showcase for Tusse’s amazing voice. On Instagram, Tusse says that fighting for justice and good is more important than ever, and that this message of the song has become more important than he even imagined during the writing process.

Tusse has also released track “Dream Of Gold.” The song is about we can and should pursue our dreams, no matter how big those dreams are or how much adversity we experience along the way. Tusse co-wrote the song with Peter Kvint (a-ha, Molly Sandén, Krezip, Eagle-Eye Cherry), who previously worked with Tusse on the singer’s “Happiness Before Love” EP.

Natasha St-Pier – “Jeanne” (LP)

Natasha St-Pier represented France all the way back in 2001 and has regularly released music ever since, with consistent chart success in French speaking Europe to show for it. The new album was preceded by two singles, title track “Jeanne” and this month’s “Me Croirez Vous” (Would You Believe Me). It’s all very classy, it’s smooth, it’s an ode to Jeanne d’Arc. Or to put it in one word: French.

Jeangu Macrooy – “Paris”

Jeangu Macrooy has released new song “Paris,” a song about looking for satisfaction, and the doubts about whether running away from it all could actually fix anything. The song is very stripped back, with only a guitar accompanying Jeangu Macrooy’s absolutely amazing voice. The 2020 and 2021 Netherlands representative has also announced that he will be releasing his third album later this year. “Summer Moon” is set to be released November 11 and will feature a number of deeply personal tracks.

Luka – Insomnia (EP)

Following the release of single “Kill For You” last month, Luka (singer of Hooverphonic’s 2020 entry) has now released her album “Insomnia”. The EP clocks in at 7 tracks and includes her previously released tracks “Kill For You,” “Blame,” “FOMO,” and “Not Too Late”. Two of the 3 new tracks (“Get You Off My Mind,” Nyctophilia”) share a sound with the aforementioned songs, being boppy pop tracks with some darker edges to the lyrics and music on occasion. “Title track and EP closer “Insomnia” is a slower, acoustic guitar driven track.

Hooverphonic – “Mysterious”

Just like last month, Luka isn’t the only 2020 Belgian Eurovision contestant to release music. Hooverphonic has released new track “Mysterious,” with a sound that is reminiscent of 90s electronica and trip-hop and, with that, Hooverphonic’s early output! On Instagram, the band says as much, stating that this sound will feature heavily on their upcoming album. About the track, they say that “[s]ometimes a track doesn’t need more than strings, a beat, and the enchanting vocals of Geike”. Lyrically, the song deals with themes of courage, with Geike offering to the listener to “take you to the next level”.

Levina – “Danger”

Levina is back! “Danger” is the first track by Germany’s 2017 Eurovision entry since changing her stage name back to Levina. In 2020 and 2021, Levina released multiple songs and an album under the name Izza, but due to copyright issues she has since returned to releasing music under the name Levina. On Instagram, Levina writes that she “wrote Danger about the strange time and society we live in, where people – a lot of them in high places – don’t seem to care about what’s going on in the world”. A pop-rock song, a generous amount of guitars and drums accompany Levina through the chorus while the verses are much more stripped back.

Moomak featuring Amandine Bourgeois – “Train Fantôme”

The 2013 France representative Amandine Bourgeois features on the new duet “Train Fantôme” (Ghost Train) with French singer Moomak. A dark track that combines things such as circus-esque music and a deep, brooding bass, is not just about the fairground attraction. Lyrically, it talks about the two seeing ghosts and other dark imagery in the sky, touching on themes of depression, relationships ending, and death. In an interview with Divertir, Moomak says that he is particularly proud of how this song turned out, and that it was amazing to get to work with Amandine.

Sanja Vučić – “Omadjijan”

Sanja Vučić, who competed for Serbia in Eurovision in 2016 with her band ZAA and in 2020 and 2021 with her group Hurricane, has released new track “Omadjijan”. It is her first solo release since leaving Hurricane earlier this year. Musically, the track is a combination of different Balkan sounds with modern pop elements.

Tina Karol – “ВІЛЬНІ. НЕСКОРЕНІ”

Eurovision 2006 contestant Tina Karol has released new track “ВІЛЬНІ. НЕСКОРЕНІ” (FREE. INVINCIBLE). The motivational anthem is not only about the physical fighting that the people in Ukraine have been doing against the Russian invasion, but also a call to liberate ourselves from stereotypes, and to live free and invincible. The music video was filmed in a quarry in the Kharkiv Oblast, which has been the site of heavy fighting. Talking about the song in the YouTube description, Tina Karol says that the “song is like a mantra of resistance, a nerve of insubordination, a symbol of inevitable changes”.

Donny Montell – “Lūpos Kaip Medus”

Donny Montell, who represented Lithuania in 2012 and 2016, has released new track “Lūpos Kaip Medus” (Lips Like Honey). It’s a poppy R&B track with a video that shows, Donny Montell writes on Instagram, the kind of love the singer wants to share as a creator. The sensual song sees the Lithuanian singer work with Donatas Montvydas and Marius Leskaukas, both of which he also worked with for his song Bėgam, released earlier this year.

Danti + Nina Zilli – “Vasco a San Siro”

Italy’s 2012 representative Nina Zilli met Italian rapper and producer Danti back in 2019 in the recording studio for their collab “Tu e D’io,” something which soon blossomed into a relationship between the two. Now, Nina and Danti have released their latest track together: “Vasco a San Siro”. The 80s synth beat powers forward a love duet between the two, while the music video depicts a modern Bonnie and Clyde.

Madame Monsieur – “Les autres on verra”

Madame Monsieur, who participated for France in 2018 and co-wrote the 2019 French entry, have released new track “Les autres on verra” (The others we will see). The track is about the importance of sometimes taking a step back, reconnecting with loved ones and living in the moment in the process. “Far from excesses and etcetera / I muted the ringtone / It’s you and me / The others? We will see”.

Next page: Highlights from National Final artists