With the live shows for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest starting tomorrow, we thought we’d have a little go at trying to make our own jury scores for this year’s contest.
Rules
The 37 countries competing this year have been randomly sorted into seven segments. Each segment will be voted on by 5 jurors. They have assessed based on six categories: Melodic Impact, Artist Presence, Individuality, Attention Drawing, Vocal Fit, and Lyrical Impact. Exact specifications of these criteria can be found below. Our five jurors have given a score of 1 to 5 on each of the six topics, allowing each juror to give a maximum of 30 points to each song. In total there are up to 150 points available to each song. Once every song and score has been presented a full breakdown with a ranking of all 37 of this year’s entries.
Additionally, all of our jurors were asked to give one positive, and one negative comment about each song in a constructive manner.
These are our personal opinions based on the criteria outlined. This is in no way attempt to accurately predict what will be the outcome of next week’s shows and should not be taken as such.
Countries And Jurors For Part Three
The five countries that make up the third segment being voted on are: Australia, France, Albania, Austria, and Norway.
The jurors voting in this segment are: Rory, Ben, Shiloh, Janek as well as a guest Joe from ESCBubble.
Voting Criteria
Criteria 1: Melodic Impact
How lasting is the beat of the track. The more the beat stays, the higher the ranking.
Criteria 2: Artist’s Presence
If a national final is used, how their presence on stage affected the performance. If an internal selection was used, and no pre-party of other live footage is available then their presence is assessed based on their history.
Criteria 3: Individuality
How different is the song compared to the rest of the acts participating this year.
Criteria 4: Attention Drawing
How drawn in are you by the song. Are you waiting for it to finish, or completely engrossed.
Criteria 5: Vocal Fit
Assessing the vocal fit of the artist to the song rather than judging their technical ability in full. ie. X singer may have a wider range to Y singer, though singer Y may utilise the range better in their song and therefore should be ranked higher than X.
Criteria 6: Lyrical Impact
How lasting are the lyrics to you. Has listening to it left you singing the song.
The Results
Australia
| Juror 1 | Juror 2 | Juror 3 | Juror 4 | Juror 5 | Total | |
| Melodic Impact | 3 | 3.5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 15.5 |
| Artist’s Presence | 4 | 5 | 3.5 | 2 | 4 | 18.5 |
| Individuality | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 13 |
| Attention Drawing | 4 | 5 | 4.5 | 4 | 4 | 21.5 |
| Vocal Fit | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 20 |
| Lyrical Impact | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 |
Positives
Janek: The entry is very unique and could stand out well among Rother entries
Ben: The melody is very catchy
Rory; The melody of the chorus and the post-chorus (sung by both singers) is incredibly dreamy and brings the song to a new level that their previous Eurovision track lacked.
Shiloh: There’s a lot of power and energy in the guitar solo at the end, which helps keep the energy moving through the end of the song. A nice attention-grabber at a moment where listeners might otherwise get bored.
Joe: This has great energy and the mix of synth and traditional rock works really well. It lends itself to a great visual performance so I’ll be interested to see what they bring to the stage!
Negatives
Janek: The lyrics don’t do anything to me, they are too repetitive.
Ben: Compared to the other rock entries this year, it doesn’t stand out as well.
Rory: The screamo/heavy metal section of the song does feel a bit incongruent with the rest of the track, and for first-time listeners, it may come off as following the rock-trend.
Shiloh: The lyrics feel very basic and almost nonsensical at times in terms of how simple they are.
Joe: Whilst I enjoy the synths, the retro throwback style has been tried many times in recent years and hasn’t had a great deal of success.
France
| Juror 1 | Juror 2 | Juror 3 | Juror 4 | Juror 5 | Total | |
| Melodic Impact | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 22 |
| Artist’s Presence | 4 | 5 | 4.5 | 5 | 4 | 22.5 |
| Individuality | 5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 23 |
| Attention Drawing | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4.5 | 4 | 20.5 |
| Vocal Fit | 4 | 5 | 3.5 | 5 | 5 | 22.5 |
| Lyrical Impact | 3 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 18 |
Positives
Janek: She is an amazing performer and can perform the hell out of it. Her voice is the pearl of the whole song.
Ben: It is a perfect interpretation of chacon modern disco. And her vocals are so powerful.
Rory: This song perfectly blends the French chanson with modern disco, which reflects La Zarra’s overall style of mixing the old and new, making it stand out easily.
Shiloh: This is catchy and memorable, especially once the chorus starts and the instrumental picks up the pace.
Joe: This song has a great deal of quality to it and has the perfect mix of modern pop and a traditional French vibe.
Negatives
Janek: : It could be a Little but too repetitive up until the last part.
Ben: The lyrics are ery powerful, but can get lost if you don’t know French
Rory: As with Jamie-Lee Kriewitz in 2016, the mismatch between the classy stylings and modern-sounding entry would leave people asking more questions than answers.
Shiloh: In many ways, this feels like every other French entry from recent years. I’d love to see them change it up a bit. It feels like I’ve heard a song like this too many times before.
Joe: The song perhaps lacks a big ‘moment’ to hook in the televoters.
Albania
| Juror 1 | Juror 2 | Juror 3 | Juror 4 | Juror 5 | Total | |
| Melodic Impact | 2 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 15 |
| Artist’s Presence | 1 | 3.5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 14.5 |
| Individuality | 5 | 3.5 | 2.5 | 4 | 4 | 19 |
| Attention Drawing | 1 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 17 |
| Vocal Fit | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 19 |
| Lyrical Impact | 1 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 16 |
Positives
Janek: A very unique entry from Albania, having Albina with her whole family. Their voices are amazing
Ben: The harmonies amazing, and the part with her parents is my favourite.
Rory; The song is so unashamedly Albanian, it is incredibly distinctive sonically and it provides the ethnic-style song we NEED this year.
Shiloh: Everyone onstage is GREAT at communicating the emotions behind the song, and everyone feels very present in the performance.
Joe: I am confident that Albina and Family Kelmendi will be a safe pair of hands in terms of the performance. Strong vocally and great harmonies, but…
Negatives
Janek: The melody most of the time feels stagnant and could die In a crown.
Ben: Rock ballads aren’t for everyone, and it may get lost in a semi.
Rory: Lyrically, the song may be taken by some to advocate against divorce, which may unintentionally turn a lot of people off the song if they read into the lyrics
Shiloh; Albina’s voice has a little bit too much vibrato here. I think that this kind of song needs a straighter tone in order to have maximum impact.
Joe: The song itself is perhaps not impactful enough and may struggle to stand out
Austria
| Juror 1 | Juror 2 | Juror 3 | Juror 4 | Juror 5 | Totals | |
| Melodic Impact | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 25 |
| Artist’s Presence | 4 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 21 |
| Individuality | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 23 |
| Attention Drawing | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 24 |
| Vocal Fit | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 20 |
| Lyrical Impact | 5 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 21 |
Positives
Janek: An amazing satire of the music industry. The song is clever and well crafted. Really catchy
Ben: I have been singing POE POE POE POE POE POE POE POE POE POE POE POE POE since it dropped.
Rory: An incredibly daring entry that rightfully critiques the music industry, its lack of respect for female songwriters and how streaming services unfairly pay artists. This song is so needed to bring the issue to wider audience.
Shiloh: Both singers sound GREAT on the verses especially. It’s a style that’s well-suited to both their voices.
Joe: super super catchy, the sort of song you can sing along to the very first time you hear it. And the crowd will be buzzing for this one.
Negatives
Janek: Could become a joke entry In some people’s eyes
Ben: people who don’t know much about the music industry may not understand the deep impact of the song.
Rory: Due to the relatively unknown figure of Edgar Allan Poe outside of the English-speaking world, some people may not know who he actually is and may be left more confused by the lyrics. It could then be considered a throwaway joke entry.
Shiloh: The lyrics are funny I guess, but I think that the message they’re trying to deliver is cheapened or lost by trying to make it a catchy Eurodance number; they can’t be as explicit as they could have been outside of the contest and I think that brings the song down.
Joe: Austria learned last year that a catchy dance-pop tune is always the most difficult to replicate on a live arena stage. They will need to mail those vocals on the night as any mis-step will stand out
Norway
| Juror 1 | Juror 2 | Juror 3 | Juror 4 | Juror 5 | Total | |
| Melodic Impact | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4.5 | 3 | 20.5 |
| Artist’s Presence | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 23 |
| Individuality | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 22 |
| Attention Drawing | 2 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 19 |
| Vocal Fit | 5 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 20 |
| Lyrical Impact | 3 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 15 |
Positives
Janek: An amazing sea shanty performed by an amazing artist. Her voice is outstanding
Ben: Her name is she, queen of the kings, and my new best friend. Her vocals are stellar, and she performs it amazingly well.
Rory: The virality this song has and the potential it will have to reach the masses will go hand in hand with the taking of Alessandra’s career, especially with her stellar vocal capability.
Shiloh: Alessandra performs the hell out of this. She’s present in her body and the choreography is precise. And she sings incredibly even while doing the choreo.
Joe: This certainly has impact and should stand out anywhere in the line up.
Negatives
Janek: The lyrics are a bit silly.
Ben: While I love the song, the melody isn’t anything new.
Rory: Genres that blend modern production with overall sea shanties really tend to do badly, and this may also come across as getting to the sea shanty party some three years late.
Shiloh: These lyrics. “Her name is she”. It’s dissonant and distracting, enough so that these are the ONLY lyrics that I remember.
Joe: Whilst it has impact, its appeal may not be universal. The intensity runs from the first note to the last and may be a bit much for some ears. I would prefer a bit more of a progression and build into the big chorus.
What do you think of our scores? Are there any countries you’d score differently? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow “That Eurovision Site” on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Tiktok as we cover the rehearsals of Eurovision 2023!
Information Source: That Eurovision Site
