Oh deary me. Every time I watch this video I feel terribly sorry for Luiz Ejlli singing Zjarr E Ftohtë for Albania in 2006 whose performance to get the country through the semi-final that year.
Don't get me wrong, the boy can sing and doesn't suffer from any obvious on-stage nerves in terms of his voice production (quite possibly the result of having participated in the "Albanian" Idol equivalent. But, sweet jesus, he really can't dance to save his life.
True, it's not the most scintillating of songs. It was never going to be a winner given that it doesn't actually do very much or go anywhere. That said, it is representative of a culture (or at least it sounds that way) and, on a lightly geeky level, I do rather like the shuffle-style rythmn in the track.
Ultimately though, this song proves one scary truth about today's Eurovision. Participation isn't risky for an artist because of the quality of the song as much as it is the extent to which that artist has to place his trust in TV producers, choreographers and directors. When the song is chosen to represent a country it's those TV people who are charged with the task of putting that act on the Eurovision stage in such a way that people across Europe will sit up and take notice.
I can't bear watching the instrumental breaks. I can't quite wipe the idea from my mind that Luiz could quite easily be at the back of some wedding reception bobbing up and down uncomfortably to the beat, his mother and grandmother joining in the dance. He just looks like a teenager in his white suit and matching shoes. It's not particularly big and it's certainly not cool. But seeing as Luiz is reasonably easy on the eye, it is forgivable.
Final placing: 15/24 (semi-final)
Final score: 58
Saturday 7 June 2008
# 37 Zjarr E Ftohtë
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2 comments:
You know, in a lot of ways this song transports me back to the late 1990s contests, where songs in this vein seemed to be omnipresent. Taken on this basis, it's not bad - more plain and inoffensive.
Sadly, it just lacks the impact required to succeed in these more modern times. And the gaping chasm between the style of the traditionally dressed men on the left and the very contemporary singer and backing group jars uncomfortably.
What I will say is that Luiz won my award for best dressed performer in the 2006 semi-final, and I hope that he might return one day with a better song!
It had never occurred to me that he can't dance and that the presentation of this little number is poor - but you're right he can't and it is.
It has a nice ethnicity (doesn't that sound Western pompous) and I don't skip it on the cd. It just potters along quite happily, not scaring the horses and soon it finishes and you think, "was I listening to something just then?"
And I do rather like the unusual instruments.
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