Final countdown to Eurovision

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It may seem like one of the most frivolous events on Earth, but in recent years there has been an increasingly serious edge to the Eurovision Song Contest. The annual event now has more international intrigue, and cutting-edge technology, than the average James Bond movie.

The 61-year-old competition will always conjure images of acts in colourful outfits performing ludicrously catchy songs – some became superstars as a result – most famously the Swedish pop group ABBA, who won with Waterloo in 1974.

But a bizarre undercurrent of geopolitical tension has long bubbled underneath, as certain nations consciously, and conspicuously, do or do not vote for each other.

Such partisan voting patterns have been particularly rife in Eastern Europe, and such regional wrangles have already overshadowed this year’s Eurovision. The two semi-finals (the first of which was on Tuesday and the second tonight) and Saturday’s final take place in Kiev, following Ukraine’s politically-charged victory in 2016 (the winning country is responsible for staging the following year’s event).

Russia will not be competing, having withdrawn after the hosts banned the country’s chosen singer, Yuliya Samoylova, because she performed in the disputed territory of Crimea.

As for the songs, as usual the quality varies wildly – but Eurovision has become a much grander spectacle in recent years. Huge cutting-edge ‘moving mirror’ video screens massively enhance the performances, and winning has increasingly become about how cleverly you utilise those visual aids. But then, pop music has always been about more than just songs.

Here are the entrants to watch.

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 Country: Italy

Song: Occidentali's Karma

Performer: Francesco Gabbani

Are these guerrilla tactics or gorilla tactics? Eurovision's new video walls might be impressive, but this year's hot favourites, Italy, prefer classic old-school quirkiness: mustachioed singer-songwriter Francesco Gabbani shares his stage with an energetic "gorilla", plus a bunch of brightly-coloured backing apes, all performing his signature dance move. As for the song, Occidentali's Karma (which translates as Western Karma) is, of course, outrageously catchy.

Chances: Top four, for sure

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 Country: Finland

Song: Blackbird

Performer: Norma John

Finland enjoyed one of the more memorable Eurovision triumphs, in 2006, when horror-masked heavy-metal band Lordi massively upset the odds. This year's lower-key performers, Norma John, have surged up the favourites list since rehearsals began: the song's ambient vibe and atmospheric visuals really shine. The duo are fronted by a former TV talent show contestant, Leena Tirronen, while pianist Lasse Piirainen has an interesting day job co-hosting the splendidly-named music quiz show BumtsiBum.

Chances: Increasingly optimistic

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Country: France

Song: Requiem

Performer: Alma

France is one of the "big five" nations given a place in the final automatically – alongside Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom – due to their hefty financial contributions. So it might come as a surprise to learn the French have not won for 40 years. Winning songs tend to be in English, which partly accounts for this, and US-schooled singer Alma looks set to perform a bilingual version of the soaring anthem Requiem. With this shrewd approach, and some awe-inspiring Paris-skyline visuals, she might inspire a French renaissance.

Chances: Top 10 would be très bien.

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Country: Croatia

Song: My Friend

Performer: Jacques Houdek

With 43 songs competing during the week, you need to offer something special to make a significant impact. Step forward Jacques Houdek, a mentor on Croatia's version of TV talent show The Voice, who boasts a big talent and even bigger character. For the operatic My Friend, the versatile, Berklee-trained singer uses a range of vocal styles to perform a full three-minute Broadway-style musical – by himself. "Do you believe in miracles?" he sings. You will after watching this.

Chances: A mighty contender

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Country: Germany

Song: Perfect Life

Performer: Levina

Germany's Eurovision experience has been far from wunderbar recently: they finished rock-bottom in the last two years, and will set an unenviable record if the hat-trick happens this year. Desperate to avoid this is Levina, who learnt her craft in the UK, performing a song about bouncing back ("I bend but I don't break") written by an American trio. Even with that international input, though, Perfect Life is pretty dull.

Chances: Anything above last place would be an improvement, at least

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Country: Australia

Song: Don't Come Easy

Performer: Isaiah Firebrace

Yes, that well-known European outpost, Australia, now competes in Eurovision. The contest was huge down under, even before they were allowed to compete for the first time, initially as a guest nation, in 2015. The doe-eyed and excellently-named Isaiah Firebrace won the Aussie version of TV talent show The X Factor last year, and this moody ballad has a memorable hook. Firebrace has a tough act to follow though: compatriot Dami Im was the runner-up last year.

Chances: Eurovision loves the Aussies

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Country: Spain

Song: Do It for Your Lover

Performer: Manel Navarro

Booing is not the best preparation for Eurovision, especially when it emanates from your home audience. A voting scandal during the Eurovision song-selection competition in Spain means Navarro is one of the country’s least-popular entrants – and this seriously average Spanish/English composition would struggle to reach the final if Spain were not automatically awarded a spot. Navarro is no Plácido Domingo, either. Even Germany should comfortably outscore this one.

Chances: Pain for Spain

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Country: Bulgaria

Song: Beautiful Mess

Performer: Kristian Kostov

Russia have withdrawn, but could still claim a record in Kiev. In tonight's second semi-final, Moscow-born Kristian Kostov will become the first Eurovision entrant born in the 21st century – March 2000, to be precise. The 17-year-old was a child protégé of Russia's 2009 Eurovision winner Dima Bilan, then entered the Bulgarian version of TV show The X Factor, due to having family roots there. Bulgaria finished fourth last year, and this sturdy ballad could be another strong contender with the right staging. Hopefully that title doesn't prove prophetic, though.

Chances: Strong, if he doesn’t make a beautiful mess of the semi

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Country: Ireland

Song: Dying to Try

Performer: Brendan Murray

Ireland were once a Eurovision powerhouse, winning three consecutive contests in the early 1990s, but have now “lost it completely”. That is the verdict of Norwegian Eurovision bigwig Per Sundnes, who subjected Brendan Murray’s sweet love song to a scathing pre-semi-final critique. Bad news for Ireland: Sundnes was due to lead the main jury at this year’s event. Good news: Eurovision dumped the errant Norwegian because of those comments. Expect some sympathy votes.

Chances: Poor, but better now that Sundnes has departed

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Country: Norway

Song: Grab the Moment

Performer: JOWST

Norway made a big splash in 1995 with the song Nocturne, which won despite containing only 24 words. The country is pushing the envelope again, not to mention Eurovision's rules. Grab the Moment, by masked producer JOWST, is a solid pop banger, but contains a sizeable vocal sample – the rules state all vocals must be sung live, and nations have been docked points for not following this rule. The Norwegians believe they have permission for their song, but perhaps JOWST vocalist Aleksander Walmann should just seize the moment and sing it live?

Chances: Could be big, but beware the backing-track backlash

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 Country: United Kingdom

Song: Never Give Up on You

Performer: Lucie Jones

Is the anti-Brexit lobby in Britain sending a message to Europe with this appropriately-named ballad? Perhaps, but poor Lucie Jones would almost certainly have suffered an early, hard Brexit of her own if the UK had been forced to compete in the semi-finals. This is the first Eurovision since Britain voted to leave the European Union, and the UK have hardly been popular in recent years even without the referendum result. Jones, a former Wonderbra model, may find herself lacking support on Saturday.

Chances: Expect post-referendum repercussions

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Country: Azerbaijan

Song: Skeleton

Performer: Dihaj

Eurovision might be an impressively slick operation nowadays, but you can guarantee that some nations will still do something peculiar or unexpected – and animal costumes are clearly a 2017 theme. Azerbaijan has become an unlikely force since debuting in 2008, and won in 2011, but this year's performance will test less open-minded audiences. Skeleton is a slightly baffling anthem anyway – "have my lungs, my millions" sings Dihaj – and her performance features a man on a ladder wearing a horse's head. Deeply odd – yet so very Eurovision.

Chances: A dark horse

artslife@thenational.ae