Melodifestivalen 2011: Heat One

My thoughts on heat one of this year's contest:

Let's hope for a nice stream and a good outcome :)

(uh-oh, preshow video's already a bit jumpy... does not bode well...)

OPENING: Lots going on with the hosts singing and dancing around in all manner of outfits and gags. Still nowhere near as good as last year's opening, though.

Edit: Their new logo looks like a Transformer. Autobot or Decepticon, I'm not sure...

Edit: From audience applause alone, it seems like Danny (duh) and Jenny (!) will be going through.

DILBA: The Tron outfits are cracking me up, but it really doesn't sound like she's singing live? I mean, she has to be according to the rules, but the vocals sound so processed. This works better in studio form than live, I think. It won't go through, but it's a good dance song. Unfortunately, Dilba doesn't have any charisma.

Edit: This backstage woman looks like she's from Mad Men.

SWINGFLY: Does Swingfly really not speak Swedish? Or were they just being funny in that opening? Hmmm... Anyways, I've always liked this guy's music, and this is no exception. Not for MF, but he's got more energy than Dilba did. I like the singer with him, too. Who is he? Oh my god, and that woman at the end? She cracked me up for some reason.

JENNY SILVER: Here's Jenny with her Abba pastiche! It's so campy, but so much fun. I love the "tribute" to her strange silver arm of 2010 on the dancers. The song's great, the performance was well staged and well choreographed... I think she may be through with this one. It definitely deserves it.

JONAS MATSSON: Had a funny opening, but once the performance started... erm... well, this is really bad. So cheesy, and not in a good way. Plus, the melody's lacking any sort of identifiable hook and his vocals annoy me. Actually, he annoys me. Polite, muted applause at the end.

LE KID: I love this! Of course, I already loved the band, so that helps. It's a great song... probably the best so far. And they've got such identifiable styling and staging. I do have my doubts about this going through, though. Still, they've put on the biggest "show" of the night so far.

RASMUS VIBERG: I liked this, but I'm not sure if it's as good as I wanted it to be. The vocal performance was excellent and I love his presence, but it seems like the song's just a bit too predictable. I'd like to hear this guy do something rockier, because he's definitely got the voice. I think this has a chance of pulling an upset, though.

PERNILLA ANDERSSON: What the hell were those things she was having to eat in the opening? This is a very Swedish-sounding rock/folk ballad, and it's very pretty. No Snalla, Snalla, but then again, what is? Vocals were excellent, but this may end up lacking some oomph by MF standards. This is an insanely difficult heat to predict!

DANNY: ...Except I can pretty much guarantee than Danny will be going through. He didn't even need to perform, honestly. It was already a done deal. Doesn't hurt that he had the most accomplished performance of the night. I'm still not sure if I'm 100% sold on the repetitive song, but this is a definite contender. Great vocals, though like Dilba's performance, it was hard to tell how much was actually sung live.

My BOLD, and probably INCORRECT predictions:
To final - Danny, Jenny
Andra Chansen - Pernilla, Le Kid (fingers crossed)
Possible upset - Swingfly

Edit: Love it that #mel2011 is the #1 (non-promoted) trending topic on twitter worldwide right now. Never underestimate the power of Melodifestivalen!

Edit: Dilba, Jonas and Rasmus eliminated. My predictions could actually be right! Poor Dilba got last place. Not surprising (and I love how the guys announced the song, ironically, as "Try It Again"

Edit: Danny's the first to go directly to the final. Not surprising in the least. I would have been shocked if this hadn't happened. I'm sure he would have been too!

Edit: BTW, I think I can say it now without jinxing it. The stream today is EXCELLENT.

Edit: Danny's song is growing on me, though it's nowhere near being up there with his best. And I hate that stupid spoken bit in the interlude.

Edit: Four good songs vying for the three remaining spots. I'd probably knock off Pernilla's, but I'm a bit worried for Le Kid's chances against these big guns.

Edit: Nanne!! I love her, but she better stop singing this crap Whitney Houston song and bust into one of her own.

Edit: Apparently, that's not gonna happen. Nanne and Whitney do not mix well.

Edit: Le Kid eliminated :( Pernilla and Jenny in Andra Chansen and Swingfly direct to the final. Hmmm... this is a bit of a surprise. I guess you can never rule out name recognition. Swingfly's had a lot of hits.

Edit: The good news - I like this Swingfly song and Le Kid finished in the top five, which hopefully means they got some nice exposure.