2004 Top 50

10-1

10. Dan Lazarica - Crazy In Love

While this song shares it's anme with Beyonce's biggest hit, that is where the similarities end. This rocky number starts off almost like a ballad, with a softly sung introduction that gives it a contemporary rock feeling, using a technique that bands such as Nickelback have used to great effect. The music builds into the louder, faster second verse, and then the chorus explodes out. The song reaffirms it's rock status with a short guitar solo (when a song can only be 3 minutes, guitar solos will always be limited) and the song rises into a crescendo for the powerful finish.

9. Z-Scars - Runaway

Latvia contribute a nice pop-rock song to the top 10. The verses are backed by guitars, and are pleasant enough, but essentially just plain and inoffensive. The songs real charm lies in the chorus. The tempo is increased, and the piano joins in. This, combined with the catchy refrain means that you will be humming this tune for days. The blend from the verses to the chorus is great too, and the transtion from pop to pop-rock is seamlessly achieved. This effort is like Brainstorm's "My Star" from ESC 2000, without the annoying voice.

8. Andrea - Noah

The uniqueness of this entry adds to it's appeal. The singer's wavering voice reminds at times of Ireland's "The Voice". The verses are very slow, but the chorus is faster, and after once through the chorus, a stronger beat is introduced to the song, which gives it a more ethnic feeling. The beautiful music is responsible for much of the song's sound, and Andrea's voice suits the song well. There is little difference between the Croatian and English versions of the song, as it has so few lyrics to start with. The song has a powerful ending, if rather abrupt, but once it is finished it doesn't feel like it has been on for 3 minutes.

7. Wig Wam - Crazy Things

This fantastic glam rock effort, which is strikingly like Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer" during the verse, is loud, brash and unapologetically un-Eurovision. And that's what makes it so great. The arms aloft sing-a-long powerful chorus is anthemic, in a similar vein to "The Final Countdown" and is purely unexpected from a Eurovision song. Wig Wam are a breath of fresh air from the usual cheese that most National Finals throw up, It's a shame Norway went for an MF reject instead!

6. Kerli - Beautiful Inside

During the slow opening, Kerli's voice sounds very American but also peculiar, in a good way. The chorus, which is very strong and rock-chicky is extremely modern sounding, and the song has a Kelly Clarkson meets Mel C feel to it. It would have done extremely well at Eurovision in my opinion, certainly much better than Tii did. The chorus is just about catchy enough, and poses no danger of becoming repetitive. It follows the Eurovision formula of ending with a powerful repeat of the chorus, though the very end seems to trail off slightly.

5. Yellow Pearl - For You And Me

The first of 3 Netherlands songs in the top 5! A fantastic, contemporary song that I could easily imagine hearing on the radio. Have impressed friends by playing this to them then later telling them it is a Eurovision song. The piano starts the song strongly, and the singer's strong voice performs the song well. The song slips smoothly between the verses and chorus, and the introduction of electric guitars in the bridge builds the song up, and then the backing singers help to give the song that extra edge during it's last minute, up to the subtle ending.

4. Wonderwall - Silent Tears

From what I know about Wonderwall (most of which I picked up during my German A-Level -when I had to read an article about the band and answer questions on) I get the impression that they are a cheesey German pop band with a vewry young target audience. That's what makes it even more pleasantly surprising when listening to this lovely pop ballad, with a beautiful chorus that goes "silent tears / falling so loudly / it's impossible not to hear / not to hear them". While some parts of the verses are unintelligible from the accents, and strange sugary voices of the girls, this doesn't take away from the song too much. Even when the bridge apparently begins "when the moon is your daddy / and the stars are your home", the good music distracts the listener enough. The ending is just perfect too, ending on "your silent tears / are killing me." The song conveys quite a lot of meaning despite some of it's nonsense.

3. Charly - She'll Take Your Breath Away

The moment the song begins, the music creates an atmosphere of mystery, that is reminiscent of horror movie scores, then the loud singing almost screaming adds to this further. It tells a story about a girl who is "nasty", and the bridge that is sung before the chorus each time: "wish you'd never met her / and you wish you didn't known / wish you'd never had her / now she'll never let you go" builds up the tension before launching into the dramatic chorus In the final minute, their is a musical interlude, but the guitars and piano are accompanied by creepy noises that add to the songs eeriness. the music video backs up the feelings that the song creates, and is worth a watch if possible.

2. Judith - Love Me

The most beautiful ballad of all the 2004 songs, this slow, song gives memories of Lucie Silvas, combining a fantastic voice with a simple piano backing. The verses are slow, and the chorus isn't much faster, but is catchy. The bridge is slightly faster, and is sung more powerfully, and the long "love" builds the song up really well into the classic Eurovision-staple of "nanana"ing, but it works a lot better than it does in usual cheesey songs. This song is also available in a "piano solo" version, and a dance version, and both are just as good. Unfortunately with such a beautiful ballad, it is difficult to perform

1. Pay TV - Trendy Discoteque

So here it is, the winner. Ne Party Pas Sans Moi's official number 1 best National Final song of the 2003/04 season. And it is FANTASTIC! It's hard to put into words exactly how great it is, but I'll try! While I completely adore the entire top 5, this one just has that extra edge to push it to the top. And that extra feature is comedy! The girls of Pay TV basically create a 3 minute "Sex and the City - The Musical". The music video (see at at their site - paytv.se) is fantastic, as are the girls and their song, musically, but above all, lyrically! This song includes gems such as "and very very very very very trendy shoes", "we think the poor are boring, they can't afford to party at the trendy discoteque". The song name checks many fashion icons (Prada, Dior, Gucci etc.) This entry is a massive hit amongst all my non-Eurovision fan friends, and I've found anyone with a sense of humour likes them (the Swedes son't when it comes to Eurovision, and that's why ESC missed out on this wonderful entry). Congratulations must go to them, and shame on Sweden for not picking them, though it is no surprise really!

That's it! I put all that time into it, at least give the top 10 a listen!

If you're want more, check out the honourable mentions list! See if your own faves made it there at least! If they didn't you are in serious need of a taste doctor!