It’s now time for the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — to tackle the biggest national final of them all: Sweden’s Melodifestivalen. We’re kicking off with the eight songs that will be battling it out in the andra chansen round, vying for the final four places in the final. We’re starting with Samir & Viktor who have returned with “Bada nakna”. Did they make us want to get wet? Read on to find out…
Samir & Viktor – “Bada nakna”
“Bada nakna” reviews
Angus: On repeat listen this turns into one of Samir & Viktor’s best hits yet. First time around though it goes seriously wide of the mark. The chorus lacks the energy and hook that made “Groupie” a knockout, and no amount of shirtless torsos or backing dancers writhing around in paddling pools is going to compensate for that. This might win through its duel to the final but it won’t be representing in Stockholm in May.
Score: 5/10
Antranig: Skin, swimming and major sex appeal — Samir & Viktor deliver one of the most energetic performances ever. The chemistry between these boys is undeniable — fully-clothed or otherwise — and the music after the choruses is incredible. The choreography is great and the only thing harder than those dance moves are their abs. “Bada nakna” is sexy in every sense of the word!
Score: 9/10
Deban: It’s obvious! “Bada nakna” sports a catchy chorus, but overall, it is riddled with shortcomings. The deficits of this song are compensated with two beautiful torsos. So let’s talk about beauty. Samir and Viktor SLAY! If they made it to Eurovision, they’d be frontrunners for the Eurovision Next Top Male Model title.
Score: 5.5/10
Edd: There’s whistling, there’s an EDM post-chorus, and watered down six-packs – it’s heaven. The fun that they have on stage brings me joy – and I think it’s about time Sweden sent something fun. And could you get more Swedish than a blonde and an Arab guy singing about skinny dipping? If they can whip off those trousers, too, when they get to the final, I honestly think this could win the whole thing!
Score: 9.5/10
Luis: Meh. “Bada Nakna” is too cheap for the most expensive national final. It’s like when you get supermarket ham as appetiser at a wedding: you like it, but you want the good dishes to start coming in. Samir and Viktor have nice chemistry, and the show they throw is entertaining, to say the least. But the act in the end relies too much on easy tricks, like ripping of their shirts and the breakdance.
Score: 5/10
Mikhail: It’s flat, repetitive and generic. The song does nothing at all. They know it and that is why they decided to rely on the naked bodies instead. But this is not how it works! Above all, the song should be good, and bodies can be a nice addition to it. Here it’s clearly vice versa.
Score: 3.5/10
Padraig: “Bada nakna” is basically Samir & Viktor’s “Waterline” moment. Like Ireland’s Jedward, they were initially a blast of fresh air amidst a line-up of oh-so-serious entries. But second time round the novelty has worn off, just as their energy has diminished. Because despite its rather salacious subject matter, “Bada Nakna” is much tamer than “Groupie”. And while their dripping wet, muscle-bound torsos make for pleasant viewing, they’re just a gimmick… and a far too fleeting one at that! Where’s the saxofuckingfon when you need it?
Score: 5.5/10
Robyn: What do I require of Samir & Viktor? I require a fun, uplifting song with a great chorus. They should deliver it with confidence and energy. The song should get throughly ear-wormed in my head, bothering me at all hours. Shirts optional. Samir & Viktor deliver, with an even better song than “Groupie”. I really want to see the fountain party continue on to Friends Arena.
Score: 8.5/10
Tobias: These boys have really improved since last year with their entry “Groupie”, regarding the interaction with each other on stage and with their vocals. Before I heard the song I asked myself, “Can these guys really come up with another hit again?” and they sure proved it was possible. The melody is catchy and you just want to pump that fist in the air. The mix of the whistling part and the dubstep/house part really works well together. Even though they don’t have the greatest voices, this song gets stuck in your head. It’s easy to sing along and I’m sure it will be played a lot in summer, that’s for sure! We will see these boys qualify direkt till final in Friends Arena.
Score: 6/10
William: This number celebrates skinny dipping and with it the Swedish values of independence and freedom. Samir & Victor embody those traits well and the song takes on an anthemic quality in the catchy, strangely moving chorus. However, the staging is a mess. At times I feel like no one on stage is doing anything, and the constant cutting away to a girl playing in a puddle looks cheap and leaves me thinking “damp squib.” They really need to sort out the stage show if they want any chance of making it to the final.
Score: 6.5/10
In the Swedish Wiwi Jury we have 26 jurors but only have room for 10 reviews. The remaining 16 scores are below!
Anthony: 6/10
Bernardo: 5.5/10
Bogdan: 4.5/10
Chris: 7.5/10
Denise: 7.5/10
Josh: 6/10
Marek: 7/10
Maria: 9/10
Max: 7.5/10
Patrick: 3/10
Ramadan: 7/10
Rezo: 7/10
Ron: 5/10
Sami: 8.5/10
Sinan: 6/10
Steinunn: 3/10
The highest and lowest scores are dropped prior to calculating the average score. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 3 and a high of 9.5.
Cooppelj! (Couple)))
Ahaha
I wasn’t impressed by this entry at all, to be honest. Groupie was 10x better last year, and Saxofuckingfon is a much better song than this too.
I’m just interested in ‘Second chance’ rounds in Italy and Sweden. If the song is not among Top 2 in the semi with separated songs, is there any chance they would win the whole contest? Any logic says no. This is just a manner of prolonging the inevitable.
Question to more experienced than I: Has ANY song from Second chance round EVER won any fibals or even broke top 3? I think I know the answer, but prove me wrong…
This is very much what Samir & Viktor do best – trashy, sexy, fun. From the chanting chorus, to the whistling – it’s everything a cheap pop song needs, with added nakedness and hydro fun. The “Animals”-esque breakdown doesn’t too well on the stage because, well, it just gets awkward. I hope that, if “Bada Nakna” does make it to the final, that it doesn’t beat someone more deserving to get there.
Score: 7/10
Horrible, horrible and horrible.
They can’t sing, the lyrics are pure garbage, and them taking of their shirts was literally a cry for votes.
Happily, I know Sweden won’t be even close to send this to Stockholm in May.
Best thing that the boys have done. Also, it is better than the vast majority of Melfest entries this year.
It could still surprise!
“Groupie” was better, this is just meh. They’ll probably get to the final, maybe even reach top 5.
I still like Groupie because the song makes the viewers feel more invited to jam along with these two. This song on the other hand sounds like a locker room song.
For me Oscar is the winner!
It’s surprising how much this song improves with the mute button on.
This song is a massive hit in Sweden, already 4,5 million Spotify plays and 1,7 million Youtube views. On that basis alone they deserve a spot in the final.
Can you really believe, that “experts” are not brainwashed? They believe that their complicated truth is better than normal, simple truth, because this is their truth!
Who will vote for them? Simply normal people, not “experts”.
It is all about good, high and tight quality! Not about type of performance. Their rivals this year are very bad copy of Loreen, Sanna Nielsen and Mans Zelmerlow. Similar type, but much lower quality!
It is very classic, conventional entry, but that’s why this is good! It is not contrived as their rivals in Melodifestivalen, and that’s why only they can be top 5 in ESC in Stockholm for Sweden!