Latvia: Wiwi Jury reviews Edgars Kreilis, Pikaso & Rock’n’Berries

Riga, calling! The Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — continues to take on the acts competing in Supernova 2017, Latvia’s national selection process. With the first heat coming up this Sunday, we’re going through all eleven acts taking part this week.

Today we look at Edgars Kreilis, Pikaso and Rock’n’Berries. Will any of them shine bright like a supernova? Read on to find out…

Edgars Kreilis — “We Are Angels”

Chris: Sometimes a song can just be “good” and it doesn’t go any further than that. That’s the case with “We Are Angels”. Edgards is a good singer, the song is good, the beat is good. Probably the only issue I have with it is that the lyrics aren’t quite up to scratch. But “good” doesn’t win Eurovision and it shouldn’t win Supernova 2017.

Score: 6/10

Robyn: “We Are Angels” is so on-trend that it even features the millennial whoop in instrumental form. And yet being on trend doesn’t make it a good song. It’s nice but it ends up being pretty bland. There’s nothing about it that makes me want to listen again and indeed there’s nothing that would inspire me to vote in May.

Score: 5/10

Jason: This is pretty much a noughties Eurovision by numbers entry: an attractive performer singing a mid-tempo number with philosophical yet nondescript lyrics. But that is not to say that “We Are Angels” is bad. Although it is not the most exciting thing I have ever heard, I will admit that it is well-crafted and quite atmospheric, and would lend itself well to a nice stage show, providing Edgars’ vocals hold up that is.

Score: 6.5/10

Antranig: The chorus has an incredible hook — it’s memorable and one of the handful of things I remember after listening to all of the Supernova entries. Unfortunately, the rest of the song is pretty mediocre. On the bright side, it does offer Edgars plenty of opportunity to show off his powerful vocals. This could be very memorable live if he delivers.

Score: 5.5/10

Luis: Aside from the cringeworthy lyrics (and title), Edgars’ song sounds current. However, current doesn’t make a song good, and this is a prime example. The song is pretty uninteresting actually and will probably get lost between the wave of Latvia’s Spotify ready songs. In short, this isn’t entering the viral chart, let alone the hits.

Score: 3/10

Andy:  A promising flirtation gives way to an ultimately pointless climax. Edgars’ gravel-buffed voice gives the familiar sounds a new and current vibe.  I was expecting something bigger for the chorus, but instead, the chorus is akin to TV advert background music. In fact, the song reminds me of watching afternoon TV with my granny while playing gin rummy. Not exactly a Eurovision-banger, but still an honest shot.

Score: 5.5/10

In the Latvian Wiwi Jury, we have 15 jurors, but room for only 6 reviews. The remaining scores are below:

Before calculating the average score, the highest and lowest scores are dropped. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 3 and a high of 7.5.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 5.46/10

Pikaso – “U (can Keep Your Cools)”

Chris: Can we just talk about the fact Pikaso has made one of the smartest moves of the competition already? By refraining from putting the song on YouTube, it forces us to stream on Spotify — where the competition is being (partially) scored. Of course, this is also a song that needs all the help it can get. Bad rap, a chorus that’s just noise…there are many things this song is, but “Cools” is not one of them.

Score: 2/10

Robyn: The first 30 seconds of this song are promising but then the chorus hits and…well. WTF is that chorus? Wheezy singers with the rapper shouting nonsense over the top? The rest of the song feels disjointed, experimental and lazy. It’s the sound of a track that has been put together in editing software, not a song written to be performed. There is room for hip hop at Eurovision, but this is not it.

Score: 2/10

Jason: The oddly titled “U (Can Keep Your Cools)” fails to excite me. Although not my favourite musical genre, I can appreciate the effort involved in rap. I actually quite like the 90s vibe of this entry. However, rap artists usually fare badly at Eurovision, and in my opinion, this is not special enough to buck the trend.

Score: 2.5/10

Josh: Cringe! There’s a reason why 90’s rap went somewhere to die, and it’s so it couldn’t be revived into Supernova. If you’re going to go for rap, modernise it and maybe paste in some pretty female vocal for the chorus to make it 2017. I’m actively hoping this song comes last.

Score: 1/10

Kristin: Well, that was unexpected! OutKast and Ice Cube migrated to Latvia, who would’ve thought? The throwback sound here is definitely something I can get behind. This wouldn’t even be a blip on the radar, should it somehow reach Kyiv, but I dig the sound. It just takes me back to when everybody made mix tapes and Tamagotchi was still a thing. The nostalgia is just too good. But for Eurovision? I don’t think so.

Score: 5/10

Zakaria: I think every musical genre has its place at Eurovision. Of course, I’m still waiting for a rap song to break the curse on that genre. Unfortunately, “U” isn’t the song to do so. I feel like this 90’s rap song vibe wouldn’t have been appreciated even in the 90’s. The lyrics are total nonsense and Pikaso sounds like he’s trying too hard to sound like a proper rapper.

Score: 0/10

In the Latvian Wiwi Jury, we have 15 jurors, but room for only 6 reviews. The remaining scores are below:

Before calculating the average score, the highest and lowest scores are dropped. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 0 and a high of 5.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 2.77/10

Rock’n’Berries — “Feel The Love”

Chris: This is like Jamiroquai on steroids. “Feel the Love” is great for three minutes, but then it ends and I’m done with it. There’s very little memorable about the song: I’ve played it at least three times and struggle to remember any part unless it’s playing. For that reason alone, surely it’s not suited to go to Eurovision.

Score: 6/10

Robyn: “Feel the Love” is a perfectly decent pop song in the style that was all over 2016. If this turned up in a Spotify playlist, I wouldn’t be surprised but I wouldn’t pay much attention to it either. It’s just too generic and not catchy enough. There’s nothing special about it. Also, “Rock’n’Berries” sounds like a flavour of yoghurt aimed at children.

Score: 5/10

Jason: “Feel the Love” puzzles me. It sounds both modern and dated at the same time, and I can’t quite work out why. Although it’s catchy and and I can dance to it, I don’t get the appeal. Good music should leave a lasting impression, but this just leaves me cold. In my opinion there are many better songs at Supernova 2017. I will give a 0.5 bonus for the band’s name though, so it is not all bad.

Score: 2.5/10

Josh: Dansk Melodi Grand Prix called — they want their stupid boy band back. The song is dated, cheesy and brings nothing new. My favourite thing though is that it’s four young guys and an old man. It’s like one of them said “Hey dad, I’m joining a band”, and the dad said “I’m not letting you unless I get to join too.” Utterly ridiculous.

Score: 2/10

Kristin: Another song with a nostalgic sound, but this time it’s a little more Eurovision friendly. “Feel the Love” speaks to me on so many levels. The catchy, uptempo chorus, the cheesy retro sound, his voice — everything just works. I feel the love like, all the way! This song makes me want to drink gallons of Smirnoff Ice, sing and dance till the break of dawn, like I used to do once upon a time. Thank you Rock’n’Berries, you have made my day!

Score: 9/10

Antranig: This type of music will undoubtedly have its fans but it doesn’t have one in me. I don’t dislike it, yet I can’t find any reason to want to listen to it again. Being one of the most upbeat entries in Supernova will help it stand out. However, it doesn’t push any boundaries and ultimately I feel like I’ve heard this all before.

Score: 4/10

In the Latvian Wiwi Jury, we have 15 jurors, but room for only 6 reviews. The remaining scores are below:

Before calculating the average score, the highest and lowest scores are dropped. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 2 and a high of 9.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 5/10

See all of our Supernova rankings here

Follow all of our Latvia Eurovision news here