Earlier today, the Wiwi Jury – our in-house panel of music unprofessionals – watched the waves crashing onto the beautiful Black Sand Beach at Vik. The beautiful scenery inspired us to review “Get Back Home”, Júlí Heiðar and Þórdís Birna‘s entry for Söngvakeppnin 2017. Did they win us over?
Júlí Heiðar Halldórsson & Þórdís Birna Borgarsdóttir – “Get Back Home”
About Júlí Heiðar and Þórdís Birna
Júlí and Þórdís are back, y’all! Last year, Þórdís performed “Ready To Break Free” alongside Guðmundur Snorri, and Júlí sat behind the piano. This time, Júlí and Guðmundur will switch places and Júlí and Þórdís will get to perform together.
“Get Back Home” reviews
Robyn: The first time I heard “Get Back Home”, I didn’t enjoy it much. It sounded like a generic folk-pop song and it seemed to drag. On a second listening, the song picked up. It’s all going to depend on the chemistry between Júlí and Þórdís in the live performance. That’s what will lift the song beyond just another folk-pop number.
Score: 6.5/10
Jason: “Get Back Home” is not one of my favourites in Iceland’s selection this year. For me, although pleasant, I find it totally dull. Perhaps my mind will change when I see it performed on stage, as I am sure Þórdís and Júlí will deliver. Right now, it needs something to elevate it.
Score: 5/10
Chris: The Icelandic version of Monika and Vaidas, but with plenty of its own charm too. “Get Back Home” will definitely rely on chemistry on stage for it to succeed, of course. I hope that Þórdís and Júlí can deliver that, because this is certainly one of the more pleasant entries in Iceland’s selection.
Score: 6/10
William: The dreamy opening gave me high hopes: Both artists have stellar vocals, they blend well, and the folk beat is uplifting and invigorating. And while I appreciate the big chorus, the song quickly grows monotonous and somewhat repetitive after that. This would work great on the soundtrack of a movie — when lovers are separated by war, plague or family problems. But for Eurovision it’s just a bit too safe.
Score: 5/10
Bernardo: “Get Back Home” has that folk and country vibe that plays constantly on radio stations around the world. That and the catchy chorus, paired with the two vocalists, creates magic, but I’m afraid we’ve heard this a lot of times already. It’s a song that plays it safe and is nothing more than average. Shout out to the harmonies though.
Score: 6.5/10
Forrest: This is a really pleasant, folksy track which is, admittedly, the last thing I was expecting from the team who gave us last year’s rap ballad “Spring yfir heiminn.” The lyrics are full of your standard love song clichés, but Þórdís and Júlí make it convincing. There’s a story here and I really look forward to see how they bring it to life on stage.
Score: 7/10
Patrick: Texas Lightning had a concert in Iceland and those two singers got inspired – at least that’s my theory. This is a very cute, happy song and I actually quite like it. Both singers are charming and have a special something about them which makes them very likeable. I can totally see people are voting for this, especially with nice staging and good live vocals. It may not be my personal favourite, but it could win in Iceland.
Score: 7/10
Josh: “Get Back Home” is quintessential Iceland. The two vocalists’ voices blend together like coffee and milk, and their harmonies are absolutely flawless. However, I’m yearning for something extra to make this stand out on its own, rather than sounding like another sweet country-esque ballad. A pleasant song to listen to, but nothing I would vote for.
Score: 6/10
In our Söngvakeppnin 2017 Wiwi Jury, we have 20 jurors but only room for 8 reviews. The rest of our scores can be found below:
Antranig: 9/10
Dayana: 7.5/10
Deban: 6/10
Florian: 6.5/10
Jordi: 8.5/10
Kristin: 6.5/10
Luis: 6.5/10
Matt: 6/10
Mikhail: 6.5/10
Sami: 5/10
Sinan: 5.5/10
Steinunn: 6.5/10
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 5 and a high of 9.
I really don’t understand how this is in first place (so far). It’s so generic and forgettable. If it makes ti to Kiev, it won’t get past eh semi-final. Icealnd doesn’t deserve that three years in a row.
This is one of my favorite songs in the ESC season so far! xD
I see that male-female duets are a thing in Iceland’s selection. I like this one, it’s happy and cute.
Another duo! For me the song is dated. A decade ago it would be a wonderful entry. Now, I don’t know. But I like the melody and the mood it creates.
6/10
Why do all these Icelandic duos look like having wedding photos
This is such a happy and melodic song. Their voices mix well and there is a great chemistry. One of my favorites.
9/10