Katrina gupalo supernova 2018 1

Time to get sticky, y’all! The Wiwi Jury is on a trip through Latvia, ahead of Supernova 2018 launching in February. The next song up for review is “Intoxicating Caramel”. Will Katrina Gupalo & The Black Birds serve us up something sugary? Find out our thoughts below:


Katrina is a well known musician in Latvia, having studied in both California and London. She says that Salvador Sobral was her inspiration for entering Supernova 2018.

Katrina Gupalo & The Black Birds — “Intoxicating Caramel”

“Intoxicating Caramel” Reviews

Jonathan: The first word that comes to mind is “annoying”. Many may compare it to a bad musical theatre number, but actual musical theatre geeks wouldn’t want to associate this mess with the genre. Definitely more “Toxic Mustard” than any kind of “Intoxicating Caramel”.

Score: 2.5/10

Chris: This is, presumably, what happens when you accidentally translate from Latvian to English, through about 8 different languages. Perhaps the worst example of the Supernova group for horrendously non-sensical lyrics. Whilst there’s something to appreciate in the weird Bjork-does-jazz charm, this really has no place in a genuine music competition.

Score: 3.5/10

Robyn: First, let’s take a moment to honour this incredible lyric: “Intoxicating scent sends wild flashes right in my prudence”. Right in her prudence! This song is like the anthem of everyone’s auntie who is on the karaoke after a couple of wines. It’s charmingly mad, straddling as many genres as it can cram in. And it all works in the most delightful way.

Score: 8/10

katrina gupalo supernova 2018 2Lukas: Annoying from the start, whether it’s because of the way Katrina sings, or just the beat of the song itself. It’s something different, which is good, but it’s just not impressive in any way. There are some okay moments, but mainly the chorus is very annoying. It just doesn’t make you feel good.

Score: 5/10

Natalie: You have to wonder if some of these lyricists chose random words from the dictionary. The case for that definitely grows with “Intoxicating Caramel”. It’s undeniably fun, and it makes you smile because of the ridiculousness. It’ll be fun to see Katrina on stage at Supernova, but hopefully not in Lisbon.

Score: 4/10

William: Normally if you buy caramel and it leaves you intoxicated, you’d need to consult a doctor. Thankfully this song isn’t going to kill you. It may irritate you and leave you feeling a tad confused, but there’s a sweet core that somehow redeems the hot mess of it all — the circus feel, the cha-cha-cha, the changing tempo, the utter delirium. I won’t download this or listen to it ever again. But there’s potential for some real fun.

Score: 6/10

Edgars: With a good stage performance, some unique glamour and the adorable voice of Katrina Gupalo, this could be one of the big surprises of the contest. The lyrics are also wonderful. Can’t wait to see how this song will look amongst the others.

Score: 6.5/10

In our Latvia Wiwi Jury, we have 14 jurors but only room for 7 reviews. The rest of our scores can be found below:

Luis: 6/10

Jordi: 7/10

Bernardo: 5/10

Kristin: 4/10

Antranig: 5.5/10

Jovana: 10/10

Steinunn: 7.5/10

 

 

 

 

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 2.5 and a high of 10.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 5.67/10

Katrina & The Black Birds find themselves right in the middle of the pack so far then — but with 14 songs left to go, that could definitely change. Are you intoxicated by their caramel? Let us know in the comments section!

Read all our Supernova 2018 Wiwi Jury rankings here

Check out more Latvia Eurovision news here

13 Comments
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Poet
Poet
6 years ago

A good fun. Not a winner though

Alvarito
Alvarito
6 years ago

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL
Really anybody gives 10/10 points????? WTF

Jovana Radojevic
6 years ago
Reply to  Alvarito

Yes, I actually happen to like this song. 🙂 Musically it is not brilliant, far from it. 😀 But it does stand out. The others sound more or less the same.

tonis
tonis
6 years ago

I also thing this is great song. It’s repetitive and needs better editing but probably my one of my favorites in 2017 Latvian selection 🙂

Tako da se slažem s tobom 🙂

Kris
Kris
6 years ago

No I don’t like this style of music at all . It irks me that this made it and not other songs which were better imho

4/10

AngieP
AngieP
6 years ago

It could be for sure a song in a musical. However, I don’t like it. It feels messy and annoying.
3/10

Purple Mask
Purple Mask
6 years ago

Trying to re-invent Liza Minelli’s “Cabaret” role might get you a lot of points from me, but only if you do it right. All the ingredients are there to make this work – the saucy lyrics, the simple binary structure, the 1930s chromatic scales, the swing beat, the stop-start comedy. So what’s the problem? I didn’t laugh or cry. Instead, I was left expressing a very common 21st Century reaction of “WTF”! So much for life being a Cabaret. 4.5/10

Colin
Colin
6 years ago
Reply to  Purple Mask

Hurrah! I’m not the only one who is instantly reminded of a cabaret style. I lime the song, though.

Colin
Colin
6 years ago

It’s a mess, but it’s a creative mess. It’s interesting and has my attention. It totally reminds me of a wacky musical show with a lot of kitsch. It needs more polishing to be great, but it’s good.

7/10 from me.

Briekimchi
Briekimchi
6 years ago

There are so many things about this that I feel I should like but just, no. Everything that it has going for it, Kris and Oz do better. Better instruments, better style and even more insane lyrics. Does not even get out of the starter blocks for me. The vocal is pretty annoying, too.

kenna
kenna
6 years ago

This is actually very original! I like it. It’ll be a good alternative if ‘Esamiba’ doesn’t win!

AB
AB
6 years ago

This is the annoyingly good song in Supernova this year. Love Robyn’s take on it. So far the Wiwi Jury are matching my rankings, so I’m glad to know I have at least some taste.

John Moynahan
John Moynahan
6 years ago

OMG
What is this?
It’s like it is straight out of a remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory!!
Sickly sweet with absolutely terribly constructed lyrics but wait……….I like it!!
I think I must need therapy or at the very least help but this is highly original, different and creative.
Well done…..I think!!
Now I need a lie down!????