The Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — continues to listen to and rank the 20 songs competing in Eesti Laul 2018. Next is Girls in Pearls with “Spellbound”. Were we bedazzled by their song? Read on to find out!

Girls in Pearls – “Spellbound”

“Spellbound” reviews

Angus: “Spellbound” is certainly polished, but for an electropop track, it feels lacking in the electricity department. It tingles with possibilities: icy vocals, slick production and heavy synths, but it’s all cast in monotone. Without a heartbeat, the song plateaus after the first minute and trades on the same notes for the rest of the song.

Score: 5.5/10

Chris: The first minute or so of “Spellbound” gives you hope that this could be something particularly good. Unfortunately, this bus stops two minutes too early. There’s no progression in the song, and it remains far too one-note. It’s perfectly nice to listen to as a song, but it’s not right for any sort of contest.

Score: 5.5/10

Deban: Fresh in tone, yet inspired by ’80s nostalgia, “Spellbound” is magical. The pairing of metallic voices against a synth sound, whilst fully dunking the track in reverb gives this a contemporary electro-lounge feel. Zebra Island are good at creating this kind of pop, and they’ve notched another gem with Girls In Pearls. Regardless of the outcome at Eesti Laul, this should be a hit.

Score: 9/10

Antranig: This is exactly the type of filler entry I expect to hear at Eesti Laul every year. The chorus picks up the song significantly from the lifeless verses but even then it is mediocre at best. Their live vocals would not create the same atmosphere the studio version brings. Hence this has generic Spotify track written all over it, rather than being a potentially successful Eurovision entry.

Score: 4/10

Robyn: It’s 2018 and it’s time for the vaporwave aesthetic to finally make its way to a national final. This is lush. Layers of easy listening bliss, perfect to listen to while sipping cocktails on your yacht (because you have a yacht, right). The big unknown is how this will work on stage. Will it be too chilled out to make an impact?

Score: 7.5/10

Sebastian: Two days after its official Youtube release, and Girls in Pearls had just 100 views. And this is exactly where its problem lies – spellbinding it ain’t. It’s easy listening, but ultimately forgettable electropop. But it fails to elicit any emotional response from the listener, let alone, a relisten factor.

Score: 2/10

In our Eesti Laul Wiwi Jury, we have 16 jurors but only room for 6 reviews. The rest of our scores can be found below:

Barnabas: 4/10

Cinan: 4.5/10

Jonathan: 5/10

Josh: 8/10

Jovana: 7.5/10

Luis: 6/10

Lukas: 6.5/10

Rick: 6.5/10

Steinunn: 7/10

 

 

 

 

 

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 and a high of 9.

Wiwi Jury Verdict: 5.96/10

See our list of Eesti Laul 2018 rankings

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blueeyed
blueeyed
6 years ago

I love this song while drinking coffee on a snowy Saturday morning. Don’t see it in the ESC stage though

AngieP
AngieP
6 years ago

The studio version is not sth special. Beautiful voices though.
Good song, not a fan. I need to see this live.
6.5/10

Roelof Meesters
Roelof Meesters
6 years ago

This has potential for a great staging, and I’m feeling it. Great from the first second, I love every part of it, even the part without singing. But I see why people find it monotone.
9,5/10

Kris
Kris
6 years ago

I can’t even hear the song properly.This needs better production. not a fan…too dull and monotone.
But is amongst the better songs in semi-2.
A 5/10.

Juuseven
Juuseven
6 years ago

You – Wiwi Juries – were so harsh with those girls. They are actually in my Top 3! It’s definitely not a winner; that nostalgic vibe to the 80’s, which were delivered by them, cannot be resisted!

ts
ts
6 years ago

Yesssss Deban- rating on point! I think this is the best song in Eesti Laul and is something which could get them out of the Non-qualifying phase with some cool minimalistic staging.