O melodie pentru Europa 2018

The Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — continues to review the qualifying acts from Moldova’s O melodie pentru Europa 2018. Next we listen to Anna Timofei‘s ballad “Endlessly” and Che MD‘s folk-rock entry “Inima-n stanga”. Are we rocking with them or do we want to put an end to their songs?

Anna Timofei – “Endlessly”

Antranig: In many ways, this is a very formulaic forgettable Eurovision ballad. It’s even forgettable by O melodie pentru Europa standards. Anna’s vocals give this a bit of spice that could help it stand out from the pack. She can clearly slay some high notes so if they can write a great song for her, she could bring Dami Im levels of success to Moldova. But with “Endlessly”, she’ll be fighting to avoid last place in her semi-final.

Score: 3.5/10

Bogdan: “Endlessly” is not bad at all. Anna’s voice reminds me of Nina Kraljic’s, it has the same sort of ethereal quality. The song itself doesn’t sound very Moldovan, but that’s fine. It remains one of the gems of this year’s O melodie pentru Europa, and it’s bound to do well in the national final.

Score: 7/10

Kristin: I was bored the entire time here. Sorry. Anna Timofei is an amazing singer, with such a bright and lovely voice. She should be singing something more Enya like, something soothing yet epic. This is just noise with a few high notes and key changes by the book, and does absolutely no justice to Anna whatsoever.

Score: 4/10

Luis: Anna’s voice is similar to that of Switzerland’s Chiara Dubey, but Anna’s vocals are a bit too pitchy. This entry is kind of piercing when it should be harmonic and delicate. “Endlessly” tries to create a vocal showcase for her singer, but neither of the parts quite deliver and it ends feeling like vocal masturbation that nobody asked for.

Score: 3/10

Robyn: “Endlessly” is not a good song for Anna Timofei. She’s a singer with a delicate voice, capable of reaching mighty highs. But the backing track is banging away over the top of her, dominating where it should be supporting. It just isn’t working.

Score: 4.5/10

In the Moldovan Wiwi Jury, we have 10 jurors but only room for 5 reviews. The rest of our scores can be found below:

Aline: 6.5/10

Barnabas: 7/10

Bernardo: 3.5/10

Jonathan: 5.5/10

Lukas: 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 3 and a high of 7.5.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 5.19/10

Che MD – “Inima-n stanga”

Antranig: “Inima-n stanga” straddles a fine line between being a rock entry and a traditional folk piece. It’s a combination that really shouldn’t work but it is executed really well. The vocals have potential to back a great rock song and it’s very interesting hearing them over some traditional instrumentation. While it may not be amazing, this is the most cleverly written song in the Moldovan selection.

Score: 7/10

Bogdan: This is a powerful song about the division of the country between Moldova and Transnistria. It’s a daring political message that should stir a lot of emotion in the hearts of the Moldovan people. However, the delivery is a bit too heavy-handed and I had to look for the lyrics in order to understand them. Should the singer enunciate them a bit more intelligibly, “Inima-n stanga” should do well in the national final.

Score: 7.5/10

Kristin: This entry is totally bringing it. The traditional sound blends well with the rock, and the language gives it an edge, that is hard to find in other rock entries in O melodi. “Inima-n stanga” might not be a winner, but it sure as hell should reach at least top three.

Score: 9/10

Luis: In order to properly showcase power, there needs to be some self-control. That’s the only fault in “Inima-n stanga”: the singer is feeling it a bit too much. This combination of folk and rock sounds a bit forced in the first notes, but as the song progresses, the flute and the guitars converge in a fantastic way. This is one of Moldova’s best options.

Score: 7.5/10

Robyn: “Inima-n stanga” sounds like a Linkin Park song rearranged with traditional folk instrumentation. It’s a combo that no one asked for, and yet it kind of works. Each music style complements the other and this odd combination blends well. The production of the studio version needs work — and I’m not really sure this would work at Eurovision — but it’s a good national final entry.

Score: 6.5/10

In the Moldovan Wiwi Jury, we have 10 jurors but only room for 5 reviews. The rest of our scores can be found below:

Aline: 8/10

Barnabas: 9/10

Bernardo: 5/10

Jonathan: 5.5/10

Lukas: 4.5/10

 

 

 

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 4.5 and a high of 9.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 7/10

See our list of O melodie pentru Europa 2018’s rankings here

READ MORE MOLDOVA NEWS HERE

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AngieP
AngieP
6 years ago

“Endlessly”: Lovely voice, seems out of a fairytale. However, it’s not the kind of songs I particularly like. 4/10
“Inima-n stanga”: A different sound at last. It’s fine, but not sth exceptional. 5/10

Colin
Colin
6 years ago

Endlessly – At first, I was quite confused with her voice and “hiccups”, but very soon I found it amazing and unique. Now she is one of my top 2 favorites to win the whole thing. 8/10

Inima-n stinga – Interesting and I like their energy. Probably among the better songs there. 6.5/10

esc freak
esc freak
6 years ago

Anna Timofei is my winner.

Rain
Rain
6 years ago

Looking at the songs already chosen, and what may be chosen in the next weeks, this year will probably be the year of ethereal songs. I team Anna Timofei with her song Endlessly.