The Wiwi Jury—our in-house panel of musical unprofessionals—spent the afternoon exploring Soviet-era weaponry at Moldova’s National Archaeology and History Museum. After snapping pics by the tanks we gathered in the grass to review Cristina Scarlat’s Eurovision 2014 song “Wild Soul”. Did this Madame from Moldova leave us begging for more? Or did we end up running to Transnistria to get away from her? Read on to find out….
Bogdan: I first noticed Cristina Scarlat in Moldova’s national selection last year, when she won me over with “I Pray”. However, it is “Wild Soul” that got her to represent her country at Eurovision, and it’s a similar attempt – very dramatic, with deep vocals and existential lyrics. The song may not grab your attention immediately, but you’ll find on repeated listens that the chorus is catchy despite the heavy subject matter. The staging in Chisinau was puzzling to say the least and it’s a given that Moldovans will surprise everyone on the Eurovision stage, so I am hoping for something equally memorable as Aliona’s giant dress. Cristina needs it, as she’ll be performing in the more difficult semi and competing with other powerful ballads. Succes!
Score: 8/10
Padraig: Last year Aliona Moon was all kinds of sweetness and nice. She wouldn’t say “boo”, and if you said it to her she’d probably have fallen out of her mile high dress. Not so with Cristina the Merciless. Get on her wrong side and she’ll have you executed… ok, obviously nothing that extreme, probably just a stern scolding, but still she’s fierce. And if you didn’t realise her ferocity beforehand, you certainly will once the 3 minutes are up. Every beat and every lyric exudes anger and fury, yet despite the powerhouse vocals and thumping dubstep, the song lacks a certain oomph. Rather than being left quaking in the corner, I just feel cold. And that’s the last thing I want to be come mid-May.
Score: 6/10
Vebooboo: I don’t work in advertising, but I’m pretty sure that I can get a Better Business Bureau out there to sue Cristina for false advertising. Don’t call your song “Wild Soul” if it’s about as boring as bingo night at an old folk’s home. At least one thing is true, Cristina. You certainly do “have no feelings of mercy”, because you decided to inflict this travesty of a song on us. Once again proof that a good voice does not a quality act make, folks. Needs. To. Go.
Score: 3/10
Angus: God help the man who pissed off Cristina so royally. “Mercy? I have no feelings of MERCY,” she warns over the thumping dubstep beat and genuinely, if I were him, I’d fear for my life. Not only has she gone off the murderous-revenge end of the specrum but she’s also, if her national selection is anything to go by, undergone an operation to install a robotic arm so she can crush his neck with her bare hands. Terrifyingly terrific. I also defy anyone to not be going “MERCYYYYYY,” for hours after listening to ‘Wild Soul’.
Score: 6/10
Billy: That’s a lovely video-clip! And that’s all. I can’t describe the music as original. It’s dynamic and dark, but these factors will not save this song from failure. While the live performance was hilarious—what were those Japanese samuri on stilts doing?!—this song is just not that interesting…
Score: 6/10
Katie: Before I even start talking about the song, Cristina wins the award for best outfit and best music video. Good start! The song is brilliant too. Cristina has the ability to be totally crazy yet classy at the same time, something not a lot of people can do. Her voice is at it’s best during the chorus when the instrumental is blowing up. It’s a Cezar-style chorus that silences a Eurovision party full of drunk people. I hope her costume glows at this point. This song deserves to make the final. I can’t wait to see her perform live!
Score: 7/10
Wiwi: Cristina says that destiny left her empty. Well, subsequently she has filled herself with anger and one hell of a voice. From her glossy video to her over-the-top stage show in Moldova, Cristina is a woman who embraces her crazy. The song isn’t my cup of tea. But when this diva sings the power of her voice makes me quiver. I don’t care what she sings. I’ve got Scarlat Fever, y’all!
Score: 6.5/10
Deban: The Moldovans have really turned up the volume with possibly the most spectacular video release of the year. I was drawn in, but at the same time firmly holding onto my Holy Book. Cristina Scarlat’s dark performance is compelling. Her voice holds a suitably haunting quality, particularly with the lower register. A slightly unusual fare for Eurovision, but this glamour diva takes her performance seriously. She’s also assisted by her niece, Lydia Scarlat, who happens to be the songwriter on this project. ‘Wild Soul’ is a grower, and vocally it’s very demanding. At times, it appears that Cristina’s voice doesn’t have the higher vocal octaves that’s needed to elevate a key change.
Mike: I am a really big fan of Moldovan Eurovision songs! Because if there is one country that goes crazy every year in May, it is Moldova! But this year Moldova is a bit meh. I don’t hate it, but I don’t love it either. While I again adore the staging, clothing and dancing, I think the song is a little weak…
Score: 5.5/10
Ramadan: Now, this is one scary song for me. You can’t get get cheesier. She has a nice voice, but the song is just too bland. I think this will fare as well as Cezar did last year. She sings with lots of passion, and her voice is very strong. Staging will make or break her chances for the final.
Score: 0/10
All 19 members of our jury rate each song. However, we only have room to share 10 written reviews. Here are the remaining nine scores.
Anthony: 8/10
James L: 4/10
Mario: 8/10
Francheska: 8.5/10
Maxim Montana: 8/10
Zach: 5/10
Patrick: 7/10
Sami: 6/10
William C: 9/10
The highest and lowest scores are removed before calculating the final score. We have dropped a low of 0 and a high of 9.
The Wiwi Jury Verdict: 6.35/10
You can check out our latest Eurovision 2014 reviews and rankings on the Wiwi Jury page. You can keep up-to-date on the latest Eurovision news and gossip by following the team on Twitter @wiwibloggs and by liking our Facebook page.
Too theatrical. Nil point
This song grows on you. It will be the dark horse of the entries to surprise everyone. 8/10
Such a waste of a song. She has a lovely husky voice but they made her sing this appalling nonsense. The lyrics are awful and the music is something else, starts as a ballad, then it becomes a sort of triumphal anthem and then it ends in an abrupt note without coda. honestly, before watching and listening pretentious nonsense like this, I rather see old babushkas singing with tremulous voices…
MMMM this left me cold
Christina has a very distinctive voice but the song washed over me a little like the images on the video
Sorry:-(
I’ve been listening to her live performances of this song, and there’s one thing to say about her: although she may have difficulty hitting one or two of the notes, she certainly gives Ruth, Molly and Sanna a run for their money singing live. This is a very demanding song, and yet Cristina sings clear and discernible low notes, while going up the range (quite well) without losing control. Molly could not hit the high notes, Sanna may not be able to hit the low ones, and Ruth has been VERY uneven live (not to mention the fact that every… Read more »
bufff…. 0/10
SCARY SONG
Hey, Wiwi, why is Ramadan on the jury? He/she contributes zero. Why not get someone who adds value to WiwiBlogs. I hope you don’t pay for their useless comments.
@ Sopon – You were right to acknowledge that she does speak English. What I meant was that some mispronunciations are distracting; I guess it must be hard to control the nuances while focusing on the singing. I always defend artists’ efforts, though… I had atrocious pronunciation while I was learning as a teenager (I’m Hispanic) and was “butchered” by my teachers as I entered college (I did English in English, so just imagine!) 😛
for me this is bland…..
Moldova always makes smart changes to the song, like last year, where they sent “O mie” instead of the god-awful “A Million”. If your artist doesn’t speak English, as a general rule (because Cristina does speak English), they shouldn’t perform in English (except for Belarus so that we can laugh at their horrible English every year).
The sad thing is …. Her English sounds soo BAD !!!!
And also, this is one of me least favorite entries in the past few years (overall)
Ramadan again 0? :O Okaaaay….
Wild soul is def not worth of the hate that it recieves 🙂 It’s one of my favs 🙂 It’s sooo dark,mystic,and I like that it’s dubstep ballad <3 I won't mention lyrics,'cause they are P E R F E C T I O N! 🙂
Moldova never disappoints me (Well maybe twice with that ridiculous group in 2005 & 2011). Their best entry was in 2007. I loved Aliona too. This year the song is so different from the other songs. I’m obsessed with the chorus. The lyrics make perfect sense. The only thing that bothers me a bit is Cristina’s accent. She tweeted me the other day and she is the sweetest person ever and her English seems to be good. I hope she improves her accent and gives a memorable performance. Good Luck Moldova! (8/10) P.S. Someone teach that Ramadan to respect people… Read more »
timselvision, you know in rehearsals there going to “moldova” up the performance. they know how to change a quite ordinary song into something spectacular, but like you i bloody hate this song.
Wow, overrated much? XD It’s my second last, I barely can’t see why people would even like it, actually XD The video is nice though!
And it’s really a shame that Moldova had such a bad NF, despite the amount of songs. I always love Moldovean entries 🙁
the best way to describe my opinion on this, is that i have put £5 (€6?) on moldova to win every year since 2010 cos its the kind of enjoyable crap thats bound to eventually win…but it wasnt worth bothering this year. actually put the fiver on molly which is the 1st time ive gone for a uk act even though im english!!!
@Marcelo N.
Not only the “iiii’s” are mispronounced, but the “rrrrr’s” are too. The rrr’s are too harsh and too soft at times??? Her accent is not helping ether. But I kind of like the chorus. It’s not a bad song at all. Her performance is weak, I think.
And another thing: her stage presence has to improve dramatically until the semi!!! Watching her in the live performance on mute, you’d be convinced she sings one of those boring ‘schlagers’ in the 80s… Absolutely nothing to do with the actual song! No, no, no, no, no!!!!
Last year’s Aliona Moon’s ‘O Mie’ was my second favourite – I totally lived it 100%! The song, the voice, the performance, the staging (so dramatic and suitable to the song!) and the lyrics (superb! of course, you have to be Romanian or Moldovan to understand them. And I admired the fact that Moldova had the ‘courage’ to sing in Romanian, aomething that Romania hasn’t done in many many years). This year, well… Let me put it this way: Moldova is NOT my second favourite (my favourite being Spain). I like it but somehow it doesn’t make the same impact… Read more »
I agree with several people here. There’s something non-likeable in this song; not the voice, not the drama… I just can’t put my finger on it. Maybe it is the fact that her pronunciation is weak (attention: I’m always fighting those who criticise accents, but there is something about Cristina’s “iiiii” sounds always sharp that is actually distracting -mispronunciation is more serious than a noticeable “accent”). Maybe the lackluster (somewhat too pretentious and poorly executed/televised) staging in its national final. Dunno. Anyway, I also expect they will put on an interesting show in Copenhague, and we will see at the… Read more »
This is excellent. I’ve been waiting to see Moldova’s quirky staging with a dark song and boy did they found one.
I love the lyrics, the melody is deep, haunting and very riveting. Really hope she gets a hold of her English in May.
The song I’m most excited to see. It’s creeping into my top 10.
I miss the country profiles. Moldova’s profile was really good, and I want to see a Ukraine one in the future!
Do you know what I’ve noticed on this website unless it’s to do with Armenia or Azerbaijan you rarely hear from anyone from those countries, no malice intended just an obversation 🙂 it makes me think about polls etc in relation to these countries.. And before anyone says Ireland is doing well in the polls, the majority of Irish people couldn’t care less about the ESC yes they might watch it but they don’t follow it for months like a few of us
@ Robyn yes a memorable performance through showman ship despite the mediocrity of the actual song
BTW
My top 5 for anyone that’s interested are 😉
1 Sweden
2 Hungary
3 United Kingdom ( whom I will vote for from Ireland) go neighbours lol 😉 why not when other countries do it, though I will never forget the 1 for Ryan Dolan last year 🙁
4 Norway
5 I have two. Spain and Armenia
I’ll see how right I am very soon
But Gothenburg 2015 sounds good or Stockholm 🙂 though Budapest is a lovely city too 🙂
@ Darren I totally agree with you. Always get through due to acts
@emmanuel there is more to esc than acts, the song is most important and Moldova does trashy acts over quality, take last year a nice song with an OTT dress etc, how can one of the poorest countries in the council of Europe even afford these stage acts, corruption and promoting one self comes to mind, I’m sure human rights are just brilliant in Moldova just like Azerbaijan
moldova always have a gimmick on stage that makes the performance work, last year was a good example a lot of people wrought it off from qualifying and then after rehearsals there was talk of it being top 5, i will never rule out moldova until i see a rehearsal.
Have to agree with @RyanIreland, Moldova only ever send trash to Eurovision, but no matter what they send, they always manage to qualify. This will be in the final for sure, but it will be at the bottom of the table
Do you guys really sit and read all reviews??
And am I only one who scrolls down to see results ??
Leave these juries alone guys let them talk whatever they want .
And how come I do not remember any performance from Moldova ?? Some people say that they usually get to final .Hmmmmm however I do not remember them to be in final.Video clip is spooky ,which is cool .Song hmm I do not know ,but her voice is good .
I would give this song 4.5/10. It’s really below average although her voice is great.
As I’ve said before, please kick Ramadan out of your jury list. Can I be a jury instead?
I second Easpag, I *want* to like this one, it has everything I like in a song; a good voice, a dramatic performance, and an interesting mix of sounds… but there’s something missing and I don’t even know what is exactly. Just average in my opinion, not bad but not great, forgettable. However I’m expecting a spectacular staging in Copenhagen, hopefully that will enhance the song and will make me like it more.
i really don’t get this song. I’ve listened to it loads of time and i still just don’t understand it.
Great voice, awful song. It’s probably my least favorite Eurovision track since Turkey’s “Live It Up” in 2011.
I believe Ramadan wants to set fire to the plastic parts of Cristina’s dress, right?
@Ryanireland moldova have always earned their place in the final, maybe not for the best song, but they always put on a good show.
bunica bate toba? cool sax guy? spinning violinist? big hat guys?
eurovision would be much more boring without them and they are hardly helped by bloc voting, i mean apart from romania, they barely ever scratch any votes from russia or ukraine
The Belgian and Moldovan NFs were on the same night and now they are drawn together in the semis. I fear that Axel won’t quite hit the big notes and Christina will benefit in comparison.
I have no opinion about this one. Just ordinary . But it’s Moldova so like always is nearly guaranteed a place in the final, regardless of the trash they sometimes send 🙁
I want to like this song, Christina’s voice has the right sound for the song, and it does have a very dark feel, but it just lacks impact. It doesn’t leave an impression on me.
3.5/10
And Ramadan, cop on to yourself. The amount of 0’s you’re giving out is ridiculous. It’s impossible to take your opinion seriously when you give so many songs these ridiculously low scores.