During our escapades to Norway, the Wiwi Jury – our in-house team of music unprofessionals – decided to put on our high heels and do a little clubbing. We already hit Erlend Bratland’s “Thunderstruck,” but we wanted to take a cool turn and listened to Karin Park’s “Human Beings”. What did we think? Read on to find out!
“Human Beings” – Karin Park
https://youtu.be/5nVzqRNJ2z4
Sopon: I do hear the similarities with this and “I Feed You My Love”, with the same songwriter and the same haunting tone. But I feel that Margaret’s more minimal production was more pleasant than the overwhelming feeling of “Human Beings”, and I’m not feeling that this is the winner. Nice song, nonetheless.
Score: 7/10
James: It’s become a sure favourite, and I can’t help but feel that it’s going to be the biggest favourite with the jury. Nevertheless, I can’t say much for it in terms of how much I like it. It’s incredibly modern, incredibly radio friendly and has quite a story behind it. But the appeal really comes from Karin’s fame. Would it stand out itself without Karin behind it?
Score: 5/10
Colin: This song just proves that she can write really great music. “I Feed You My Love” was a great jam of 2013, and this one brings something new to the table like that song did. It would surprise me if this does not as good or better than Margaret Berger.
Score: 9/10
Angus: Electro Ice Queen REALNESS. “Human Beings” is all kinds of mesmerising. Unfortunately in a choice between Linnea Dale and Carl Espen last year, Norway went dreary ballad, so the strength of Karin’s composition might not be enough. It totally is for me though.
Score: 10/10
Anthony: After remembering that Karin was one of the co-writers of Margaret Berger’s 2013 Eurovision entry “I Feed You My Love”, I was like a kid at Christmas waiting for the full version. Co-written by herself alongside Guy Chambers, Karin has once again channelled her inner electronic pop vibes and “Human Beings” is simply stunning. It’ll be a golden opportunity wasted if she doesn’t win.
Score: 9/10
Francheska: Karin Park is like Norway’s queen of having je ne se quois (not grammatically correct, I know, but live with me). It’s pleasant, and I like it. If Karin continues to hypnotize us with her ethereal vocals and electronica, I predict that she will do well. Yet, I’m afraid that the main Eurovision crowd will find her boring, which prevents me from scoring this higher.
Score: 6/10
Josh: The song is great and the message behind the song is incredible, but the preview offered so much to look forward to, and now it seems kind of flat. We are hearing so much electro-pop everywhere right now, and although I love the genre, there is nothing about the song that really makes it memorable for me.
Score: 7/10
Deban: Laidback chilled electronic sample ushers in a vocal that oozes sophistication. The strength of “Human Beings” relies very heavily on staging. The song alone may struggle to cut it on stage in a field of adrenalin packed entries. Still, this is a cut above many others.
Score: 7/10
Max: You can tell Karin helped to write “I Feed You My Love” for Norway in 2013 within the first 30 seconds of this song. The synths, drums, haunting lyrics, and tone of the song make it a ready-made package for Eurovision. If sent to Vienna, I don’t think it’d be hard to at least match Margaret’s fourth place. There are hints of Kate Bush, Charli XCX and Margaret herself in this song and it works flawlessly.
Score: 9/10
Robyn: So, the writer of “I Feed You My Love” teams up with Robbie Williams’ long-term songwriting partner, Guy Chambers. Sounds like a recipe for epic pop – and indeed it is. The theme – that we’re all human – is a bit of a Eurovision cliche, but the edgy production puts an original spin on it, matched with a solid tune and a memorable chorus.
Score: 9/10
Patrick: What a strong techno-pop song, amazingly composed, a great voice from Karin – what a masterpiece! One of the stronger ones this year and probably one with the best chances. It’s really like Margaret Berger’s “I Feed You My Love” but different in its own way. With a dark mysterious staging, this could work amazingly well in Vienna!
Score: 9/10
Ramadan: I loved “I Feed You My Love” and I love “Human Beings”. I was literally shaking once I heard it for the very first time. Easily the best song from the 2015 national season. I cannot stop playing it, it always gives me goose bumps. It’s so DAMN catchy and I’m massive fan of electro-pop. The lyrics are really touching and it relates a lot with my life. If Norway picks Karin, I can see Norway doing well in Vienna.
Score: 10/10
Renske: This is what I want to hear. This song is totally Eurovision 2015. It’s mysterious, modern and still a bit of a slow song. It’s that one-in-a-thousand song that proves the conception that Eurovision is all about a circus act. Hope that this one will be building bridges.
Score: 10/10
The highest and lowest scores are removed before calculating the final score. We have dropped a low of 5 and a high of 10.
The Wiwi Jury Verdict: 8.36/10
I like her more than Margaret, and I love Margaret, but I thought her vocals were lacking in Malmo. Karin has her own distinct image and her voice is like nothing I’ve ever heard before (although Human Beings doesn’t demonstrate it very well).
The the song is exceptional. My 2nd favourite for Vienna.
This song is quite simply amazing and would do Norway proud! I prefer it to the favourite tbh. Probably my 3rd favourite in the line-up overall.
Actually, Karin has her own dark charsima. And this is reflected in her music. I wouldn’t mind if the monsters won MGP, but I’ll be rooting for “Human Beings” which has an assured place at the top of the scoreboard if Norway decides to send it to Vienna. This song is what this year really needs.
It screams “I feed you my love” which is a shame because Margaret was basically flawless in 2013.
Don’t do a repeat Norway, don’t do it.
My second favorite after a monster like me, any of these songs could do pretty well in Vienna and I don’t care which of these go trough
When it comes to songwriting, Karin Park is in a league of her own, and this song proves it once again.
My only concern is the stage rendition: Karin is no Margaret Berger.
She lacks Margaret’s charisma, her charming voice, her stage presence, her perfect voluptuous body.
In a perfect world, we’d have every year Karin Park writing songs and Margaret Berger delivering them on stage. And every year they would win the Melodi Grand Prix. And every year they would win the Eurovision too.
But, in the real world, Karin’s victory with “Human beings” is the next best thing.