Earlier today the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of musical unprofessionals — headed to Amsterdam for a good de-tox. We avoided the coffee shops and dark alleys of the city Centrum and went instead to La Fruteria, a juice bar near Dam Square. As we sipped on our orange-mango juice, we also listened to Trijntje Oosterhuis‘ sunny Eurovision 2015 song “Walk Along”. Did the music make us want to walk along with Miss Oosterhuis? Or was it more a matter of running for our earplugs? Read on to find out…
The Netherlands’ Eurovision 2015 song
Reviews: Trijntje Oosterhuis with ‘Walk Along’
Angus: ‘Walk Along’ might lack the punch necessary to win in Vienna but there’s still enough juice in the tank to clear the Semi-Final. The ‘way-ay-ay-ay’ hook is a real earworm and unlike most of the performers this year, Trijntje has experience and well-honed stagecraft on her side. Represent.
Score: 8/10
Bogdan: I had hoped, before the video was released, that they would revamp the track to give it at least a bit more flesh towards the end. Unfortunately, it was not to be. As it stands, the singalong hook of the “why-ay-ay” wears off quickly and risks being mocked by first time listeners. Moreover, in her live performances, Trijntje tends to smile all the time, which doesn’t match the lyrics. (Being friendzoned ain’t no reason to smile.) The bridge is weak and the song as a whole goes nowhere. Like the Netherlands itself, “Walk Along” is pretty, but flat.
Score: 7/10
Chris: Some of the initial gloss has worn off “Walk Along” now that it’s been out for so long, but I must admit that when I first heard it, I really fell in love with the song. It does not hold up to repeated listens — it’s far too repetitive — but at Eurovision, where the wider audience is only going to hear the “why-ay-ay-ay” hook on the night, they too could be caught at first listen. I still worry for the Netherlands, but this is a good song, if not on the level of the past two years.
Score: 7/10
Deban: A middle of the road effort that won’t attract much hate. By the same token, perhaps not powerful enough to drive the public to cast votes in its favour. However, Trijntje’s strength here is the song’s familiarity. As one of the first hand-picked entries for Vienna, “Walk Along” remains memorable and familiar. Ms Oosterhuis’ X factor ensures that this will sail through to the finals.
Score: 6/10
Max: Trijntje is the sort of woman I’d want to get drunk with and do a bit of karaoke with. She seems so full of life and this comes across in her song. It’s a song that I connect to, which is always a good thing, and the simplistic ‘why-y-y-y’ is a sing-along just waiting to happen. She’s got a lot of pressure on her, poor woman, due to the Netherlands past two successes and I hope she can deliver this bouncy number on the night. If so I won’t rule out another top ten placing.
Score: 8/10
Mikhail: The first time I heard this song I got an immediate boost of happy. It is so cheerful, joyful, catchy, and fun. For an hour I was running around my house singing “Why-ay-ay-ay” and I couldn’t stop. One note for Miss O: In your last live performance and video you stressed “slow motion” and it doesn’t fit at all! This song is active and it should be performed in this way, otherwise it will be extremely boring.
Score: 8/10
Our first thoughts on Trijntje (9 December 2014)
Skip to 14:27
Padraig: I’m torn. Traincha’s a soul and easy listening superstar, well capable of doing justice to the likes of Dusty Springfield or Karen Carpenter. But “Walk Along” is simply not meant for her. I could imagine someone like Meghan Trainor or Carly Rae Jepson having a massive hit with it. It’s lightweight, bubbly, fun, pop – their speciality. So why has it been given to Traincha? Sure she does a competent job, but I can’t help but feel that this is a missed opportunity for the Netherlands.
Score: 7.5/10
Robyn: This was one of my early favourites, but as the full 40 were revealed, it slowly slipped down my list. The song gets down to business quickly, and it lets the very experienced Trijntje show off her talents. But then it gets a little repetitive, though this might not actually be an issue for the majority of viewers who’ll be hearing it for the first time. I would like to see this in the final, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it didn’t make it.
Score: 6/10
William: I had written this song off in the fall, but on repeat listen it really is an earworm. There is nothing like this in the competition and, even facing a bloc of former Soviet Republics in her semi-final, Trijntje still stands a chance of getting through (especially if she brings that hunk of burning man meat from her music video). It melds vintage elements — think Melissa Ethridge or Tracey Chapman — with the why-ai-ai-ai of Shakira or a Disney animated film set in a jungle. Love all of the above.
Score: 7/10
William C: I’m sorry Trintije, but this has to be the most annoying song for me this year. I cannot stand the chorus at all — it’s as if something gets stuck in your throat and you make the same sound over and over again. However, there are not too many songs like this in 2015, so it has a chance of qualifying. But I hope for the life of me this stays in the semi-finals. After two great Dutch entries, I feel like this is a bit of a let down. Their qualifying streak should end. Period.
Score: 2.5/10
Twenty-nine jurors review each song, but we only have space for ten written reviews. The remaining 19 scores are listed below.
Anthony: 8.5/10
Denise: 7.5/10
Francheska: 6/10
Josh: 6.5/10
Judit: 6/10
Kristín: 6/10
Liam: 5/10
Luis: 7/10
Marek: 7/10
Mario: 4.5/10
Mike: 8/10
Patrick: 7/10
Ramadan: 6/10
Renske: 9/10
Rezo: 7.5/10
Sami: 2/10
Sinan: 9/10
Sopon: 4/10
Zach: 7/10
To reduce potential bias, the lowest and highest scores are dropped prior to calculating the average. We have removed a low of 2 and a high of 9.
Tune!
Top 10 for me starts here
Nice song; not as divisive as Birds – previous entry. She has star quality that demands your attention. 8/10
Thank God 2:00 min in and you are facing a miracle
Bring that man to Vienna and my ex will sign my divorce paper with a gun to his head!
Honey I am ready
Take me to church
#ThirdTimeLucky
After last year’s Dutch success I guess it would be a hard job to find something to get into the dizzy heights on the scoreboard.
Yes I remember why ay ay ay ay after just one listen and the tatooed man ( though not sure of his role) but not sure I remember much else.
I think the song will make the final but think the votes may
Walk away to another country this year.
I had higher hopes for the Dutch after last year and 2013; but something tells me they should have sent Sharon den Adel. I hope the stage performance can lift this song, because right now it doesn’t look good on my first scorecard.
And just like last year (Common Linnets) Netherlands will be the big surprise of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, Her performance will be very special and outstanding. Another top 3 position in the final for sure….
Winning song of Eurovision 2015.
Btw O’G3NE in 2016 for The Netherlands.
That song is indeed catchy, but I don’t think that’s positive. The fact that her why-y-y-y get stuck in my mind the whole freaking day actually makes me wanna cut my ears off…
i’m from the Netherlands and i don’t like this song. i’m just a fan of Malta with their vocal superstar Amber, who does sing without Autotune in the music video.
#TeamAmber, Malta has got the entire package, the voice and the looks
I wait for the live performance and stage presentation in Vienna!
I just have Some feeling…it will look very different from what we now see on the clip and her performance on The Voice. At the end…the total package counts.
I do think it will qualify, and I also believe it will do good in the final, I think it will end up in Top 10.
It is catchy, but that’s it. Repetitive…well all songs repeat the chorus twice, maybe they have more words than ‘WHY-Y-Y-Y-Y’…I generally ignore lyrics as long as they are not really moving or interesting. It can qualify if it’s not to the detriment of my favorites 🙂
Fatima – strangely enough, “Le Pays Bas” means low lands. “Netherlands” comes from the German “Nederland,” which means “lowland,” but “nether” in English does not mean “low” but “way-the-hell-and-gone.”
Daniel / Chris. What does “Le Pays Bas” mean in English ? Also, it doesn’t help that people from the country are called Dutch. And their singer has three names – Trisha, Traincha and Trijntje. All this confusion is going to turn off voters.
Also, why are so many people calling her Trisha?
Estoy empezando a cansarme de los argumentos, calificando algunas canciones de planas…una cancion te transmite,te emociona,te atrapa con su ritmo o te toca la fibra sensible con el mensaje de su letra.Ya cansa la formula de siempre,esa que dice que una cancion al final deve tener climax,lo siempre, y la originalidad,la sigularidad eso que hace que una cancion sera unica.pregunto?
@ Daniel
Yes, you are right. The proper name is “The Netherlands”. I’ve used in my post both versions, because in my country “Holland” is just common, in contrast to “The Netherlands”, which is used only in diplomacy. I will try to remember to use only the first version.
You guys were being too nice on the written reviews here… this is the most repetitive song of the year, beating even Iceland’s Unbroken. I expected something more interesting from Anouk, and they didn’t change a thing over the five or so months that they had to change it.
When it was first released I hated the song with a passion, I thought it was so dumb and was like WTF?? Anouk wrote this??? But I love Anouk! And I hate this! I don’t know what made me change my mind, but I like the song now, and there’s no denying Trijnje can sing. My biggest issue with it now, is having a grown ass woman talk about her “little crush”, it just seems a bit ridiculous to me, like it would fit a teenager better. I’m just hoping the same guy who gave the dutch points last year… Read more »
And if someone says “Holland” one more time…..AGGGGGHHHHH!!
Anouk can do better let’s put it that way. 5.5/10.
This song stands next to Israel’s song, because they both have okay verses, but chorus is unlistenable.
If done right, It could get a spot in the final ….. The qualifying position based on points would be 7-10th in the semi final, but if they do it too flat or too cheesy It would sink on the list (not last).
All the luck to The Netherlands, since I love their efforts in the past few years.
Still a Common Linette ……. AND PROUD !!!!!!!! And it was my absolutely favorite song from last year and in the past few years overall.
I have a feeling this will surprise many people, just like last year when almost everybody thought the Dutch entry would fail to qualify. This song is nice and very catchy, too catchy to ignore it and Trisha can sell this song. I do think she is charming, you can see and hear that she has a lot of experience, she’s a pro and im sure she will deliver, no doubt about that. Mark my words: this song will qualify easily! See you in the finals.
“To reduce potential bias, the lowest and highest scores are dropped prior to calculating the average. We have removed a low of 2 and a high of 9.”
This is going to be its problem on the scoreboard. I think it’s going to miss qualification but also incite “WHAT HAPPENED?” articles all across the Eurovisionverse.
Could EBU let her perform ‘Somebody Else’s Lover’ from her Total Touch’ days instead of this? Please?! Pretty please?!?!? No? Oh well, what’s next?
Annoying and repetitive.
0/10. Juries are ranking this far too high, and all the crap is high.
Of the current top 3 of the jury rankings, all of them are in by bottom 6 (the Netherlands, Lithuania and Israel). Ireland is the only one which is sorta high and that’s in the lower portion.
Step it up juries, these rankings are just poor.
She has a pleasant voice and the music in itself is quite catchy, but it sort of sounds unfinished, as if this was only the first draft or something…and the lyrics are just plain silly.
I like The Netherlands. It’s in my top ten overall but realistically, I think it’s a borderline qualifier
I think this is better than the Common Linnets, but I don’t think it will score as well given that the Common Linnets had the advantage of being an unusual entry amid a very weak year IMO.
I’m not sure what to think about Birds from 2013. I did have musical merits, but that year it was like a more depressing cousin of the far-superior Crisalide. But Birds was the one that qualified.
Anyhow, I think Walk Along is a reasonably enjoyable and agreeable song that will stand out from the competition this year and qualify for the final.
To the reviewer on the right, the lyrics to ‘Birds’ were not incredible. Birds wouldn’t ‘fall down the rooftops’, they’d fall FROM the rooftops.
As of 7 countries that are ranked so far, I only agree for one country’s ranking with the Wiwi Jury:
1. The Netherlands (+1)
2. Israel (+1)
3. Ireland (+2)
4. Lithuania (-3)
5. Denmark (+2)
6. Montenegro (=)
7. Romania (-3)
I still recon that this song has a potential, but only for the first half-minute. The refrain is just not serious enough. “Why why why why why” is annoying and I am not the only person who thinks that. Nonetheless, I will not take a break for a cup of tea during Holland’s performance, since I’m really curious how it will look. It is a paradox that in the year of so many good songs, which is the obvious consequence of last year’s Dutch success, the Netherlands are proposing Europe a not very ambitious song (moreover, written by a woman… Read more »
The thing about this song is it gets stuck in your mind because of “Way ya ya yaj, way ya ya yaj”, which is obviously the Ductch trademark this year in Vienna… I like the song, (it’s very catchy) but the Netherlands was much better in 2013. and 2014. I am happy because they woke up and it just proves that you cannot blame block voting for failures in the ESC… I believe the Netherlands will easily qualify, but it will not beat Calm after the storm which is probably one of the best songs I have ever ever ever… Read more »
Ugh I hate this song, it’s bland, cheesy and annoying… Pretty much Golden Boy but at last that one is a little enjoyable
2/10
I really hope it won’t qualify, I’m sorry :/
Catchy song but a younger singer would make the song even better. Trijntje should have opted for a bigger song.
Anyway, the running order does not help at all, performing after Belgium might be risky for the Netherlands. I want to see her qualifying but i worry a little bit to be honest. They need to work on Trijntje’s stage performance.
If it qualifies, i believe it will be placed around 15th-19th
This will qualify easily for the final. Mark my words. It’s catchy, happy and I bet the performance and her voice will be spot on!
Three times in a row qualification.
I think it won’t qualify… Hopefully that will open the eyes of our broadcaster so that we send something better in 2016 cough within themptation cough
It’s definitely catchy but I think Netherlands will struggle to get through this year tbh…
I think it’s a very nice song with a positive vibe, but it’s a bit repetitive. It easily qualifies for me, but I’m not sure of the actual outcome. I feel like any song from the first semi-final could qualify!
She has a bad draw between favourites Belgium and Finland (not necessarily a fave but is going to go through) so the performance needs to be amazing. I personally find the song middle of the road and I think it’s chances of qualifying is very low. The song gets way too annoying after 2 minutes and it’s somewhat too repetitive. Shes 9th in my list of qualifiers but I see her slipping down. 5/10
I think her lack of charisma in her live performance (which is sth different than singing ability) may be even more lethal for her chances than the repetitiviness of the song.
Upbeat but overrated! I don’t see it in the finals but wouldn’t be surprised if it does.
I wonder how many points Belgium will give!
We’re staying in the semis again </3
mee: 7,5/10
this song is horrible.
I can see them pulling a Turkey 2010-2011, getting 2nd place in 2010 (like The Common Linnets last year) and not qualifying in 2011, just saying…
Not a fan of this one tbh. It’s boring and repetitive, although Trijntje is a good performer live. Even though I don’t really like it, I see it qualifying simply because the first semi-final is so much weaker than the second this year.
4.5/10
I agree with most things said: it’s good but far from great, and should get stuck in the middle of the way. If they’re lucky enough to clear SF, I don’t see them ranking any better than 15th to 20th in the final (in my personal ranking, Trijtje ranks 8th in the SF and 20th in the final).
However, I’m puzzled about the score: Trijntje gets 6.65 and Lithuania got 7… ?!
6,5
It is not what I hoped it was going to be. I hope we sent OG3NE next year.
But it is very happy, the melody is, the text is not.