Earlier today, the Wiwi Jury – our in-house panel of music unprofessionals, gathered in Ghent to discuss the contestants participating in Eurosong 2016, the national selection for Belgium. Today we look at Tom Frantzis with his entry “I’m Not Lost”. Did Tom’s entry get us on the right path, or were were left asking for directions? Read on to find out…
Tom Frantzis –Â “I’m Not Lost”
“I’m Not Lost” reviews
Antranig:Â âI’m Not Lostâ does absolutely nothing for me lyrically â it’s playing it way too safe and it’s very predictable. However, the chorus is extraordinarily catchy and this is certainly a contender to win the ticket to Stockholm. Even though it is catchy, I don’t think the song showcases the best of Tom’s vocals the way that his take on âRhythm Insideâ did.
Score: 5/10
Deban:Â I wish Tom didn’t giggle. His breathy voice was creating ripples in me until he turned his stage performance into a high-school talent disco. “I’m Not Lost” is perhaps the best song and vocals in this year’s Belgian selection. However, this act also requires the most stage coaching- it’s not a toothpaste commercial!
Score: 7/10
Edd: This is a seriously good song. Judging by the success of artists like Hozier and Sheppard, I would even say this could win Eurovision. However, he desperately needs to swap the preppy Oscar Zia look for an authentic indie-folk look â swap the mechanic for organic. A bit of banjo wouldnât go unnoticed either. If this doesnât win, Belgium is making a massive mistakeâŚ
Score: 9/10
Josh: The obvious stand-out in the Belgian national final, Tom Frantzis is giving us a more subdued rock sound which could absolutely dominate the charts globally. “I’m Not Lost” is a tad repetitive for me and it doesn’t build up to where I want it to build. If Tom could work on his stage presence a little more, that could elevate the song into something a bit bigger. But overall the song is great and I’m confident this will do well.
Score: 8/10
Renske:Â Potential radio hit? Yes. Eurovision winner? No. Tom delivers a really good power pop song and has a strong voice. The only problem is that Tom lacks a lot of stage experience. During his Eurosong performance, he forgot that the public in the audience doesn’t matter and that it is about the people at home. I hope Tom can surprise is us with a way better performance Sunday, because that’s what he deserves.
Score: 7/10
Robyn: Tom has a surprisingly amazing voice â soulful and expressive and perfectly suited to the song, a decent modern folk-pop number. But it’s seriously let down by his nervous stage presence. This is exactly the sort of thing that kills inexperienced performers who can’t handle the giant ESC arena experience. He needs to fully embody the emotion of the song, giving us confidence and attitude, and not be distracted by the audience.
Score: 6/10
William:Â Soft to loud, vulnerable to strong, Tom plays the extremes but fills the gaps beautifully. He sings with sincerity and soul, and the impeccable production helps him tug on heartsrings and push buttons at just the right time. His leg ticks, giggles and big smiles seem counter to the frailty and insecurity the song stems from. But no matter: Tom’s joyous delivery is infectious and helps turn a pop entry into an anthem of perseverance.
Score: 9/10
In the Belgian Wiwi Jury we have 18 jurors but only have room for seven reviews. The remaining 11 scores are below.
Bernardo:Â 8/10
Cristian: 7/10
Denise:Â 7.5/10
Francheska:Â 8.5/10
Luis:Â 6/10
Maria: 5/10
Mario: 9.5/10
Mikhail:Â 6/10
Ramadan:Â 9/10
Sinan: 10/10
William C: 8/10
The highest and lowest scores are dropped prior to calculating the average score. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 5 and a high of 10.
Just watched his performance.
I think this song would do really, really well in ESC. It’s subtle and chill, with a chorus just familiar enough to appeal to everyone, but an amazingly catchy guitar line that reminds me of the feel of some very modern song I can’t name, possibly by Tycho.
It’s a pleasant song if rather generic sounding and bland but I can see that it could polish up nicely. In it’s current format I can’t see it setting the world on fire to be honest, and frankly Tom looks to be embarrassed to be on the stage. He has zero star potential which doesn’t instil confidence. Sorry to sound negative as I like it well enough.
Belgium is great at improving its own performances, folks. Let’s not forget that. It happened with Rhythm Inside (whose live performance didn’t look good initially) and with the most obvious example of Roberto Bellarosa and Love Kills.
Tom is a good choice but it needs some serious direction. It’s too casual, especially considering that he might have some serious competition in the Mans-a-like section.
two points above all the rest? huh
it’s such an average song though
not as bad as sunlight but still there’s nothing hooking you into it
nobody’s going to have Belgium or Ireland in their top 10s come May
@bogtrotter
Like I said, apparently the international commentators quite overwhelmingly vote for Laura. Except for our Dutch Cornald Maas, he’s in favor of Tom (and rightly so).
It’s not just Flemish teenage girls who like Laura.
While some say that this is not “unique” or “special”, what other songs in the Belgian Eurosong demonstrate that? The only ones really are Amaryllis (that would be a laughable disaster) and Astrid (but some view her song dull). So really, this is actually the best choice for Belgium, if it is average or not.
Aline hou aub u mond!
Ros
Ofcourse he has to work on his performance, but I hope Belgium will be smart and vote for him… He is the best by far ????
The best song and the best chance for us to survive the semi finals. Toms stage performance can be better though and I hope he blows us all away tomorrow. However, we always manage to send the wrong song and I have a very bad feeling this year isn’t going to be any different.
I already know it’s not going to happen, but it’s a bit baffling to me that Belgium isn’t going to choose this song. The overall score from your jury for this song is so much higher than the other songs. And, more importantly, this is being received far more positively by all Eurovision fans (that is to say, no one HATES it). Again, the overall consensus internationally for people who don’t know ANY of these artists is that we should send Tom, but in Belgium we’re swayed by the artist we kind-of know and has lots of teenage girl fans.… Read more »
He hope Belgium choose him!!! He is the best of the national final!!
I don’t care what anyone if this wins it will do VERY well at ESC. I have shown all my non-ESC obsessed friends this song and all of them love it! With the right staging I could see this easily reaching Top 5!
This is a good song, really love the intro and the drums. I think his vocal could have been lifted a bit more at the end of the second verse just to give more oomph, but still it can establish Eurovision as a place for good music.
I honestly think this wouldn’t qualify for the final but I think it’s Belgium’s best this year. pleasent but completely forgettable it has nothing about it. Sometimes that’s not a bad thing but I can’t see this doing well with the televote or the jury.
Also for staging, I hope they go for the Tom Dice/Common Linnets route. Simple, yet classy. I don’t want any fancy moves from him. I want simplicity that really gives the song an authentic feel
As a Belgian I have to say that I know we won’t win Eurovision with any of our songs. Not to be a pessimist, but I just don’t think it’s ever in the cards for us. “Rythm Inside” was infinitely better than any of our options and we had an amazing year last year. I don’t think most Belgians are aiming to win at this point, most of us are aiming for a top 10 or even top 5 spot. Tom Frantzis is the only chance we have to bring a song to the Eurovision stage that will let us… Read more »
A Belgian newspaper called 20 Eurovision commentators in Europe and asked which song they prefer. 13 of them picked Laura, 4 chose Tom…
Can’t they make a deal and have Laura sing Tom’s song in Stockholm? Best of both worlds. A good performer and a good song.
He has the best song in Eurosong, BY A MILE. Can this win Eurovision? I don’t think so. Can this qualify for the final? Yes, I think he has his chances. He should work on his stage presence, on the staging and maybe revamp the song a little bit. I’m sure he’ll manage a good placing if he does that.
Right from the beginning I ‘ve got no special feeling/connection with Tom. He has a good song but his stage presence is ridiculous: that move with his leg, the stupid laugh …Anyhow, he can work on that. But the live version is so much weaker than studio version. It’s a naah
Idk, this is not special in anyway. However, I wouldn’t mind if he won. Laura has the whole package for me and a FAR catchier song.
It’s the best choice they could make!
Greetz
Aline De Domme Trien die alles beter weet, en beroeps doet
Lol at the reviewer that said this could win Eurovision. What an asinine statement.
My favorite <3 Tom is the best (i think) of the 5 songs… But everyone here in Belgium wants that girl with a weak voice and song:Laura đ I give this song a: 8.5/10 how more i listen to it – how more i like it đ
Nice song, weak performance. Still the best card for Belgium…