Earlier today, the Wiwi Jury – our in-house panel of music unprofessionals, gathered in Valletta to discuss the contestants participating in Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2016 (MESC), the national selection for Malta. Today we look at Maxine Pace with her entry “Young Love”. Do we find Maxine’s young love story charming, or does it make us feel a little sick? Read on to find out…
MAXINE PACE – “YOUNG LOVE”
“YOUNG LOVE” REVIEWS
Cristian: “Young Love” is delicious, catchy and fresh. It follows a recognizable pattern — contemporary pop music is full of these songs with sounds poised between the ’50s and ’60s. Well, it is clearly inspired by Meghan Trainor’s songs so probably not so original. But actually, how many original songs do we have at the Eurovision and, above all, in this Maltese national final?
Score: 8/10
Deban: This vintage throwback has sass! Maxine Pace juxtaposes the song’s structure with a voice that spells youth. It’s harsh to dismiss Maxine for copying Meghan Trainor in a world where Adele plagiarises takes inspiration from Amy Winehouse’s music career. This is a good effort, thus, it should be judged in its own right.
Score: 7/10
Josh: Dear Future Husband, I can see that those Lips Are Movin’, but I know that you’re All About That Bass. Seriously, 0 points for originality. Maxine has a lovely voice and it suits that style of 1950s-esque pop but I’m not a fan of Meghan Trainor’s music, nor am I a fan of “Young Love”.
Score: 5/10
Renske: The reason why I love this song is that’s so different from all entries in MESC this year and the average Eurovision entry in general. I love the Caro Emerald vs. Meghan Trainor vibes in the song. It gives me a lot of good energy, it’s so careless and happy! I hope Maxine can surprise us all with her performance and even win.
Score: 8.5/10
Robyn: Coming amid all the dramatic anthems at MESC, this is a breath of fresh air. It looks like songwriters Muxu and Elton Zarb are going through a 1960s soul phase at the moment, but it worked out well for them with Destiny’s “Not My Soul”, so why not continue in that style? And Maxine nails it, bringing sass, joy and positivity. While the song might be written in a style of 50 years ago, Maxine brings a contemporary flavour.
Score: 8/10
William: This is cute, but feels more Junior Eurovision than MESC 2016. I’m not a fan of Grease or 1950s throwbacks, so just can’t access this on any level. Maxine is a competent performer who definitely sets the pace. Sadly I’m not ready to follow.
Score: 4/10
In the Maltese Wiwi Jury we have 18 jurors but only have room for six reviews. The remaining 12 scores are below.
Anthony: 8/10
Antranig: 9.5/10
Bernardo: 6/10
Denise: 8/10
George: 8.5/10
Luis: 8/10
Maria: 6/10
Mario: 8/10
Patrick: 8.5/10
Ramadan: 3/10
Rezo: 8/10
Zakaria: 6/10
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 3 and a high of 9.5.
Far and away this was the best song and the only women’s song where the singer didn’t sound ridiculously ersatz-emotional. ESC has long ago been hijacked by a bunch of . . . I can’t say it and remain PC.
But the whole shtick of Meghan Trainor is that she’s taking an old style and making songs in 2014-2016 that sound old but peppy. Christina Aguilera also did similar with Candyman back in 2006, but didn’t make whole albums out of it. Why we’re making a big deal out of similar styles here, I just don’t know. Y’all should be thankful that it’s no longer the days when Denmark could get away with sounding reeeeally similar to some pop standard you might not have been able to put your finger on (hello 2008/2010/2011/2012…). The style isn’t original but again, neither… Read more »
Dislike the word “copy”? Sorry, but there’s no other word that fits. Y’all must be young whippersnappers, because if you weren’t, you’d know that this is not 1960s style. She’d be laughed off the stage in the 1960s with all those yum yums and luh-luh-luhs. That’s pure unadulterated MEGHAN TRAINOR, y’all. In fact, based on what happened in the “Blurred Lines” case, I think the verses may be close enough to “All About That Bass” to get Maxine’s songsmiths in trouble, depending on how feisty Meghan’s lawyers are. It would be a weak case, but so was “Blurred Lines”. It’s… Read more »
For me it sounds like a Christmas song. 😀
Not a fan tbh. It’s not good cheese but I’m sure she’ll return several times to MESC
Nice song , it flows away easily and is really enjoyable. It’s not my favorite, but it’s not a bad choice for Malta. It stands out in a way. 7.5/10 and my 6th.
Is Megan Trainor the one who is singing? Or is the song a discard from her last album? Come on, a bit of originality!
Unfortunately, I have to agree with William, that this song reminds me of something we might expect at JESC. Her song was the first one I evaluated, and it ended up #17 on my card.
love this
Oh, finally I heard something has the ‘winning material’!
Guys, this song is great!
This type of song and performance can do very well in ESC.