Wiwi Jury: Spain’s Barei with “Say Yay”

Earlier today, the Wiwi Jury— our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — headed for Barcelona. While we enjoyed a tasty crema catalana after walking down les Rambles, we reviewed the contestants of Objetivo Eurovisión, Spain‘s National Final for Stockholm. Today, we are commenting on Barei‘s “Say Yay!“. Did we want to scream “Yay!” with Barei or were we left yawning? Read on to find out…

BAREI – “SAY YAY!”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aCTdNHCTAk

“SAY YAY” REVIEWS

Josh: How good is this, though? “Say Yay” makes me want to say YAAASSSS, hunty! Barei has a powerful vocal that has that Sia-esque crackly-ness that is just sublime. The song is catchy, memorable and danceable. Perhaps the best song that Spain has put out in a national final in years. SO. GOOD.

Score: 10/10

Angus: Say yay? Imma pass and say nay. This is like a Hi-NRG aerobics song – great to work out to, but you’d never listen to it outside the studio and once the music is over you hit the deck exhausted. This is just a little overboard. Knowing when to cut back can be a virtue.

Score: 4/10

Cristian: I said the same for “Wow” but also “Say Yay” would be quite a shock entry for Spain. But the difference is that Barei’s entry has the requirements to do well. It’s a nice enjoyable contemporary song (it reminds me of “Wings” by Delta Goodrem in some parts) with that touch of vintage it needs. I like it.

Score: 8/10

Diego: Ever since this song came out, I can’t stop saying yay all over the place! What an amazing combination of Barei’s powerful vocals with an Afro-American rhythm put together with the beats of the electro-pop that’s ruling the charts worldwide at the moment. Best option among them all by a landslide, and a great chance to move on from Spanish pop divas and cliched Latino-Mediterranean entries. SAY YAY for 2016, y’all!

Score: 10/10

Edd: She has an amazing pop voice and a fun, interesting song – I can already taste the confetti! That said, I found completely zoned out in the second chorus – the song just needs a tad more variation in the density of the production and could do with moving a bit quicker. But it’s so refreshing to hear something good from Spain that isn’t Swedish electropop or Latin pop.

Score: 8.5/10

Luis: I really want to “say yay”, but something is preventing me from doing it. Barei and her song sound great, her sound is very current and the detail of the background lyrics in Spanish is superb (take that, TVE!). Still, I find this a bit manufactured, and I struggle to connect with the message of it. As much as I don’t know how this can affect (or hopefully not) the public vote, I’m worried that the hype about Barei might lead to a big disappointment when it’s shown to the grand audience.

Score: 8.5/10

Max: An adrenaline-rush of lush pop is exactly what Spain needs after Edurne’s slightly sluggish entry, and “Say Yay” delivers on nearly all counts. Catchy, vibrant and bursting with energy, this is a hit waiting to be set free. Having said that, a couple of minor drawbacks remain. It lacks variation, which makes it easy for the listener to drift off during the verses before being jolted back into consciousness by the fab chorus. Moreover, the production could do with a tidy-up; it just sounds a bit too busy. But these two qualms would be solved easily by a sneaky revamp before Stockholm, hence why Spain better not say nay to this diamond in the rough.

Score: 8/10

Robyn: “Say Yay” is a great big pop banger, but it’s relentlessly loud and full. As the song progresses, I find myself wanting a little quiet moment, a restrained middle-eight, just to take a breath. But no, the pounding beat continues, the “say yay yay yay” repeats and when it ends there’s a feeling of relief that it’s over, not euphoria from a great song.

Score: 6/10

Sami: This is by far the most modern song in Spain’s final this year. It’s catchy and very radio-friendly, but could also fit to the Euroclub. The chorus is slighty annoying, but it makes the song just more memorable. With the right staging and good live vocals, she might be able to challenge the big favourites María and Xuso.

Score: 8/10

William: Turning away from broken mirrors and diving into her own struggles, Barei gives perseverance rhythm with this uplifting dance number. Working around RTVE’s Spanish-language rule, she has carefully hidden Spanish in the backing while serving up English-language lyrics that could motivate the most down-trodden soul. Her vocals carry passion and power and, supported by ample bangs and clangs, make me say yay while pumping my fist and shaking my tail. A strong and deserving contender for Stockholm.

Score: 9/10

In the Spanish Wiwi Jury we have 22 jurors, but only have room for 10 reviews. The remaining 12 scores are below!

Antranig: 8/10

Bernardo: 9/10

Bogdan: 6/10

Deban: 5/10

Denise: 10/10

Judit: 8/10

Mario: 5.5/10

Mikhail: 8.5/10

Patrick: 7/10

Rezo: 10/10

Sinan: 9.5/10

Zakaria: 9/10

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 4 and a high of 10.

Wiwi Jury average score: 8.08

FOR OUR LIST OF SPAIN 2016 RANKINGS, CLICK HERE

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