This week the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — met up and rated the six songs of the first heat of Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) 2016, Finland’s selection for Eurovision 2016. The last — but not least — entry to be reviewed is Pää-Äijät with “Shamppanjataivas” (“Champagne Heaven”). Did we want to make it rain or did we find this champagne too bitter? Read on to find out!
PÄÄ-ÄIJÄT – “SHAMPPANJATAIVAS”
Reviews:
Edd: Now this is was Eurovision is all about! If they put in a catchy instrumental hook just to make it a tad more memorable (take advice from Epic Sax Guy) then this has the potential to be a Finnish “Gangnam Style”. Certainly here in the UK, 90% of viewers watch Eurovision just for a bit of wacky fun – something that was completely missing from last year’s final. I think that this has a market, and if the performance is as big as the song, this could go top 10.
Score: 9.5/10
William: Unshaven, dreadlocked and more likely to roast a pig than snack on kale, this duo mix rap, dance and pop to surprisingly good effect in “Champagne Heaven”. It has a real Staysman & Lazz vibe — silly, somewhat tacky, yet incredibly catchy and endearing. In a lacklustre selection this stands out for its honesty and humour. Now let’s dance!
Score: 9/10
Sam: As opposed to Stella Christine, Pää-Äijät has taken on tons of risk with “Shamppanjataivas”. It has paid off marvellously. The song is tons of fun, catchy as hell, and shows that generic is not always the way to go. I only hope that these two men have the energy to pull off the song live, or we may see Twin Twin happen all over again.
Score: 9/10
Luis: I’d happily volunteer to write the complicated title “Pää-Äijät – Shamppanjataivas” this season if Finland guarantees me this will be in Stockholm. I’m loving it! This is fun, catchy, entertaining and very much memorable, even (or specifically) for drunk viewers on the night on the final. Some of my colleagues point out that it’s like Staysmann & Lazz, but I see them a bit more similar to Ylvis. In any case, I loved them both, and now I’m loving Pää-Äijät (or however you write that…)
Score: 9/10
Sinan: In verses it sounds like Psy’s “Gangnam Style”. It’s cool song — everyone can dance to it. And I’m loving these Lady Gaga goggles!
Score: 7/10
Robyn: Sometimes it’s just good to have an act who has come along to have a good time. These hairy dudes are parodying ’00s bling culture but have thoughtfully provided a better, more fun alternative. It’s good to have acts like in in a national final especially when — like Staysman & Lazz in Norway’s Melodi Grand Prix last year — they provide some serious competition to the divas in lovely gowns.
Score: 7/10
Kristin: Now THIS was fun! If there’s ever been a couple of participants that I would want to go partying with, its those two! “Shamppanjataivas” isn’t trying to be anything but joy. It’s just dance, party and good mood all the way. And I like it. I like it a lot.
Score: 9/10
Antranig: This is a song that is sure to get everyone up and dancing. Unfortunately for these boys, Eini does an upbeat dance number much better than them, meaning that this song doesn’t have much to offer compared to anything else in its semi.
Score: 6.5/10
Max: This is migraine inducing stuff: tuneless, repetitive and gimmicky. It is catchy,but why you would want monotone shouting stuck in your head is far beyond me. Stay well away.
Score: 2/10
In the Finnish Wiwi Jury we have 17 jurors but only have room for 9 reviews. The remaining eight scores are below!
Maria: 5.5/10
Josh: 6/10
Ramadan: 5/10
Denise: 2/10
Bernardo: 5/10
Dayana: 7/10
Cristian: 5/10
Mario: 2.5/10
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 2 and a high of 9.5.
WIWI JURY SCORE: 6.3/10
FOR OUR LIST OF FINLAND 2016 RANKINGS, CLICK HERE
FOR MORE FINLAND EUROVISION NEWS, CLICK HERE
Photo: YLE
Another lame excuse for people to run away from the so called “boring ballads” … but wanting this load fo trash to represent Finland? Do you want to poke fun at the country with this bs? People we’re no longer 10 years old … get a grip!
ew
this is above Clemso? why?
plz win
2/10
Their voices annoy me a bit. The song is an ordinary pop song, which is trying to be dun, but it fails. It’s also a bit gimmicky.
Eugene, don’t be so mean.
I like it. I also agree with Edd. 🙂
Imagine if they won the UMK. People might not even wanna buy it, unfortunately.
People forgot the fun part of Eurovision.
What happened to silly, catchy songs in the contest? What happened to the eurocheese we know and love?
Of course, that only sometimes translates to votes in ESC.
I feel happy when listening to this song. It is fun, energetic and it will probably go along with a funny performance. It is something I would like to see in UMK finals.
Whilst it may not be everyone’s cup of tea I was instantly hooked on this song. Catchy, and will probably be a lot of fun onstage. It probably won’t win – Finland have a good selection to choose from this year – but it’s one of my favourites. Team Shamppan!
I agree with Denise 2/10
This song is exactly the reason why Eurovision is called crap by a lot of people. It might be chosen by Finland, but it will definitely be out of my top 30. It’s fun, but they have so much beyter in UMK.