Finland: Wiwi Jury reviews Lieminen with “Pehmeiden arvojen vaalijat”

Ahead the third and final heat of Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2016, Finland’s Eurovision 2016 selection, the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of musical unprofessionals — listened to and reviewed all six of the songs. It’s hard work, but somebody has to do it! First up is Lieminen with “Pehmeiden arvojen vaalijat”, which literally translates as “Guardian of soft values.” Did he make us want to stand up for kindness and love? Read on to find out…

Lieminen – “Pehmeiden arvojen vaalijat”

“Pehmeiden arvojen vaalijat” reviews

William: It’s reviving disco and the 80’s all in one go — and I’m just not feeling it. It sounds like something that would be played in a British mobile phone commercial that strives to create a party vibe. Sadly commercials are filled with actors — and this party just doesn’t feel real to me. It’s too boring and subdued.

Score: 4/10

Edd: I hate to say it, but I really quite like this. I think a good 70% of my enjoyment comes from the cool music video, but it is an interesting song too. An authentic disco production which really works with the Finnish language. That said, I would prefer a bit more variation in the production — peaks and valleys please.

Score: 6.5/10

Sam: Lieminen makes it obvious that he’s trying for that ’80s/Daft Punk sound, and that intention is the difference between this entry being considered good instead of cringe-worthy. The monotonous Finnish language usage adds a cool, chilled-out vibe to the song. It isn’t a serious Eurovision contender by any means, but it’s nice enough to listen to.

Score: 8/10

Luis: This one’s cool! There’s a slight Daft Punk feel in it, and that’s giving me life. Amongst the field of boring songs Finland has this year, this one stands out. I can picture this in an indie night club in any part of Europe even though no one can understand what he sings. In fact, the Finnish language makes it distinctive from other attempts in this genre.

Score: 7/10

Robyn: 2014 saw a disco revival hit the pop charts, and I’m not quite ready for it to go away, especially when it’s full of that hearty Nile Rodgers-style disco guitar. There’s a lot of potential here. Lieminen’s video shows a flare for the visual (Daft Punk, Sebastien Tellier – and is that Måns’ grown-up stick figure grooving along?) so there’s hope that this will translate to the stage. There are better songs in UMK, but I’d like to see this in the final.

Score: 7/10

Kristin: By now, y’all should know how much I value quirky songs. This is no exception. A solid synthetic 80’s beat, performed by a good looking guy who doesn’t seem to take himself too seriously. All the good things. After the tragedy of “Shampanjataivas” not making it to the finals, I’m begging my lovely neighbours to give Lieminen a chance! Everybody needs to loosen up every now and then, and “Pehmeiden arvojen vaalijat” is perfect for that.

Score: 8/10

Antranig: This sounded very cheap on first listen and that feeling has not gone away since. It’s certainly nice to have different types of music competing in UMK and this could potentially qualify because of a really weak semifinal but for me it is instantly forgettable. Nice background music but that’s all it will ever be.

Score: 2/10

Max: This has tones of Daft Punk and The Chemical Brothers but sounds fresh and perfectly suited to Finnish, to the extent that I was singing along within a few listens even though I don’t know a word of the language. You can’t help but move when the chorus hits, and the distinctive production sets it apart from the rest. This has to be worthy of the UMK final, but I worry that it lacks mainstream appeal.

Score: 7/10

In the Finnish Wiwi Jury we have 16 jurors but only have room for 8 reviews. The remaining eight scores are below!

Maria: 6/10

Josh: 7/10

Ramadan: 6/10

Denise: 3/10

Bernardo: 3.5/10

Dayana: 3.5/10

Cristian: 8/10

Mario: 3.5/10

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 8.

WIWI JURY SCORE: 5.71/10

FOR OUR LIST OF FINLAND 2016 RANKINGS, CLICK HERE

FOR MORE FINLAND EUROVISION NEWS, CLICK HERE

Photo: YLE