Last night, the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — gathered in Reus, in Catalonia, Spain. With a glass of cava on one hand, and after a delicious crema catalana, we reviewed Maika‘s song for Objetivo Eurovisión 2017, “Momento crítico”. Did we want to live the moment with her or were our ears left in a critical condition?
Maika – “Momento Crítico”
https://youtu.be/SHm6EVvESLk
About Maika
Gravelly-voiced rock singer Maika may be familiar from her song “The Reason”, which she sang last year in Switzerland’s pre-selection. She previously competed on The Voice of Spain and another talent show called Levántate All Stars, though her solo career hasn’t really taken flight in Spain.
Wiwi Jury reviews “Momento crítico”
Josh: I applaud Maika’s entry for being original and standing out from the rest of the stereotypical Spanish music we keep hearing year after year. “Momento Critico” stands alone as a grungy rock entry, combined with Maika’s gravelly voice. Is this my cup of tea? No. Can I see how this could appeal to a certain group of Eurofans? Absolutely.
Score: 5/10
Antranig: Maika is the saving grace of the complete mess that is Objetivo Eurovisión. This is so not a Spanish entry and that’s exactly why it’s perfect. Flawless vocals, fierce composition and a compelling delivery, Maika nails it on all fronts. It’s about time for Spain to step out of its comfort zone and this is the perfect song with which to do so. Leave the wailing divas and serve us up some Spanish rock.
Score: 8/10
Bernardo: I have mixed feelings about this. Maika’s voice is extremely powerful but the overall production of the song sounds like it was made in the ’90s (and I know what dated production is — Festival da Canção is my national final). I respect the original aspect behind the entry, but that’s about it.
Score: 5/10
William: Maika’s voice defies logic and stereotype — she’s a woman who could out-power many of her male counterparts and she proves there is magic in sounding like you’ve smoked an entire pack of cigarettes prior to your recording session. And while I respect her prowess as a singer, the song is just abysmal. I don’t mind the vintage quality or the old school rock sound. What I detest is the monotony and the looping backing track that makes me feel like I have vertigo. It’s a no from me.
Score: 4/10
Chris: This is so not Spain at Eurovision and that’s why I kind of love it. Maika gives that real rock vibe that makes her stand out for the better in this selection. My foot was tapping to the beat the entire way through the song. If Spain are going to have to send anything from this weak selection, why not throw a curveball and see if that gets some more votes?
Score: 6/10
Jordi: Maika’s voice is just untouchable. But with such strong vocals, I don’t know why she has a song that falls short. I’m loving the chorus so much, but the rest of the song doesn’t excite me. She has a powerful and distinctive rock tone that I truly appreciate, but she definitely needs a stronger rock song – so she can fully rock’n roll.
Score: 6/10
Robyn: Fierce rock mamma Maika is back — and with a better platform than the Swiss national final. “Momento crítico” is one of the better rock performances in the 2017 NF season. Maika has a strong and commanding voice that brings so much emotion that understanding Spanish is not required to feel the song. The song’s ending could be stronger, but otherwise this would be a good rock entry for Kyiv.
Score: 7/10
Luis: I’m all for rock entries at Eurovision, and Maika serves a very nice attempt. This appeals to me, but it’s not universal enough to make an impression in Kyiv. “Momento crítico” evokes past eras of Spanish rock. In fact, I’d define this as a baby of Héroes del Silencio and Extremoduro. As with those groups, I’d listen to Maika while driving. But the open road is one thing and the Eurovision stage is another, and they don’t have that much in common.
Score: 6.5/10
Our Spanish Wiwi Jury consists of 19 jurors from across the globe. However, we only have room for eight reviews. Here are the scores from the rest of the jurors:
Dayana: 3/10
Deban: 5/10
Edd: 3/10
Forrest: 4/10
Jason: 4/10
Jovana: 6.5/10
Kristin: 8/10
Patrick: 2/10
Ramadan: 7/10
Sinan: 4.5/10
Zakaria: 6.5/10
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.
I like it’s a songs that’s not similar to the others. I’m not really a fan of rock songs, it depends. I like the song, without being extremely excited, but live this song can be amazing! It has the potential! Let’s see it in the final!
I like Maika, but this song sounds at least 25 years old. I would be very surprised if this won a modern song contest. But good luck to Maika; great voice.
I love this!
The lyrics are incredible and here’s hoping Maika can bring that quality live. This is a tangent Spain has yet to try and see how it fares.
Of course, I got no hopes this would win and bracing for a quite overhyped Mirela win. C’est la vie (or Cet air la, as you may)
Probably the best chance for Spain to achieve quality on ESC. I mean, Contigo’s hook is MUCH stronger than this, but lyrical, Momento Critico is on a whole different level. Would it succeed on ESC? On one side, it isn’t so catchy at first and hence, could tank. On another, there isn’t much rock on ESC and with good staging, could do well. At least Spain wouldn’t embarass themselves by sending this, even if hits the 26’th.
@Polegend Godgarina That comment does not apply. You should be more respectful and not judge by appearances. What if they have an androgynous appearance? Music has nothing to do with it…
Sorry. Do not like anything about this. Are people still making music like this? The fact that this is in the final ahead of some of the Eurocasting entries is criminal. What a waste of time.
I like it now, but at first I found it bland and horribly repetitive, which probably means it’s a grower, not a show-er. And that’s a disadvantage when it comes to Eurovision.
@Polegend Godgarina you are such a disrespectful person
I personally dont like the connotations of “not so Spanish” style
Omg it’s a girl?!? I thought her and LeKlein were men
This song screams 0 points, even with the new system. It’s not bad but let’s face it – who would vote for this?!