From Gozo to Valletta, this island nation slays. And the artists competing at the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2017, the country’s Eurovision 2017 selection, will need to bring their A-game when they hit the stage on 18 February. But before then, the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — is reviewing and rating all 16 of their competing songs. Today we move on to Cherton Caruana with her song “Fighting to Survive”. Do we think she can survive the fierce competition at MESC? Read on to find out…

Cherton Caruana – “Fighting To Survive”

“Fighting to Survive” – reviews

Josh: “Fighting To Survive” is filled with lots of great ideas, but unfortunately results in sloppy execution. The song has got a great amount of grit, particularly in the first section of the song. The inconsistencies in the beat and mood make it a little tedious to listen to. A song that’s trying to be good at a lot of things, and not the master of anything.

Score: 5/10

Antranig: “Fighting To Survive” starts off like a typical ballad but the chorus is explosive and Cherton’s vocals complement the song perfectly. I don’t think the guitar solo fits in well but the big beats in the chorus help the song stand out from the other MESC ballads. Overall, one of the better entries in Malta.

Score: 8.5/10

William: One of the most radio-friendly choruses of the year, this is a major ear worm and would help the crabbiest queen cope with a traffic jam. There’s just one problem: The opening 30 seconds are so boring you might fall asleep at the wheel, and the final 90 seconds — what is up with that guitar? — are tedious. Nice ideas here, but really bad execution.

Score: 6.5/10

Robyn: “Fighting to Survive” is plodding along, when suddenly at 1:50 the song throws in a guitar solo, making it sound like a lost entry for Festivali i Këngës. Sadly the guitar doesn’t add much to the song. Cherton is a good singer, but her song needs so much remedial work.

Score: 3/10

Chris: There are enough tempo changes here that I’m kept entertained throughout. Let’s be clear: this isn’t a Eurovision winner. But there’s all the right parts, bar that one awful guitar solo. I love the little key changes. If she delivers this all live, then it could be a surprise contender.

Score: 6.5/10

Zakaria: First, am I the only one getting sick and tired of all these self-empowerment songs in national finals? Having said that, I don’t think the song really stands out from all the other similar songs. Yes, Cherton’s voice is nice but the song is banal and boring.

Score: 3.5/10

Deban: The sudden gear shift 33 seconds in, followed by the sharp dip at 62 seconds, make “Fighting To Survive” a slightly uncomfortable listen. That said, one has to reward a composition that isn’t entirely predictable. Cherton Caruana has a solid pop radio voice, and enough bravery to pack in a few surprises within three minutes.

Score: 6/10

Our jury for the 2017 Malta Eurovision Song Contest contains 14 jurors, but we only have room for seven reviews. The remaining nine scores are listed below.

Bernardo: 5.5/10

Dayana: 5.5/10

Forrest: 6.5/10

George: 7/10

Jordi: 6.5/10

Luis: 5/10

Ramadan: 5/10

 

 

 

 

Before calculating the average score, the highest and lowest scores are dropped. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 3 and a high of 8.5.

Wiwi Jury Verdict: 5.71/10

See our list of MESC 2017 rankings here

Read more Malta Eurovision news here

9 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Linnea
Linnea
7 years ago

I LOVE IT! The best song from Malta this year. I really hope it will win in the national final

AngieP
AngieP
7 years ago

I like the beat of the song. I also like the chorus. Generally I like it.

Chance
Chance
7 years ago

I really don’t like her voice, so I rate this one very low. If it was a different singer I would probably enjoy it quite a lot more.

3.5/10 (10/17)

Blablabla
Blablabla
7 years ago

I know tastes differ, but I cannot believe how poorly the Maltese entries are getting reviewed. I wonder how these songs would be reviewed if these were from another National Final. Cherton’s song is for me one of those that will probably stick with me over the years, regardless of your review. I believe it could do well in MESC.

Polegend Godgarina
Polegend Godgarina
7 years ago

I’m fighting to get through this song.

(J)ESC Fanatic
(J)ESC Fanatic
7 years ago

I agree that MESC entries are being underrated.

(J)ESC Fanatic
(J)ESC Fanatic
7 years ago

Hmm, I expected a higher score. There are two aspects of this song I don’t like: the guitar solo and the fact that it ends so abruptly. But these two flaws are overshadowed by the ridiculously catchy melodies. This song is such an earworm and has lots of attitude. I also like the lyrics and how things are spiced up in the end and the instrumentation is pretty strong. Beware of Cherton, she is a real dark horse. Probably my third favorite after the fantastic entries of Brooke and Franklin.

FACT
FACT
7 years ago

Wiwibloggs i’m tired of this! 5.7 ?!?! really?

Niki
Niki
7 years ago

Could it do well in Eurovision? NO
Will it win the National Selection? NO
Do I love it? YES!!! ?