The Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — continues to rate and view the six entries competing in the UK’s Eurovision: You Decide. Next up we take a look at X Factor alum Holly Tandy and her version of “Bigger Than Us”. Did we enjoy her countrified take on the song? Read on to find out!
Holly Tandy – “Bigger Than Us”
“Bigger Than Us” reviews
Antranig: There is no doubt that “Bigger Than Us” is the song the UK should send to Eurovision. However, I prefer Michael’s version. Holly herself does the song justice, with tasteful country elements weaving through a modern pop sound. She is a wonderful artist and her version has a lot of potential. Whichever entry wins must be revamped to stand out and Holly certainly has potential for massive success with a minor revamp.
Score: 7/10
Chris: The UK tried to do their take on country-pop once before at You Decide, except with a much better song. Whilst Holly’s a more proven TV-friendly commodity, it’s hard to see her softer take on the track triumphing against Michael’s. This will likely be a case of a talent wasted, both by song and by format.
Score: 6/10
Julian: From the three versions of songs I don’t like, Holly Tandy’s version is my favourite one. I kinda like the country-ish style mixed with singer-songwriter pop. But – and I really don’t like to say that – this version of “Bigger Than Us” again is one song that would be totally forgotten in the Eurovision grand final. It surely is a nice song that one can play in the background and I’m sure Holly will land on a few music playlists, but Eurovision is another thing. The song sadly doesn’t have anything like a wow-effect and won’t incite anybody to pay for a vote here.
Score: 4.5/10
Luis: Holly is serving her deliciously warm and rich vocals, albeit on a very lacking track. Holly’s version of “Bigger Than Us” is dramatically underproduced, compared to Michael’s. The guitar doesn’t go anywhere, and the electronic sounds close to the end are a cheap addition to the song. Luckily, Holly brings weight and cohesion to the tune, and she somehow saves what would had been a disaster with any other artist. This is like serving a haute cuisine dish on a plastic platter.
Score: 6/10
Pablo: This one is the most ambiguous duel. While Michael does possess that big voice quality and choral power, Holly’s version is of easy listening and pleasant all around, at points quirky and with good appeal. While this version of “Bigger Than Us” is enjoyable… it lacks something. I feel this is a song that needs the choral greatness to standout. With John Lundvik as a writer that’s not hard to picture, and with Holly we’re not reaching those moments, feeling lacklustre when they come. She needs to bring that something special live if she wants to combat that power of her rival.
Score: 4.5/10
William: The song is mediocre and somewhat interchangeable with any X Factor winner’s single — formulaic, generic, disposable and somewhat predictable. But in the skilled hands of Holly Tandy it morphs into something more. Her pop-country treatment gives this the heart and soul and just the right amount of warmth. She was handed the song but delivers it as if it came straight from her soul.
Score: 7/10
In our Eurovision: You Decide Wiwi Jury, we have 12 jurors but only room for 6 reviews. The rest of our scores can be found below:
| Angus: 9/10
Barnabas: 7/10 Jonathan: 6.5/10 |
Kristin: 6/10
Lucy: 8.5/10 Robyn: 5.5/10 |
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 4.5 and a high of 9.
It’s an 8 from me
This is my favorite version! 😀
I love her look <3
Storms don’t last foreeever, foreeeever, remember. How safe and bland was that song. This version of “bigger than us” falls into that same bracket. No doubt that Holly will shine when it comes to stage presence but the song doesn’t go anywhere. Where are the big notes that wow the ears. I want a eurovision songs to give my ears an orgasm. Whilst I don’t dislike country pop, this version is more suited to being just a filler on a bland pop album. I’d be happier if we could send something like the Mark Ronson/Miley Cyrus county twang thing. Now… Read more »
At first I liked this more than Michael’s version, but as time passed by the song got repetitive and I got to appreciate his version more. Molly’s version is okay though.
This is the better version of the song for the charts. Sadly, country-pop hardly ever works at Eurovision (case & point: ManuElla – Blue and Red). So even though Holly has a chance to win in the UK, she will not fare well in Tel Aviv. (But that might be the whole purpose behind her entry in the first place. Prove me wrong.)
I’m not sure that this comparison is an indicator. I don’t think that Blue & Red had a bad result because of it’s genre, but because of it’s bad lyrics. Slow Down had a fairly good result within the genre.
i prefer the other version, this one is very lifeless and it doesn’t carry the drama the song requires
Holly Tandy: Bigger Than Us – Among the three duels, this is the hardest one for me. Michael ‘s version is more suited for the arena and, well “bigger”, but Holly’s is more intimate and arguably more emotional . – 6.5/10
I do like this a lot, this and Michael’s version are great! Holly’s a great performer, just get her on a stool with great staging and this could work