The Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — continues to rate and review the 41 songs that had been selected for Eurovision 2020. Next up, we take a look at Germany‘s internally selected act Ben Dolic and his song “Violent Thing”. What was our take on the song? Read on to find out!
Ben Dolic – “Violent Thing”
“Violent Thing” reviews
Esma: “Violent Thing” is exactly what we want to hear after Germany’s disappointing act of last year. Ben Dolic serves us an upbeat pop song with a fun rhythm and catchy lyrics. It’s modern, well written and Germany has put effort in the production. The song is very radio-friendly, but I could also imagine this being played in a club. I would have loved to dance to this at one of the Eurovision pre-parties. Ben’s soft falsetto reminds me of Benjamin Ingrosso’s voice – but better. “Violent Thing” would have done great with both the jury votes and the televoters.
Score: 9.5
Florian: “Violent Thing” is an extremely contemporary and well-produced effort. While Ben’s voice gets you from the very first tone, it’s the song’s progression that keeps you going. Leading into a full-on pop chorus, this is the song to get you going at the Euroclub. Ben brings lots of sympathy and he clearly knows how to best perform this track on stage. With this in mind, it’s a remarkable effort for Germany compared to its previous uptempo songs at Eurovision.
Score: 8.5
Lucy: I never thought I’d give a pure-pop banger a perfect ten, but when it’s this good, why not? The “don’t tell your MAMMAH” hook hits you hard every time and Ben’s tones just help make this song ridiculously cool. There really is no element of cringe like the “I met a girl in a bar” style such songs often have. It starts the second the song opens with those six notes pulling you in, and keeps hold for three minutes. This is exquisite and possibly my favourite German song at Eurovision ever.
Score: 10
Natalie: Yeah, I’m just not sold on Germany this year. I can see what they were trying to do, but I’m not quite sure if they did it. What on earth is the “violent thing”? I don’t think they understood their own metaphor, to be honest. Plus, no matter how much Ben’s voice parades the chorus, it doesn’t detract that it’s just the same unoriginal dance beat on a kinda uninspiring song. It’s a cute dance song, and I have no doubt that it had potential to sparkle, but it could have become so much more.
Score: 6
Oliver: After Germany’s mishap with the televoting in Tel Aviv last year, Ben Dolic’s “Violent Thing” would have surely been a number to get the crowd on their feet. It took me a bit to warm to Ben’s unique voice, but now I can safely say that he and the song are a perfect fit. It is a masterfully composed song that utilises catchy lyrics and boasts all the hallmarks of a song which would perform well with both the juries and the general public.
Score: 10
Ben Dolic – “Violent Thing” rankings
In the Wiwi Jury we have 22 jurors but only have room for five reviews. The remaining scores are below:
| Angus: 8.5
Antranig: 7.5 Åri: 8.5 Barnabas: 8.5 Bernardo: 7.5 Calvin: 7.5 Deban: 6 Jonathan: 8 Luis: 9 |
Pablo: 8.5
Renske: 7 Robyn: 8.5 Ron: 7.5 Sebastian: 9.5 Tobias: 9.5 Tom: 7.5 William: 6.5 |
We have removed the highest and lowest scores prior to calculating the average. This is to remove outliers and potential bias. We have removed a low of 6 and a high of 10.
Wiwi Jury verdict: 8.18/10
What do you think of this song? Share your own score and review below!
I don´t like it – 2/10
I will give a 9/10 for this
This is about 1.5/10 for me, sorry. My last place, can’t stand this song.
Germany – 8.5/10 (9th/41)
What People dont understand is that its an average and for fun … just calm down
With his vocals it would have been another bottom-5 for Germany. Just check his live rendition from the spanish ESC pre-party… The biggest candidate for 2020 fanflop.
I absolutely agree – sounded like FFF
This is my guilty pleasure of the year! Okay there is maybe nothing very special about it, but then who cares! Really well done neighbours!!!
I have to agree with Wiwi Juror Natalie. A 6 out of 10.
Except it clearly is the way to go when people were much more excited by this song than the rigged win of Sisters last year.
Get ready for an even higher score from Iceland.
Nevermind.
sIsTeRs WaS bEtTeR. joke
i never thought that my country would get a score above 8 or even 7 this year. This is amazing. Love you guys ?
While I like this is song and it’s almost in my top 5. I don’t think it is the best song by any means. Like “All My Love” both songs are made to appeal the general public taste. And that’s fair when you want to win a contest I guess. That’s how the music pop industry works. Anyway, I think that kind of explain why they have the higher scores while not being that exceptional. That said, I think Ben is lacking a bit of charisma and I don’t like high-pitched voices either. 1. Switzerland – Gjon’s Tears – Répondez-moi… Read more »
Funny that you marked down Germany for the singer having a high pitched voice yet you have Switzerland as your top song (so far). Gjons chest voice is low put those high notes can be hard to listen to.
This is the way to go. I saw Germany on a really good way. 2018 was great. BTW: the song was co written also with intl. writers. 2019 did not work at all. 2020 would have been a clear top-10 candidate. Obviously the song was perceived pretty well – in the odds, in various non-official votings and also here. So I do not get this ongoung complaining. The only ones that continue with complaining and self-destruction are the German people. Nobody buys tracks off the rack. First of all: they are not paid. Secondly: there is no rack, where these… Read more »
My winner, I hope he will be back next year with an even better song as cool as “Violent thing”.
sisters
ok as a video. unfortunately ben dolic live is an absolute disaster
Seriously???
He is absolutely great live, very safe and skilled. I saw him several times performing the song live.
He really nailed it.
idk which live performance you heard, but he slays
everything I heard from ben dolic live, whether on “the voice of germany” or the acoustic version of “violent thing” were horrible. sorry
If you understand like only one little piece of music, then you would hear, that he hits every note perfectly. Maybe it‘s not your type of music, but then it‘s still not horrible
I’m honestly kinda surprised (not in a bad way) that this is so high , I love pretty much every symphonix song in esc but I’m not a huge fan of this one definitely miles ahead of last year but it feels way too produced and not original I really like the kind of pre pre chorus but other than that it’s pretty much a nice pop song but nothing special really (I agree with debans score)
Ridiculously overrated.
This song grew on me, currently my favorite of this year’s competition. I agree that it plays it safe, bit within that safety zone, I do find it highly entertaining.
It is a regular Symphomix song. For me, it lacks something. It’s not a song that makes feel good in particular or uplifiting. Melodi doesn’t do anything for me either.
My feelings are similar like with Malta. I don’t really enjoy them and wouldn’t play them on my daily baisis tbh.
I wouldn’t describe “Violent Thing” as a very original entry, but it’s still pretty fresh and novel within the context of Eurovision. Obviously, it wasn’t intended to be deep or exquisite – it’s a well-made party track appealing to the younger audience, and it serves its purpose. The daring lyrics create a very interesting contrast with Ben’s youthful look and memorable high-pitched voice, which is anything but “violent”. I was possibly the only person in the entire universe that really liked “Sister” last year, so “Violent Thing” was probably a step in the right direction (though if Germany are going… Read more »
I really love it, one of my winners of 2020.
It would’ve been the “Popular”(Eric Saade) of 2020. Not thought much of until the contest and then finishes top-three on the night, and nearly winning it.
GERMANY – Nice to hear a full-fledged ”bop” from a country that recently only excelled at ballads. Ben has a unique voice and the song is quite catchy. There is one interesting issue, though. The lyrics are implying that something edgy is going on, but his delivery is really inoffensive. Whether that obvious discrepancy was intended or came off accidentally, it brings some likability beyond your generic club banger. If a performer who oozed that ”bad boy vibe” sung it, it might’ve sounded more authentic, but it might’ve been unlikable too. I still think it’s just a decent party song,… Read more »
eh, it’s a very regular pop song that’s already aged like milk by now. the singer sounds like a helium inhaler. i don’t think it would’ve done that well either, it sounds like something that would come 15th or something around that. this being a fan favorite is the mystery of the year…
I agree with you completely I can’t find the appeal of the song and also can’t understand why people think this is modern. Not all uptempo songs are modern.
”can’t understand why people think this is modern” – It’s slightly overproduced. I notice that overproduced pop songs automatically can be named ”modern”, while any more stripped or acoustic sound is labeled as ”dated”. I disagree. I am also not very interested in whether the song sounds modern or not. But as I can see a lot of people think that’s important, it can sometimes objectively rise or dwindle song’s prospects in the contest.
Yeah I see your point. And it certainly is an over produced song. To be honest I also wouldn’t see it ending up very high, it would be one of those instances where the fandom praises a song a lot and then flops on the big stage.
I´m sharing your opinion – but it´s very unpopular by a large crowd of the fandom.
Definitely not the best song this year. His voice sounds very similar to Benjamin Ingrosso from Sweden. The song is okay but nothing wow about it
Typical pop song.
This is 5.5/10 in my opinion ( 27th). Very overrated by the wiwi jury
I’ve spent a hard time what of my two favourites was my winner, and honestly it could really be this one. It’s one of four 2020 songs that I listen to constantly (not even just once or twice daily) and thank goodness that Germany’s giving us something fun and up-tempo! That, and anything that starts with some steel-pan action gets a thumbs-up from me. 😉
EDIT: This is also another song that could’ve been a hit over here, as well.
the word “thinking” should’ve been up there. Oops.
/canttype
Also, ‘Violent Things’ did make an impact among the Eurovision fandom. The Wiwi jury score is an evidence to that. It is also inside the bookies top 10 before the contest got cancelled. It would have reached top 10 or even higher with a tasteful staging. At least it was an bolder entry compared to Sisters in my opinion.
Are you seriously comparing Glorious, which was a much weaker song, to this?
Let just remind ourselves with what Germany gave us last year using a national final. They had problems with finding a national final format, so they took a break and did something different. Internal selections can be very good, it just need to be done right. The German broadcaster need some time to understand how to do well in the contest. Maybe after some time doing well with internal, then they know what songs to select, then they will switch back to national final. France went internal 16-17, then switch back to national final 18-19.
I literally freaked out…. Wow didn’t thought about such a high score
S!sters >>> Ben Dolic.
There, I said it.
Wow jury is becaming a parody…sorry.
Just a typical pop song with a weak chorus and irritating-sometimes- vocals got a 8.18/10??
For me it’s a 5.5/10
(Meanwhile unique masterpieces struggle to reach a verdict above 7/10…)
This is 1st lmao at least Deban has taste
Best song this year. The most contemporary song in the contest.
It’s a good song I just wouldn’t have expected to top the wiwijury…
Come on…. this over Switzerland?? I can’t deny that Ben’s vocals are really good, but at this song i get kinda irritated by his voice. The song is catchy, but not original. Didn’t expect to like Sister more than that.
Overall: 4.5/10 (26th)
I think that the ratings are higher just because people are comparing it to last years disaster. The song is good, but not outstanding.
I think if you take away the disclaimer, “good for a German entry”, you haven’t got something too fantastic here. Ben’s voice doesn’t do much for me. With most of the Symphonix entries this year, it’s like they’re trying to force the artists into the song rather than writing a song that fits the artist they have. It’s really overproduced in the studio track and he hasn’t delivered a live performance yet that makes me think he can make this work. Lucy said there’s not anything “cringe” about this but I’m detecting a lot of cringe. It’s in my top… Read more »
Watch his performance at Spanish online pre-party, oh my poor ears 😛
His performance was great. Don’t know what you are talking about.
Don’t lower your standards for uptempo songs, this is not bad by any means, but nothing outstanding either. I don’t see what is so much better than entries from Austria, Cyprus, Spain, North Macedonia, Greece, all safe forgettable pop songs. The only difference is Ben’s voice and those cringey lyrics. Tbh, this song gives me strong “bieber-ish” douchebag vibes, which I personally can’t stand. I get this is better than German previous entries (still I think “You let me walk alone” is better), it will have its audience and wouldn’t be last for sure, but “not to be last” should… Read more »
For me Ben’s song is a million times better than all those other songs.
Good attempt made by Germany after the 0 points from last year’s televote, but I don’t see this song that high (as I won’t see Azerbaijan topping this jury ranking either…). Maybe left side of the scoreboard, but that’s all, especially taking into account the masterpieces of Bulgaria, Switzerland or Norway.
No sorry it’s just not my style… And it no way deserves to be higher than Switzerland, Bulgaria, Romania or Italy. My top so far: 1. Switzerland 2. Italy 3. Romania 4. Bulgaria 5. Croatia 6. United Kingdom 7. Norway 8. Lithuania 9. –-10. Denmark 11. Russia 12. Australia 13. Albania 14. Finland 15. Israel 16. Ireland 17. Moldova 18. Estonia 19. The Netherlands 20. Malta 21. Belgium 22. — 23. Poland 24. Georgia 25. Czech Republic 26. Portugal 27. Slovenia 28. France 29. Sweden 30. Armenia 31. Spain 32. Austria 33. North Macedonia 34. Cyprus 35. Belarus 36. Germany… Read more »
Is this better than Lithuania Switzerland and Bulgaria
I think that’s the joy of juries. Sometimes there are songs that most people love but are so polarising within a jury, and sometimes the jury can mysteriously have the same consensus on a song that the wider audience may or may not agree with. It wouldn’t be right without some people having much different opinions! I don’t think people should be bashing the jury’s rankings either because it’s just an average score between multiple people with different music tastes. It probably wouldn’t reflect the overall ranking if the competition actually went ahead, anyway. (I mean, it may do in… Read more »
For me it is better than Lithuania. I don’t listen to that song at all. Without the live performance the song is nothing special.
never ever
This is good and I like it but….the winner so far of Wiwi Jury?? Above Switzerland and Bulgaria? Seriously?
So what ? This is their winner (so far), not yours. None of them have been criticising you for the songs you like the most.
Ok, go off
15. Germany – 7.5/10 – an excellently crafted dance tune, which does everything that a dance track should do and which is carried by a memorable vocal. It is a song of interesting contrasts. It has a youthful quality yet maintains a certain universality. There is a subtle dose of subversion mixed with an endearing naivety. I particularly love the depiction of lust as violence – it is refreshingly honest and accurate and the innocent-looking singer singing it makes for an intriguing juxtaposition. Overall, it is the perfect upbeat, fun track to mirror its upbeat, fun subject matter.
My top 3 this year… it’s a very good song that would have surely stood out in the contest.. Glad to see it having a high score.