Can you believe we are already in week 4, and by this time next week, we will have heard all of the songs of this year’s Melfest? These weeks do go by so quickly.
Felicia is still reigning supreme among the favorites to take the crown in the final, so let’s see if there are any worthy challengers among the six acts going on stage in Malmö.
Let’s take a look at what we can expect.
1) Cimberly – Eternity
The Skellefteå-born songstress has both Finnish and Kenyan roots, and you may know her from Idol season 2023, when she went and won the whole thing. She cites her influences as Seinabo Sey, Olivia Dean och Joy Crookes, so her musical style is right up my alley. The song she brings great pop sounds in the vein of Agnes, and Cimberly sure can sing and take the stage with her warm charisma. She starts out by herself, but then two singing and dancing girls appear to lend their support, making the whole act look a lot like Dreamgirls in the best possible way.
2) Timo Räisänen – Ingenting är efter oss
Another artist with Finnish roots, the Gothenburg infie pop artist has two decades of making music under his belt, but is making his Melodifestivalen debut now. He kind of belongs in that category of male indie artists, who actually can’t really sing, but does it anyway. The song is rather more upbeat and Mellofied than I had expected, something along the lines of what Anders Bagge brought to Mello back in 2022. The staging is very swimple, with a ring of lights and a platform, and Timo by himself, just living out his popstar dreams.
3) Meira Omar – Dooset Daram
Fresh off the success of Hush Hush in last year’s Mello, Meira Omar is back with another song and dance number with Bollywood references. The Indian and the Persian in the sound world is of course something I will always get behind, as ethno-bangers are my favorite genre at Eurovision and it was fun bonding over Bollywood with Meira last year. The number is in a sort of Indiana Jones or Lara Croft kind of setting with cliffs and sand and fire, and the dancers joining Meira make it look proper Bollywoody. There has been complaints about Meira’s singing, but this number is more about the whole package with emphasis on the great visuals and trhe show element. I’m sure the sound mix and the background singers will save it by the time the song goes live.
4) Felix Manu – Hatar att jag älskar dig
A Burundi-born artist from Bollnäs, Felix Manu is making his debut in Melodifestivalen with a nice enough song in Swedish, that does not sound like anything you would expect to hear from a guy that looks like him. It’s like very sweet Swede-pop with some folk influences. The staging is rather simple, making use of some big packages like in a post office storage and Felix is looking a bit insecure up on that stage.
5) Erika Jonsson – Från landet
So Erika Jonsson is bringing proper country from the actual countryside, singing about the joys of country life in Swedish. The fun chorus melody is very much traditional up-beat country, and it sounds very familiar in its references. Erika is joined on stage by a band, and they are all in some kind of shed jamming. It all looks and feels very natural and Erika is clearly comfortable with her artistic expression and style.
6) Smash Into Pieces – Hollow
The token rock band of the year is once again Smash Into Pieces, this being their third time at Melfest. The song unfortunately sounds like their most boring entry so far, it is missing real dynamics. For the rehearsal they are missing their singer Chris Adam, so there’s not much to say about how it will sound live. The instruments will of course be played from the backing track anyway even in the live show, so the guys in the band will be pretend-playing. The number does look great with neon colors and podiums and lasers, with the whole band getting hoised up on a podium at the end for great effect.
Photos: Nina Uddin – except Smash Into Pieces by Jesper Malmberg
