Subwoolfer in Eurovision: – Cheers for Norway
TORINO / OSLO (Dagbladet): On Tuesday, the semifinals will break loose in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. The unknown artists in Norwegian Subwoolfer will then defend Norway’s honor in the first semifinal in Turin, Italy.
40 participating nations are represented, while Russia was thrown out of the competition after the invasion of Ukraine.
On Monday, all participants in the first semifinal had a dress rehearsal in the arena Pala Olimpico. A separate “Eurovision avenue” along the street Corso Galileo Ferraris, left no doubt as to where it is ready for a folk festival.
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Ballet is opened by Albania’s Roneja Hajati and the song «Secret», and ends with Armenia’s Rosa Linn.
Subwoolfer appears as number 16 in the series of semifinalists – second last in semifinal one. They are in good company with two of the competition’s biggest pre-favorites, Norwegian-Greek Amanda Geōrgiadī Tenfjord for Greece and Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra.
During Monday’s dress rehearsal, it was Tenfjord and Subwoolfer who received the best response from the audience of the 17 entries. After Tenfjord was finished, several of the spectators shouted her name.
– Intergalactic!
Eurovision blogger, William Lee Adams, witnessed all the performances, and in addition to throwing himself on the tribute of Tenfjord, he also has many words of praise for Subwoolfer’s performance.
– It’s intergalactic! They were so good and stand out. The spaceship is really taking off, says Adams, the man behind the Eurovision website Wiwiblogs.
It should be mentioned that the tribute stone increased as the hall was filled with spectators, and that at first it was quite glistening in the audience.
Adams also received Ukraine’s contribution, which was number six in the series.
– It is powerful in its own way. When the rapper starts, it arouses strong emotions in all of us, he says.
He points to the strong symbolism of Ukraine’s competition despite the war in its home country.
– Another country wants them not to exist, but they will not disappear, Adams continues.
– On everyone’s lips
Norway’s MGP chief Stig Karlsen was overwhelmed by the request after Monday’s first dress rehearsal.
Subwoofers are ready as overripe bananas. Both for tonight’s important jury show and Tuesday’s semifinal. We have had some good rehearsals, and are very pleased with the collaboration with the Italian broadcaster RAI and EBU. Subwoolfer is currently on everyone’s lips here in Turin. This will be exciting, he says just after the first dress rehearsal is over.
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Support for Ukraine
During Sunday’s opening ceremony on the turquoise runner in Turin, Subwoolfer lined up in the colors of the Ukrainian flag – blue and yellow.
The artists have always been wearing yellow, but on Sunday night they chose blue suits as a support to Ukraine.
– It is a small and quiet celebration to remember the most important things in the world. They very much distance themselves from what is happening down there, says spokesman Carl-Henrik Wahl to NTB.
This is not the first time Subwoolfer has shown its visible support for Ukraine. The day after the invasion of the country began, the duo posted a picture on Instagram where they were wearing yellow and blue masks, followed by yellow and blue hearts.
– May surprise
In this year’s competition, the yellow wolves face enormous competition. After the war started in Ukraine, the country went to the top of the betting lists, and according to Eurovision World Ukraine’s chances of winning are as high as 49 percent.
Norway is in 8th place, and the chances of winning are calculated as a percentage.
Stig Karlsen, Norway’s MGP boss, told Dagbladet last week that Subwoolfer’s position on the betting lists was completely inside.
– It allows us to come in to surprise. For those who are very high on the list, there are very high expectations that they must meet, so I think Norway has a starting position, says Karlsen to Dagbladet, and adds that the betting lists are not a decision, but a pointer.
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– Ukrainian music package
It is the Ukrainian hip-hop group Kalush Orchestra that will represent Ukraine in this year’s Eurovision with the song “Stefania” which is written for frontman Oleh Psiuk’s mother.
The band wanted the most attention from the artists who walked the Turkish runner during the Eurovision opening in Turin on Sunday.
– We are here to show that Ukrainian music and Ukrainian culture live. There are attempts to destroy Ukrainian culture, but we show that Ukrainian culture is beautiful and alive, says front figure Psiuk to NTB.
He also made an invitation during Sunday’s International Mother’s Day.
– I want to encourage everyone to congratulate their mothers and put on “Stefania” for them, Psiuk told the Norwegian press.
Karlsen says there will be a strong moment during Ukraine’s performance.
– Music is not just sound waves, there are also great emotions, and Europe feels very strongly for Ukraine now. When Ukraine’s contribution comes on stage, it will be a very strong moment with such a backdrop. It’s easy to understand, says Karlsen, who also adds that they have a decent song.
Semifinals Tuesday
During Tuesday’s semi-final, both Kalush Orchestra and Subwoolfer will perform. In the semifinals, the top ten advance to Sunday’s final.
For Norway’s part, we do not yet know who is hiding behind the wolf costumes of Subwoolfer. The duo “Jim” and “Keith” still keep their real identities secret, despite the fact that there has been a lot of speculation.
They themselves state that they met 4.5 billion years ago, when the moon was a separate planet. They perform “Give That Wolf A Banana”.
Via spokesperson Carl-Henrik Wahl, they told NTB that they have not been to Turin before.
– And there has been a bit of a culture crash. They are not used to behaving the way you and I might be used to. So when they chase grandmothers on the open street, people look at them a little strangely, says Wahl.