Review: “Vidbir 2024” (Ukraine)

Ukraine will choose an artist and a song for Eurovision 2024 via “Vidbir 2024″.
11 will compete in the show, which will be held on Saturday (the 3rd of February 2024).
The results will be determined by a 50% public vote and 50% national jury vote.
In this post, I will review the competing songs.

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#1.Yaktak— Lalala

It is a fusion of rap/jip-hop with ethnic pop
The song starts with an instrumental part composed of keyboard playing.
The first verse is based on simple singing with significant backing vocals.
Shortly after, we get the chorus which is based mainly on “Lalala”. In this part, we are getting a beat as well. This part ends with saxophone playing and the beat keeps on going.
The second verse is based on the cyclical keyboards playing. We’re getting more on the vocal level. Thereafter, the chorus follows.
The bridge includes rick backing vocals while he sings in the rap genre.
The last part of the song opens with orchestral elements and vocal trilling. This is probably the most emotional part of the song. The song with one last chorus.
Personally, I think more happened here at track level, but not as a song. The chorus is too shallow for me, having a single phrase only.

#2. INGRET — Keeper

It is a mid-tempo dynamic ballad.
The song opens with fine high tone singing. The melody is based on piano playing and minimal production. Ingert sings part of it with longer notes.
The pre-chorus involves string elements, she lengthens some of the words. At this point, the song gets a more classical direction.
The chorus starts unplugged. She sings in almost operatic vocals. Ingert is being supported by backing vocals. At a certain point, a tempo is added to the song with a mid-drum beat and percussion elements. The chorus ends with emotional high tone singing.
The second chorus relies on high tone singing, with a thin and fragile voice.
The second pre-chorus is performed in Ukrainian language. This adds an ethnic dimension to the song. The backing vocals are singing as choir.
A second chorus follows. The melody changes in the beginning. The beat sounds more modern, and later we are back at the original melody.
The song ends with high tone singing and string elements.
Overall, the song develops non-linearly, and that’s why the general framework is interesting. I am not sure how accessible the final outcome is. In some parts, it feels like too many efforts were put inside.

#3. Nazva — Slavic English

It is a humorous song.
The song starts with keyboards playing. One of them sings, while the other singer accompanies him with humming.
The general interpretation is more theatrical.
The second verse also features a drum beat.
The chorus starts with reciting, while the melody is based on keyboards and guitar. Thereafter, the song gets an ethnic twist with accordion. We can heat them singing “lalala” while they mention some words in English.
Thereafter, we get a melody which is based on string elements.
The following verse is faster. The singing is still quite simple .
The pre-chorus is short and we get the chorus with even more “lalala”.
The song ends with the outro.
I think it is the weakest song in the selection, and in fact one of the weakest songs ever in “Vidbir”. Musically something barely happens and at a certain point it is the same all over again.

#4. ANKA — Palala

It is a fusion of ethnic folk and electro music.
The song starts with flute and electric guitar stringing. Thereafter, we get the chorus as the first part with main singing and backing vocals. This part ends with a short instrumental part
The first verse comes after. Anka sings in a technique of traditional white voice singing. The melody is based on drum beat and synth elements.
The pre-chorus features spoken word, while the backing vocals are used as kind of a choir. The flute playing plays an integral part. We can also heat additional string elements.
Thereafter, we get another chorus, this time it explodes into a richer production that’s based on synth elements, combined with electronic production.
The song is catchy and maintains the familiar and wonderful genre of electro-folk in “Vidbir”. The fact it is performed in Ukrainian elevates it even more.

#5. Drevo — Endless chain

It is a rock song
The song starts with bass and electronic guitar playing. The first verse starts with a singing full of pathos. Drevo sings almost theatrically with a raspy voice. In some of the cases, it is hard to understand the words he sings due to the interpretation. The first verse is quite long and has a quite uniform structure. The bass stringing is incontinious.
The chorus is more melodical, the melody is quite simple but it combines well with the framework of the song. He sings it with less manners, and he is accompanied by backing vocalists.
The post-chorus features some vocal improvisations.
Thereafter comes the refrain. The melody is based on more powerful bass and electric guitar, with drums in the background. It feels like this part is more “rocky”.
The bridge is mainly based on drums and backing vocals, and it is similar to the pre-chorus.
The song continues with an additional chorus and post-chorus.
Overall, it feels like Drevo still has to explore and define himself as an original artist. I felt like I’ve heard the same song multiple times in the past. Part of this song sounds like an opening act for a live concert.
Furthermore, the singing included too many manners.

#6. Alyona Alyona & Jerry Heil — Teresa & Maria

It is a mid-tempo ethnic ballad with rap elements, performed in Ukrainian and English.
The song starts with Jerry’s humming and vocal decorations with guitar stringing in the background. She performs this part accurately and emotionally.
Thereafter, we can hear choir singing in a technique similar to white voice singing. The melody is still based on guitar playing, but this time keyboards playing and mid-tempo beat are added.
Later on, it becomes clearer that the part we’ve heard is the chorus. This part is memorable and let Jerry showcasing her vocal abilities. Towards the end she sings in a slightly higher tone of voice and in English.
The post-chorus is based on multiple backing vocals, some of them are male vocalists. The melody also includes claps effect
The first verse is a rap part performed by Alyona Alyona, with a lot of attitude and emotion. The singing is quite fast, but it isn’t an “aggressive rap”. The melody is based on a mid-tempo beat, keyboards playing and more. Later on, we can hear the backing vocalists as in the post-chorus.
The chorus follows. It is performed by Jerry, with a mid-low tone of voice. The chorus has 2 identical parts lyrically, but the melody isn’t uniform. In the second part, we can even hear some wind instruments (trumpet?).
The song ends with a post-chorus which is based on piano, electric guitar playing and even orchestral elements. This part comes with minimal production and stunning vocals.
The song is just epic! Jerry and Alyona Alyona come from different music genres, but together they create a catchy and emotional song.
It feels like the song has strong staging potential. Jerry elevates the song with her A1 quality singing, while Alyona expresses the pain with meaningful rap parts.
The introduction creates a cyclic structure, which captivates the listener into musical loop. For some reason, the combination of languages works perfectly.
I think this some smells of the top 5 in Eurovision and even beyond. Well done!

#7. Mélovin — Dreamer

It is a mid-tempo electro pop song.
The song starts with acapella singing. Melovin sings with almost no melody in the background. However, a mid-tempo beat was added alongside keyboards playing.
Thereafter, we get vocal decorations, while he is accompanied by backing vocals.
As the first verse starts, the beat gets stronger. He sings faster and more powerfully. The beat is quite uniform.
In the pre-chorus. we can hear keyboards playing, percussion elements and the beat from previously. He sings this part in a falsetto voice, this means in high and thin tone of voice.
The first chorus follows. The phrase “dream lover” repeats a number of times. In this part, there are also backing vocals recorded in a higher pitch. The chorus is quite memorable.
The post-chorus brings more of the electro style to this song. This part is based on vocal harmonies.
The second verse is faster, as the electro beat stands in the center.
The pre-chorus is once again performed in a falsetto voice.
Thereafter we get another chorus in the same structure.
The bridge kicks in, with synth elements and powerful singing/reciting with the effect of megaphone. This part is also the most electronic part of the song.
The song ends with one additional chorus, where Melovin sings some long notes.
As much as the chorus is memorable, I believe there’s room for improvement. In some parts, it feels like there are too many elements in one place. However, the basis itself is quite decent.

#8. Skylerr — Time is running out

It is a mid-tempo electro pop-ballad.
The song starts with piano playing. Skylerr opens the first verse with soulful singing in Ukrainian. The melody is quite simple, and the emphasis is on her vocals.
The first chorus is based on piano playing, but mostly on synth elements. You can hear sampled backing vocals, while a mid-tempo beat is added.
The second verse is performed in Ukrainian. The melody is airier, and it is based on piano playing and a mid-tempo beat.
The following part is a short pre-chorus and an additional chorus.
The bridge is performed in English. This part is based on violin and piano playing. She is accompanied by backing vocals. She sings some long notes and accompanied by backing vocals.
The secondary backing vocals are sampled as a loop with effects. The melody is based on a drum beat. The refrain is cyclic and is followed by an electronic instrument.
The last part is the outro that’s performed mostly in Ukrainian. The production is laid back, and we can mainly hear piano playing and more fragile voices. Towards the end, we get English lyrics.
I really liked the way the song is built and developed. The production is on point: There are several effects along with the song, but they don’t overside the emotional delivery.

#9. Ziferblat — Place I Call Home

It is an Indie song.
The song starts with an instrumental part, composed of keyboards playing and sampled string elements. In addition, the drum beat wraps the melody. The general melodical atmosphere is of music from the 1990’s.
The first verse features the lead vocalist singing with a pleasant mid-tone of voice. The melody is based on a non-continuous drum playing. Towards the end of this part, we can hear female backing vocals.
The first pre-chorus is simple and short. Vocal wise, he gives us an additional color of his voice.
The first chorus starts with drum playing. This part is based on a longer musical box. The lead singer uses a bit longer notes. The second half of this part is performed with a higher tone of voice.
The second verse is similar to the first one. However, this time the use of backing vocals is richer. The second pre-chorus follows, it is less melodical. This part ends with electric guitar playing.
The second chorus is mostly based on accurate singing. the melody is based on guitar and keyboards.
Synth elements, acoustic guitar and drums and leading the instrumental transition.
The bridge relies on a simple acoustic melody and he sings gently with some backing vocals.
The song ends with one last chorus.
Something about the sincerity and simplicity of this act makes it charmful. The singer’s voice is pleasant. The composition is built wisely, and the backing vocals add a lot. Great track!

#10. Yagody — Tsunamia

It is an oriental song, with western music influences.
The song starts with an instrumental part, composed of wind instruments. In the back, we can hear some whispers. From time to time, the band members give us some harmonies. This part ends with vocal harmonies and drum playing
The first verse is based on oriental sounds, the melody is rich of different instruments, most of them are string and wind instruments. Most of the time, they sing together
The first pre-chorus is performed as a rap/fast singing. The melody is based on constant chords. Towards the end, we can hear the drum beat exploding into the melody. One of them making a sounds of a bird in nature.
The first chorus comes in. Lyrically, not a lot of things happen. Most of the sung parts are isolated words and some vocal decorations. The melody is based on percussion elements and wind instruments.
The second verse is quite short. It is mainly based on vocal harmonies, performed almost unplugged, with non-continuous drum playing. Later on we get a short instrumental part composed of harp or bandura.
Thereafter, we get the bridge that starts with low-tone. It becomes more powerful and faster as this part progresses. This short part ends with one of the singers making the sound of a bird in nature.
From there, we move to an additional chorus. They sing it together, while we can hear some backing vocals in the background. The oriental elements are the main part of the melody, which is composed of rick wind and percussion elements.
Overall, it felt like an effort to create something similar to the Czech song for Eurovision 2023, but with much more ethnic flavor. However, I felt they could easily go even beyond. It is one of the memorable songs in the line-up, due to its distinctive direction, but I am not sure it is one of the strongest.

#11. Nahaba — Glasss

It is a psychedelic mid-tempo electro pop song.
The song starts with humming and keyboards playing.
The first part (probably the chorus) is based on bold synth sounds. The singing is full of studio effects that convert the vocals to less natural, and somehow cut out the emotional aspect. This part is performed by the female half of this duo.
The first verse follows. The melody is based on a cyclic keyboard playing, and a soft electronic production. Vocally, it is gentle and soft, we can hear the lead singer singing naturally in a mid-high thin voice, supported by backing vocals.
The second chorus comes and it shares the same structure as the first one. The synth elements are back. The tempo is faster, and we can hear drum beats from time to time. in this part, the natural vocals are hidden under the mask of studio effects.
The second verse is performed by the male half of the duo. He starts with pathos singing with a thick voice, it continues into long notes. The second part is performed by roaring and almost shorting in a smokey-voice.
The male singer also performs the pre-chorus, which keep the same structure of the second half of the second verse.
They sing the chorus together, with processed vocals and synth elements. However, this time we get a more of rock vibes due to the electric guitar and bass in the melody.
Personally, I am not a big fan of this song. For sure, it gets a lot of credit for its originality. However, something doesn’t work for me on the vocal level: In some parts, they push too much, and in some cases we get too much studio effect over their original voices. Melodically, it is quite an interesting product. At the moment, I have no clue about the way it will be performed live.

Personal Ranking

Alyona Alyona & Jerry Heil — Teresa & Maria
Ziferblat — Place I Call Home
ANKA — Palala
Skylerr — Time is running out
INGRET — Keeper
Yagody — Tsunamia
Yaktak— Lalala
Mélovin — Dreamer
Nahaba — Glass
Drevo — Endless chain
Nazva — Slavic English

Prediction

At the moment, I think it is most likely (and most justified) that Alyona Alyona and Jerry Heil will represent Ukraine at Eurovision 2024.
However, I can see a very little chances for Melovin/Yaktak/Nahaba pull a surprise win.

Which song is your favorite one?
Who will represent Ukraine at Eurovision 2024?

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