Review: Slovenia: Eurovision 2015 | Maraaya

Husband and wife team, Maraaya, to represent Slovenia

Over the past weekend, among the nations to select a finalist for Eurovision 2015 was Slovenia, choosing the married duo Maraaya and their song Here For You. As with many other national finals, the Slovenian selection was the result of a two horse race following the elimination of six other competitors. Rudi Bučar joined Maraaya in the Super Final, but was defeated in the public televote by a margin of 1862 votes.

Typically, the Slovenian final is not viewed as a pinnacle of the Eurovision season and, because several other countries were also choosing their songs, that trend continued this year. Even the co-hosting skills of three lovelies, namely Darja Švajger, Maja Keuc and Tinkara Kovač, could not save the show from becoming a somewhat downbeat affair.

Of course, Tinkara was last year's Slovenian participant and, in my opinion, performed one of 2014's most underrated songs in Spet/Round and Round. In fact, Slovenia has had a very sketchy Eurovision career since the turn of the millennium: Just one Top 10 finish (in 2001) and only three songs progressing to the Final in the eleven Contests since 2004. Hopefully, Maraaya can add one more to that tally.

Raay, the male half of Maraaya, has already involved himself in Eurovision, composing the music for Tinkara's 2014 song and has now teamed up with Charlie Mason, a co-writer of Conchita Wurst's winner from last year. Everything seems to bode well for Here For You, then.

The song is undeniably a strong entry. It reveals much more of an obvious relation to Spet/Round and Round than it does Rise Like A Phoenix - proclaiming itself a superior dance floor filler and displaying a little more lyrical depth than some.

It's the pretty Marjetka who interprets the lyrics and in a way that combines both the intonation of former winner Lena and British superstar Ellie Goulding. She draws you into the song with those unique tones, as does the violin-influenced musical backing.

Hopefully, the staging will be more dynamic, though. I'm sure the Slovenian team have something a little less static up their respective sleeves, albeit there's a version of the epic sax guy from 2010: the less convincing violin gal (with invisible violin).

For all of that Maraaya is a proven act. The pair have already won over parts of Europe with their first international release, 2014's Lovin' Me. It found favour in several iTunes and dance charts, establishing their name in countries such as Italy and Belgium, as well as at home.

I'm confident that this will be enough for Maraaya to stage a professional and eye-catching performance in Vienna and lead to a more than deserving qualification spot in the Final.

What are your thoughts?