2019: Spain | Miki | La Venda

Unlike Spain's 2016 effort by Barei (remember Say Yay?), the country's latest Eurovision entry is unlikely to become that sort of radio friendly hit which stormed up the iTunes chart well in advance of the national final - or indeed the Grand Final in May.

Miki's La Venda (Blindfold) does, however, follow the current musical fad for Latin based rhythms and it would have been a sin had Spain not latched on to this trend - it is a Spanish entry, after all!

Over the past few years, the country has produced what should have been some genuinely competitive entries – among them Edurne, Barei and last year's ballad from Amaia and Alfred - only to see them wind up near the bottom of the scoreboard.

However, what might go in their favour this year is a positive return to the unique Iberian style that Spain can generally be expected to supply. La Venda is catchy and uptempo - the sort of thing one would normally expect from the Spanish.

As Eurovision entries go though, the song is fairly innocuous and Miki will have to improve the quality of his presentation skills if he is to garner enough votes to make much of an impression. A competent, compelling performance is what is required.

One thing that was apparent from the national final was that Miki's vocals need to improve dramatically if this entry is going to be a contender. He sounded out of tune for much of the three minutes. And while the Latin beat and football-style chanting demand a party atmosphere, Miki's stage presence nevertheless comes across as somewhat clumsy and lacking in poise. This makes him look more of an exuberant amateur than a potential global pop star.

Still, these are all problems which can be rectified with the help of a more slick and competent presentation – something the Spanish team will hopefully try to put together between now and May.

Nevertheless, juries will probably hate the song. So the whole package will have to be memorable, energetic and entertaining enough for the viewing public to rush to vote. I can't see that happening at this point, so Spain looks likely to suffer yet another disappointing year.

What do you think?

Spain 

Artist: Miki

Song:  La Venda

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