X My Heart / AISEL / Azerbaijan | Review

AISEL: the representative for Azerbaijan

Whatever is said about Azerbaijan, it's difficult to dispute that the country knows how to go about conceiving a fiercely compelling Eurovision product. Whatever their selection process, they tend to come up with a similar outcome: a sharp, contemporary composition paired with impressive stagecraft. Their 2018 entry, X My Heart performed by local beauty AISEL, is no exception - once again relying on Eurovision writers who know how to create songs that are inclined to score well.

Penned by the dream team of Dimitris Kontopoulos, Tim Bran and Sandra Bjurman, X My Heart is quite the recovery of form for Azerbaijan and could turn out to be very competitive in Lisbon. It is a superior pop anthem which is not a million miles from the sound of SuRie's United Kingdom effort - only featuring more intense production values.

This is the type of entry which usually stacks up to be a big fan favourite, but much of Eurovision fandom has been strangely quiet about its chances. The reason may be that there is a characterless dimension to the song, giving it a 'we've-heard-it-all-before' quality. Consequently, this may also hamper its chances with the wider Eurovision audience on the night.

Nevertheless, I feel there's little doubt that this entry will qualify to the Grand Final and that the Azeri team will create an extravagant stage performance around it. Whether it will be memorable enough to push Azerbaijan back into the Top 10 is debatable, but X My Heart has the quality to be knocking on that door.

Azerbaijan 

Artist: AISEL

Song: X My Heart 

Semi-Final 1 | First Half