Back in early March, ex-Britain's Got Talent competitor Ryan O'Shaughnessy finally released his Eurovision entry, a guitar-led song called Together.
Self-penned as part of a team of writers called The Nucleus, it is a somewhat sugary ballad which on first listening comes across as rather ordinary and uninteresting.
In musical terms, it is undoubtedly a song which conforms to the ‘conventional Irish ballad’ benchmark that we have come to expect from Ireland over recent years. Unfortunately, while it wanders along in a pleasant manner, it lacks any genuine 'wow factor' and demonstrates little evidence of real progression.
Shaughnessy’s vocals have a gentle quality that remind me of a watered down version of Ed Sheerhan - sadly, too much folk but not enough commercial appeal. A pity, as he’s obviously gifted but, as a Eurovision entry, this really isn’t going to raise Ireland's qualification prospects.
Just as the UK reverts to a televised Eurovision national final for the first time in six years, Ireland has decided to ditch its own worn-out TV format of choosing its entry via RTE's The Late, Late Show. Instead, ex-Westlife crooner Nicky Byrne has stepped forward to provide the Emerald Isle with the internal pick, Sunlight.
This change in the selection process - mostly initiated by Byrne himself - is no doubt prompted by Ireland's failure to make any impression at the Contest in the last three years. The country's entries in 2014 and 2015 failed to qualify to the Final and Ryan Dolan's offering in 2013 could only manage a miserable last place.
So, can Nicky Byrne turn things around for the seven-time winners?
The short answer is yes. Not because Sunlight is exceptional, but because the singer is likely to be the most high profile participant in the 2016 competition. At their peak, Westlife sold shed loads of records around Europe - even if this happened more than eight years ago - so this fact alone should ensure Byrne a warm reception (and a head start on the scoreboard) come May.
Of course, a well-known name doesn't always guarantee a comfortable ride on the Eurovision merry-go-round: just ask Bonnie Tyler and Engelbert Humperdinck. But Nicky Byrne is slightly more relevant and definitely much closer to his birth than either of those blasts from the past. It also helps that his entry adopts a more contemporary feel as well.
Written by Byrne along with Wayne Hector and Ronan Hardiman, this songwriting pedigree ensures that Sunlight is a good pop song. Hector helped Westlife to the Number 1 spot seven times, while Hardiman composed the soundtracks to Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance and Feet of Flames.
However, "good" is as far as Sunlight goes. It feels like a B-side (if such a thing still exists), even if it does possess something of an ear worm in the chorus. It's upbeat and fits into the pop niche well, but the trouble is that it doesn't build: it lacks a key change (a Eurovision necessity) and its level of intensity is merely adequate throughout its three minutes. As a result, the track just feels too safe for today's Eurovision, lacking in any real wow factor.
Of course, the competition is no longer just a song contest; acts need to deliver the visuals too. It seems the Irishman has this sorted, though. He's brought in Tim Byrne, (former creative director with Simon Cowell’s Syco Music) and Lee Lodge, (a co-producer of recent Oscar shows and an executive producer of the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards).
Marry the song with what could be an impressive spectacle and this entry should surely qualify. Sunlight's not the winner, but the whole package could potentially return Ireland to the upper reaches of the scoreboard.
If the general public was able to register its votes for the most entertaining Eurovision national final, it's highly probable the one broadcast from Ireland this year would be a strong contender for the win.
Of course, it had nothing to do with the performance of the songs, but rather the egos of a panellist and one of the mentors. An epic argument ensued between Eurovision veteran Linda Martin and Aslan's Billy McGuinness, but in the end it was Can-Linn featuring Kasey Smith that won the ticket to Copenhagen.
Heartbeat is the song which won a relatively close battle over the runner-up, The Movie Song. Probably the strongest of the five contenders, it is one that has the potential to do well in Denmark.
It has many of the elements that have helped Ireland to its seven previous wins: the Celtic instrumentation and flavouring that is a feature throughout the song. The obligatory fiddler is evident and near the beginning of the track, the traditional Irish bhodran can be heard drumming out the beat. It also benefits from a catchy chorus, which will do it no harm in collecting votes from across Europe. That's all good, but this upbeat offering is very much a reminder of last year's winner. That just may be its downfall.
What it also needs is better presentation than what was seen at the national final. Firstly, do away with the extraneous Irish dancers - they're cringeworthy and we have all the evidence we need in order to know that it's a song representing Ireland. Secondly, make sure the staging places more emphasis on the instrumentation. After all, those elements are an important part of the song. Lastly, and this could be the most challenging, make sure Kasey Smith's live vocals are more powerful than what was heard at the end of February when performing it on The Late, Late Show.
That said, all in all, it's a very good effort which should see Ireland qualify from its semi-final on May 8. It's not the 2014 winner, but it has the potential to score well enough to register on the left-hand side of the scoreboard.
In late February, the Irish public and regional juries chose Only Love Survives, co-written and sung by Ryan Dolan, as the song to represent Ireland at Eurovision.
Dolan is hoping to bring the trophy back to Ireland for the eighth time, but somehow I don't see this happening. While it ticks all the right Eurovision boxes - upbeat, catchy Eurodance number with a repetitive refrain - the song is not particularly original. It also very much depends on the live vocal and performance on the night.
Having said that, Ireland will be performing in a semi-final that is bereft of uptempo tracks, so the song does stand a very high chance of qualifying. The problem is that singing live is not a strong point for Dolan, so winning the competition is out of the question. There are just better singers with better songs. 6/10. Only Love Survives will be performed in thirteenth place in the first semi-final on May 14.
The song was selected through a 50/50 public/jury vote on February 11 as part of Ireland's Late, Late Show where the five finalists were presented. Jedward performed second in the line-up, and much of the publicity surrounding the Irish national selection put the duo as clear favourites to win.
The former UK X-Factor contestants first came into the spotlight on the reality show, and once they were voted off landed an Irish Number 1 and UK Number 2 single collaborating with One Hit Wonder, Vanilla Ice, on Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby).
Lipstick is what you might expect from Jedward: a lively, uptempo number with an instant hook. The performance is frantic and crazy and will, no doubt, either suck in the Eurovision audience or freak them out with their look and sound.
With a strong Europop beat, the song will undoubtedly garner lots of votes and see Ireland on stage on Final night. My prediction is that Jedward should secure a Top 5 placing.
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