Eurovision 2015: Semi-Final 2: Who Qualified?

The 10 Qualifiers From the Second Semi-Final

Some of Eurovision's more successful nations crashed out of the second semi-final last night, with the likes of Ireland, Iceland and Malta failing to qualify for Saturday's Grand Final. However, unlike Tuesday's first semi-final, this second one had very few notable moments and, in many ways, was far more predictable: there was plenty of smoke, the wind machine was in overdrive again and some of the costumes were...dubious.

Equally unsurprising is that live performance can be even more revealing than some of those outfits. With real-time vocals laid bare before millions, the men and the boys were truly separated and several of the songs suffered as a consequence.

Heading into the semi-final, it was anticipated that Malta's Warrior would join Georgia's in the final line-up. However, Amber's vocals were all over the place, prompting calls in this neck of the woods for her to desist from singing. It was sheer agony and a pity the song's running time was not similar to Finland's effort. It was interminably repetitive and incessantly ropy, so it was really no surprise when it failed to get the nod.

Meanwhile, Ireland's fate was in the hands of the young Lynsey de Paul lookalike, Molly Sterling. It was always a toss-up whether her Playing With Numbers would survive the night. Drawn in second spot, it appeared her nerves kicked in and her downbeat performance suffered as a result. There was not enough sparkle to make it memorable, instead resembling a piece performed at an amateur school concert.

Ahead of time, there didn't seem to be much to pick between Ireland's and Poland's efforts, but a plum draw and a much weightier emotional connection secured Monika Kuszyńska's place in the final. It was no surprise that Lithuania would join her - that kiss, assuredly - but both Cyprus and Montenegro were revelations. Sometimes great vocals combined with simple staging can speak volumes.

That's exactly how Latvia's Aminata achieved her place in the Final. Dressed in a revealing, figure-hugging red dress, she both looked and sounded tantalising: the vocals soaring; the staging perfect; the song even more quirky and memorable than ever. Surely, the performance of the night.

All of this is incidental, of course. Bookies-favourite Sweden was lurking in the shadows with its Heroes, ready to pounce. An assured Måns Zelmerlöw did not disappoint. He brought his stick men with him and proceeded to show the rest of the participants how it is done. Is this Stockholm calling?

[Images: Andres Putting (EBU)]

Here are the qualifiers (as announced):

Country	Song	Performer
Lithuania	This Time	Monika Linkytė & Vaidas Baumila
Poland	In the Name of Love	Monika Kuszyńska
Slovenia	Here For You	Maraaya
Sweden	Heroes	Måns Zelmerlöw
Norway	A Monster Like Me	Mørland & Debrah Scarlett
Montenegro	Adio (Goodbye)	Knez
Cyprus	One Thing I Should Have Done	John Karayiannis
Azerbaijan	Hour of the Wolf	Elnur Hüseynov
Latvia	Love Injected	Aminata
Israel	Golden Boy	Nadav Guedj

These are the seven nations/acts which failed to qualify:

Country	Song	Performer
Ireland	Playing With Numbers	Molly Sterling
San Marino	Chain of Lights	Michele Perniola & Anita Simoncini
Malta	Warrior	Amber
Portugal	Há um mar que nos separa	Leonor Andrade
Czech Republic	Hope Never Dies	Marta Jandová & Václav Noid Bárta
Iceland	Unbroken	María Ólafs
Switzerland	Time to Shine	Mélanie René

Eurovision 2015: Semi-Final 1: The Winners and Losers

Last evening, the first semi-final of this year's Eurovision Song Contest was staged at the Wiener Stadhalle in Vienna and, not surprisingly, there were a few shocks among those countries that qualified and those that failed at this point in the competition.

The large stadium setting and the standing, flag-waving, audience have become the all-encompassing blueprint for the modern contest, as has the over-the-top presentation of many of the songs. We all know that Eurovision has developed into a festival of the camp and the kitsch, but this 60th edition looks as if it will be the most camp of them all.

Aside from the all-pervading bearded drag queen, the first semi-final served up, among other things, leather clad male cops in shorts, a similarly leather-clad Georgian Lily Munster/Elvira lookalike and a drag queen alternative - this one more rotund, more Serbian and more ear-piercing.

Some commentators lauded Bojana Stamenov's performance of Beauty Never Lies - mainly because it was more typically "Eurovision" it seems - rather than judging it on the merits of the voice and the staging on the night. Blown around like a tent in a Force 10 gale, Bojana struggled massively at times with the vocals, but thankfully continued her static presentation while her backing crew acted out its strange dance ritual around her.

Considering several factors before the semi-final, Serbia was one of the six nations which it was thought may not qualify, as were both Hungary and Armenia.

Armenia was perhaps the more surprising of the two to make it through to the Grand Final. With the conflicting mix of voices, Face the Shadow has always battled to be a cohesive unit of a song. Genealogy's rendition last night did little to overcome that battle. The vocals were 'off' in several places throughout the performance, so one can only assume that it was the jury votes which saved it from assured oblivion.

Hungary's qualification was more deserved, however. Faced with a less than convincing performance by Denmark and a somewhat forgettable song from Macedonia, Boggie's presentation and vocals were more assured, giving Wars For Nothing a justified boost on the scoreboard.

Surprise of the evening: The qualification of Armenia.
Annoyance of the evening: Three presenters (plus Conchita). One would have been sufficient.
Favorite Moment: Estonia's clever presentation.

Here are the ten songs that will progress to Saturday's final (as announced):

Country	Song	Performer
Albania	I'm Alive	Elhaida Dani
Armenia	Face the Shadow	Genealogy
Russia	A Million Voices	Polina Gagarina
Romania	De la capăt (All Over Again)	Voltaj
Hungary	Wars For Nothing	Boggie
Greece	One Last Breath	Maria Elena Kyriakou
Estonia	Goodbye to Yesterday	Elina Born & Stig Rästa
Georgia	Warrior	Nina Sublatti
Serbia	Beauty Never Lies	Bojana Stamenov
Belgium	Rhythm Inside	Loïc Nottet

These are the six countries, and their songs, which failed to make the cut this year:

Country	Song	Performer
Moldova	I Want Your Love	Eduard Romanyuta
The Netherlands	Walk Along	Trijntje Oosterhuis
Finland	Aina mun pitää	Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät
(FYR) Macedonia	Autumn Leaves	Daniel Kajmakoski
Belarus	Time	Uzari & Maimuna
Denmark	The Way You Are	Anti Social Media