Eurovision 2015: The best acts to look out for, including Australia's funk, Italy's opera and Sweden's slick pop

As the mighty Eurovision celebrates its 60th show Mark Cook tunes into this year’s continental contenders

Eurovison 2015: musical duo Electro Velvet are hoping to score more than nil pois (Picture: PA)

18 May 2015

After Conchita Wurst’s spectacular, beardy win at Eurovision last year, Vienna becomes the centre of things poptastic this week. But will the goofy songfest be as flakey as an apfelstrudel?

Whisper it if you dare but Eurovision has got a bit serious of late, with songs about domestic violence and genocide. The downbeat mood is confirmed by a preponderance of ballads, most sung by women — who by far have had the greater number of winners over the years – but this year should see a chap(s) taking the top slot.

Italy has three dapper, lung-busting lads in the shape of Il Volo, singing Grande Amore — think of a yoof Il Divo. It’s all swelling vocals and passion but pop opera hasn’t always done well.

If Sweden wins it’ll overtake the UK with its sixth victory (the UK has five) and it’s quite possible the slick and cute Måns Zelmerlöw in his leather pants will triumph with the Robbie Williams-esque Heroes. The cartoon graphics are clever too.

And so to fancied Australia, bizarrely allowed a one-off inclusion in this 60th anniversary show for its large viewing audience. Guy Sebastian’s Tonight Again is a modern piece of funk. It’ll doubtless get “douze points” from the UK, but the rest of Europe might not be so generous.

Norway used to be the joke of Eurovision, with more “nul points” than anyone, but has gone from zeroes to heroes with striking entries and are the new hipsters. This year Morland & Deborah perform A Monster Like Me, Scandi noir, all moody and cool. But then Eurovision isn’t about cool.

Which brings us to the UK and Electro Velvet, aka Alex Parke and Bianca Nicholas. Their charleston-inspired Still in Love With You was co-penned by the man behind the Jim’ll Fix It theme. It’s uptempo and catchy, and the staging involves Art Deco styling and LED costumes. We could be scraping around the bottom of the scoreboard again.

The highest-placing ballad is likely to be Russia’s anthemic A Million Voices, powerfully sung by Paulina Gagarina. The irony of its cynical lyrics — a “we’re all different but the same” theme — won’t be lost on the audience. Expect booing.

So where’s the Eurocheese? Serbia offers a belting, plus-size lady with attitude aplenty, a wind machine and a costume “reveal” — a once popular concept now sadly in decline. Also watch out for Moldova: think dodgy strippergrams.

Car crash of the night is, regrettably, Finland. Not because the group is made up of guys with learning difficulties — it’s great that they’re in the contest — but because their punk number is undeniably an assault on the eardrums.

Saturday, BBC One, 8pm

Eurovision 2015: The best acts to look out for, including Australia's funk, Italy's opera and Sweden's slick pop

Read More