Buranovskiye Babushki vs. Loreen?

Last night, Buranovskiye Babushki qualified for Saturday’s ESC final with the quirky novelty hit ‘Party for Everybody.’ Sweden’s Loreen will compete in the second semi-final tomorrow night and critics say that one of them will be crowned as the winner on Saturday.

Buranovskiye Babushki beat Dima Bilan and Julia Volkova’s ‘Back to Her Future’ in the Russian final. The babushkas raison d’être is not to top the charts, but to raise money for a wooden church in their home village. The 73-year old Galina Koneva, a member of the group, thanked the fans who voted via Aftonbladet.

Owning the stage, baking the bread and charming the socks off the rest of Europe could very well prove to be a winning tactic in Baku. Novelty hits are notoriously charming as the six Russian old women combines traditional folk song with disco beat.

Loreen Comments

“They come from a totally different world. But for them, music is something entirely different than for us. They have received enough sponsorship to build the church. They’re genuine, and these times people do seek authenticity. They envoke sympathy and that increases their chances to win this competition,” says Loreen to Aftonbladet Nöjesbladet.

Buranovskiye Babushki Performance

It’s not the first time they’ve tried their luck. In 2010, the Russian ladies came third. Since then, they’ve toured Estonia and France.

“We could hardly hear our own vocals as the cheering crowd was so loud,” band member Galina Koneva said at the press conference.

The ESC Experts’ Verdicts

DN’s ESC journalist Hanna Fahl said that the semi final did not offer any major surprises. Favorites such as Romania made the final, while Turkey’s and San Marino’s Facebook song signed Ralph Siegel didn’t make the cut. As I reported the other day, many songs are signed by Swedes  – Greece, Cyprus and Ireland  – and everyone made it to the final. The Finnish entry (sung in Swedish), did not make it.

Svenska Dagbladet’s ESC journalist Harry Amster claims that Montenegro’s rap was one of the worst songs performed ever. 12 out of 18 entries were sung by women, quite a feat. Amster also preferred Cyprus and Greece, in addition to the Russian ladies.