Armenia: Sevak Khanagyan – Qami

Felix: Armenia enters a song fully in Armenian for the first time ever, which I already approve of. More so, they even send a song that I liked on the first listen. It’s not easy to sort “Qami” into a box, as it’s more mid-tempo than a ballad, more modern than traditional, but at the same time, it’s classic, melodic and sophisticated. It loses some of its instant appeal on the second listen, but that doesn’t matter for Eurovision, does it?

While it’s easy for me to rate the song, it’s hard to predict its result. The staging should not be a problem, considering Armenia’s past portfolio, but how well will Sevak and the Armenian language go down with the public and the judges? The range of positions in which “Qami” might end up is rather wide, but my gut feeling tells me that Armenia will finish tenth in the final. The fact that it’ll be in the final at all should be obvious, at least, considering the excellent draw after the potentially annoying Finland.

Martin: Watching the performance from the Israeli preview party reminded me of what a strong, assured performer Sevak is. That alone should be enough to see him comfortably through to the final (where I suspect he’ll fall through the gaps a little). Nice song, if nothing spectacular.

Shi: I love the language and normally tend to adore Armenian entries, but this actually leaves me relatively cold and I think he’s not a particularly relatable performer. There is enough in there to make it through a difficult semi, but I also think it’ll get lost come Saturday night.

video and title image source: eurovision.tv