Eric Saade returns to Melodifestivalen and is in it to win it
This year marks the tenth anniversary of Eric Saade’s victory in Melodifestivalen (Sweden’s biggest annual music event and preselection for Eurovision). In 2011, he represented his country at Eurovision with the song ‘Popular‘ and finished in third place. In 2021, he is onto his fourth participation in Melfest (he also finished 3rd in 2010 with ‘Manboy‘ and 5th with ‘Sting‘ in 2015) with his brand new single ‘Every Minute’. Saade is in it to win it once more!
In past years, Saade mostly released music in Swedish, but for Melodifestivalen he switched back to English. He co-wrote ‘Every Minute’ with Jimmy ‘Joker’ Thörnfeldt and Joy and Linnea Deb, with Joy Deb producing. They created a heavily electronic pop song with a contemporary feel. The production is effective with its stripped bare beats and rich vocal effects. The main hook is simple and straight to the point, but that doesn’t make it any less addictive. The melodies are strong and the ‘oh nananana’ parts are guaranteed to keep playing over and over in the back of your head. In the lyrics, Saade sings about how he wants to be intimate with his partner every minute of the day, getting more explicit in the second verse when he mentions the neighbours being able to hear them. Cheeky!
Now ‘Every Minute’ is a hit worthy tune that wouldn’t be out of place in international charts, but what really elevates its chances in Melodifestivalen (and potentially Eurovision after that) is its outstanding stage performance. Eric being alone, dressed in white in front of a black backdrop, doing a quirky choreography is all that is needed to make this performance completely captivating. Sure, his vocals won’t be the strongest of the night, but he holds his own with the song. Although the bookmakers think Tusse will win Melodifestivalen, to me, everything about Eric’s song and performance scream winner. We will know who will represent Sweden at Eurovision when the Melodifestivalen final takes place on the 13th of March.
CHECK OUT MY REVIEW ON DOTTER’S ‘LITTLE TOT’ HERE.
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