Eurovision 2006 Preview Video Showdown: Part 2

D to G (skipping La France--since their video isn't up yet)

• Denmark: From stalking last year to singing janitors this year. Still hate the song, but at least it doesn't have the creepiness of "Talking to you." Sidsel mops and sings, then she gets lights in the background and some dancers and then sings again. Oddly enough, she doesn't bother twisting.
• Estonia: It's "Once In A Lifetime" with blue and white substituting for Ines's green and no cowboy hats in sight. I'll give Sandra credit that she performs it well, but considering that she's carping on about "looking through [her] window," shouldn't ETV go for an original video as opposed to a retread of the national final performance? Then again, Sahlene didn't get an original video either, so perhaps they go cheap when the singer is a Swede? Fair play to them.
• Finland: Well, ain't this is the controversial one? Frankly, I don't see religion being challenged here. It's basically every disaffected youth video cliche from the 1990's. Not terribly original in general, but for Eurovision it's radical. (La Podolskaya had the same theme last year, but took the shallow route with the video.) Anyway, here's the story: Rocker girl listens to Lordi, sings along (in order to ignore her relative isolation from her snide classmates), gets pushed aside by perky/bitchy cheerleaders, lead singer of Lordi appears, cheerleaders faint. At least it's the most striking video so far, though I suspect La Ryan's cost a lot more.

Update: Turns out the controversy was an April Fool's prank. A daft one.

• Macedonia (no FYR on this part of the internet) : Ninaninanina sky. Elena swings around in a chair lit up with Christmas lights. She dances with her name plastered in the background. She sings about wanting something original and then proceeds to liberally rip off/make an homage to "Move Ya Body" and name check Beyonce and Shakira. No hypocrisy here, no siree.
• Germany: National final performance. Woman in pink fur shawl talks about her love being quite enormous, while a bunch of men in classic country singer outfits (white cowboy hat mit white suit) strum along on guitar or beat a drum. When the song gets upbeat the singer waves her skirt around. Oh yes, this is just a party song right here.
• Greece: Hate this song, but it's a brilliant video. Long dolly shot down a hallway to reveal La Vissi storms out of a room in a red dress--perhaps a little drunk given her stylishly messy hair. Let me just queen out here: She. looks. F.I.E.R.C.E. I don't use that expression lightly. Anyway, here's the story line: La Vissi has a man. La Vissi is in love. La Vissi's man leaves her waiting at dinner. La Vissi gets pissed (perhaps in both colloquial senses of the word) when her man strays. Moral of the story: don't fuck with her.

Next time: Iceland swears and does a good satire of Whitney Houston; Ireland sends us all to sleep again (ditto Israel); some Latvians think they can do acapella; Lithuania hopes we get the joke; Malta thinks we want to see more of the bushy eyebrowed twink; Half of Moldova's most famous S-M male couple wants to go "loco;" and Monaco sings in Tahitian, but doesn't try to outdo La Ryan in the shoot department.