Understanding and Analyzing the ESC Jury Vote
Jogy Thomas Wolfmeyer explains what he looks for when sitting on a jury and presents his points for the ESC. Wolfmeyer was an organizer of events in the music, DJ, theater, cabaret, and poetry sectors. Listening to musicians and bands who sent in cassettes back then to be able to perform was part of his everyday life.
**Wolfmeyer:** It is important to understand the factors from which the jury derives its ratings. Genre precision, style, performance, charisma, composition, execution, origin, identity, …
The juries usually consist of musicians from different genres who try to judge across genres. This sometimes works very well, but as we have shown with our own analysis for 2025, different favorites emerge here. Since I come from the jazz sector, I will probably focus my analysis more on a specific musical direction. However, this also applies to other musicians who prefer other musical directions.
So it is clear that my opinion only represents a certain direction, which will be shared by some and not by others. Tastes differ, which is why there are these rules according to which songs should be judged. However, personal favorites cannot be completely excluded. Through the justification, you always get an insight into why exactly this song stands out for a particular jury. I would love to do this again with other musicians and experts, but this time there is no time for it. Maybe we will manage it for 2027.
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**1st place and therefore 12 points clearly goes to Australia with Eclipse**
This ballad contains everything a song needs. The epochal build-up to a hymn, which creates a contrast with jazzy sounds, is an absolute masterpiece of composition. Delta Goodrem’s powerful voice, which slowly unleashes its full force here and delivers rock-solid in all transitions. A listening pleasure that not only invites swaying and dancing in the disco, but can also simply be enjoyed while sitting in a rocking chair. The song is timeless and harmonious. All elements of the song are perfectly coordinated and form a harmonious masterpiece.
Upon repeated listening, the song becomes increasingly intense and reveals new little details that you previously missed. Anyone who knows Australia also knows the beaches that invite you in summer to either soak up energy in the sun or sit on a warm rock in light rain and enjoy the sound of the sea. The nights are usually cooler but still very warm and attract many old and young couples to these wide beaches to touch for the first time or exchange the first kiss. The mentality of Australians also plays a major role here – simply letting time pass without thinking too long about whether tomorrow is a workday or whether the flowers at home have been watered. Forgetting time until it is really dark and you can no longer see your hand in front of your eyes, only the stars in the sky.
In the public vote, the entry will probably be underrated because it is not a European country to which points are awarded out of sympathy. That is a shame, because the song is a clear winner.
**2nd place with 10 points Czechia with Crossroads**
Another ballad with a very dark melody that builds up slowly and stands out precisely because of its minimalism in effects. Vocally delivered absolutely perfectly. The playing with highs, lows, loud and quiet etches itself into the brain. The song has something orchestral and mystical, and the composition makes the confusion with the different musical elements palpable. You don’t need to know the video to recognize the story of Czechia in it – conquests by various countries have led to this situation of constant decision-making being a permanent challenge for the people there. I see in this song a country that is finally trying to find its own path, which has been denied to it for eternity. Especially the young generation, who did not experience those wars themselves, often only know their history from grandma or grandpa.
A song you can listen to when you have to make decisions that may not correspond to what the mainstream expects of you.
By foregoing the often extreme tempo changes typical of ESC songs, it stands out from the other entries. It is pure and, despite this, does not become monotonous, but challenges expectations.
Actually, I would now have to leave 3rd place empty out of protest, because all the other entries are pretty much on the same level and would rather share 4th place together. But I have to stick to the ESC rules and assign the places, even if it is difficult for me. Here we go:
**3rd place with 8 points France with Regarde !**
France leaves the comfort zone of chanson and ventures into opera. This composition actually consists of almost all parts of French music history: chanson, spoken word, and opera. The artfully combined components are powerful and coherent. The song does not overdo it, but remains harmonious and rhythmic. The vocals blend beautifully into the genre play and flow almost gently through the musical piece. The city of love hits the point that the city has developed into a love nest where simply standing in certain places in Paris already unfolds the feeling of love. Text, song, and interpretation are so coherent that the question remains: why only now with this kind of music, when we know that the city of the Eiffel Tower has much more to offer than just chanson. Since this entry was not actually expected from France, it lands in 3rd place as motivation.
**4th place with 6 points Finland with Liekinheitin**
Techno elements, classical elements, and a constant melodic composition with up-tempo and a violin that slowly works its way from the background to the foreground without overloading the staging. Especially the change between emotional violin sounds, which transition from a tender melody into a charged, rapid atmosphere, makes the song not only interesting but also demanding. Here too, one recognizes the cold of the region in the song, where physical contact is perceived as warmth and not just as pure closeness. Yes, one might have expected some old sounds from the icy north, but even so the entry convinces with belonging and identity. The song is a banger because we rather expect harder music from the north and fewer emotional pieces. Whether in the disco or in the car at 130 km/h on the highway – a song that also invites you to sing along, even if you first have to learn the lyrics.
**5th place with 4 points Azerbaijan with Just Go**
A sensitive ballad with a building atmosphere. The voice dominates with absolute clarity and full tones. The dramaturgy of the song – from great love to disappointment caused by broken trust – is expressed with a wonderful melody and remains a unified structure of tender melody and dominant vocals until the end. It is in 5th place because it is also a banger and was not expected from Azerbaijan in this form. A beautiful song that lives from flowing, carried music and a meaningful voice. Here too, there is no big effect-chasing, but rather a focus on harmony.
**6th place with 2 points Switzerland with Alice**
When I first heard Switzerland’s entry – one of the first songs I listened to for the ESC – the thought came to me: Now they’ve already won with Nemo and are aiming for victory again. However, Switzerland is known as a country that cares a lot about music and also provides a lot of money for the arts. I myself have repeatedly received requests from Switzerland asking if I could help out at events such as the annual New Orleans Festival, which then failed due to guidelines preferring regionality from companies.
But now to the song: An absolutely successful performance with many nuances that fascinate. A wedding absolutely needs a waltz, and so this rhythm dominates the song, which, with indie and alternative pop, shows a derailed world between violence and affection. A calm beginning changes into a fiery rock performance and ends with a melodic rocky guitar solo. The singing voice first monotonous, then rising to an almost threatening demand to finally love a person even though they do terrible things to you, and then again a calm, pitying plea. The drama in the song is palpable and convincingly delivered with every note. The song lives from the emotion between rage, despair, and half-hearted pretended remorse out of fear of being abandoned – which is nevertheless enough for the person who once loved you.
**7th place with 1 point Denmark – For Vi Gar Hjem**
Balance controller as an effect – a captivating intro that makes you stop and want to listen to the beginning again before you’ve even finished the song. A slow build-up of the song with a typical calm building melody that then turns into rather poppy house music with a swinging bass. You feel transported back to the 80s and sense the vibe of a sweaty party night. The slight psychedelic effect of the technique hits the ear and harmonizes with the arrangement and vocals. Here too, the unexpected has happened, because this combination was not to be expected. The song doesn’t annoy but takes you on the forbidden journey of not being able to say no when Amor hits you at the party and you don’t know if you will experience this again with that certain person after this exuberant night. Yes, one would rather expect hardcore techno from the northern countries, since Gabber comes from that area, while in central Europe we rather heard funky house. The song is very balanced and has interesting elements that make it an earworm.
General Conclusion:
Why don’t I have a fast song ready?
The faster songs simply didn’t really convince me. Screaming loud noises into a song is something we know from the hardcore band Venom with “Aaaarrrrggg Aaaarrrrggg Aaaarrrrggg” and not really matched to any content. Moreover, if I do something, I do it with all my heart and don’t improvise thinking “it’ll be fine.” Often the passion is missing, and the execution usually fails because the artist hasn’t fully understood the genre they’ve chosen. Musicians often approach something because they think it’s cool but haven’t understood the spirit of the music. Whoever incorporates a jazz part like in *Eclipse* or house like in Denmark must also understand it. These musical directions emerged in a certain era whose background one should know and whose meaning for that time one should understand.
For example, in Austria there is a very significant era of jazz rock and funky jazz that has shaped our music world just as much as classical music. Or 80s pop, punk, and rock – if not even more influence through jazzy elements in our pop-rock history.
ORF and financial distress or missing consultants
At the 70 Years of ESC gala, it seemed to me as if most of the music had been ordered from Temu.
https://on.orf.at/video/14322304/70-jahre-esc-das-konzert-reloaded-by-rso
Juliette Khalil and Drew Sarich started quite well, and Drew covered about 60-70% of the ranges of the songs he performed. However, for Juliette, only the classical pieces should have been performed, and for the big ranges a seasoned jazz musician like Corry Gass would have been the right choice. And I bet with you that the musicians very well knew it wasn’t their vocal range and pointed this out to the ORF. I have to assume that the ORF simply didn’t want to spend more money to deliver a really good performance and said: “Nah, it’s fine, just sing – there are only some ESC fans sitting there who won’t notice.”
Nino de Angelo at least had problems with his throat, which didn’t exactly have a positive effect on the performance, as he sounded more like a chain-smoking Joe Cocker. Apparently no backup was possible at short notice or was waived for cost reasons as well.
Letting Johnny Logan sing a range he simply cannot reach was one of those brilliant ideas the ORF probably had after a boozy night. There are men like JJ who can sing such a range, but not Logan.
So 50% of the event was a complete failure, even though the artists presumably pointed out to the ORF that it wouldn’t work.
Why the ORF didn’t listen to the artists themselves and at least asked for a backup artist is beyond me and rather testifies to ignorance and incompetence in vocal performances.
I am curious to see what mishaps, missing equipment, or missing personnel the artists will face at the ESC.
Toi Toi Toi nevertheless to all the artists!