Each week we feature an Australian and an International fan of the week. This week from the Netherlands we have Marcel, aka @euroguyxx
Marcel was our first proper international Eurovision connection and we are very please to have him answer a few questions for us...
What is your name and where are you from?
My name is Marcel and I come from the “gezelligste” province in The Netherlands called Noord-Brabant.
What do you do or tell us something interesting about you?
There’s nothing very interesting about me other than my Twitter profile already says: Young at heart dad, interested in other people, loves 80’s music, cares about mutual respect, is an optimist and enjoys life as much as possible.
When did you first get into Eurovision?
That must have been 1981 when my parents would let me stay up late to watch the Eurovision Songcontest with the entire family. Bucks Fizz won that year with “Making your mind up” and I absolutely love(d) that song. From then on the Eurovision addiction only grew and grew. Thanks mom and dad!
Which is your favourite Eurovision year and why?
That would be a battle between 2010 and 2015 for me as both years had so much strong entries. But looking back I think 2015 wins as the complete top 10 were potential winners in my opinion.
Which Eurovision song:
Is the best?
Without a doubt that’s “Waterloo” by ABBA. Such a classic tune and it was way ahead of it’s time in 1974. This song still sounds as fresh today as it did back then.
Is overrated?
I don’t like the terms “overrated” and “robbed” to be honest and I try never to use them myself. I see it as the public having a different opinion on a song. So, taking that into consideration I had a totally different opinion from the people who voted when Dima Bilan won eurovision in 2008 with “Believe”. It wasn’t even among my favourites and yet it won. But that’s Eurovision.
Was robbed?
Haha, see my answer on the previous question about “robbed”. But looking back in history (according to a documentary) there is one song that appears to really be robbed: “Congratulations” by Cliff Richard in 1968. Apparently, Francisco Franco payed money to vote for Massiel with “La, la la” costing Cliff the victory that year.
When I look at my personal favourites that didn’t do as well as I expected or hoped it’s a battle between two shocking non-qualifiers “Horehronie”(Slovakia 2010) and “This is my life” (Sweden 2010).
(haha sorry for using those terms, but great answers ~ Aussievision)
Had the best live performance?
The best live performance for me is that vocals, staging and camera work are flawless and that means I’m going for “Calm after the storm” by Common Linnets. I was scared it wouldn’t even qualify, but after the semi performance it was obvious that this would become a Eurovision classic. Everything came together at the right time.
Did you last play?
Yesterday, I burned a CD with Dutch Eurovision entries and played that in the car on repeat for about 4 hours… the last one is the song that I sung along to for about 10 times: “Amsterdam” by Maggie Macneal.
Is your guilty pleasure?
Haha, don’t even go there… half of my favourite Eurovision songs are the so called guilty pleasures. To mention a few “Moustache” (France 2014), “Ik ben verliefd Sha-la-lie” (Netherlands 2010), “Teenage Life” (UK 2006), “My Slowianie” (Poland 2014), “I didn’t know” (San Marino 2016), “Woki mit deim Popo” (Austria 2012)… and I could go on for hours, but I won’t.
(GREAT choice with Moustache ~ Dale, Aussievision)
Do you support any other countries other than your own?
Nope, it all depends on the song. I have been a fan of Belgium the last years, but that has nothing to do with them being our neighbour country, they just bring quality songs to Eurovision lately!
What do you think of Australia being in Eurovision?
Oh oh… is this a trick question… haha. To be honest, when you guys were invited for the first time I thought it was great, just because Eurovision seemed to be huge in Australia and to celebrate the 60th Eurovision Songcontest. When you were announced to come back in 2016 I was like “Why? it was supposed to be a one-time appearance”? But now, looking back at the last 3 years and seeing Australia takes the contest more serious than lots of other countries, bringing quality and having a great fandom I’m okay with it. So, you go Ricki-Lee…. uhhhh…. Jessica Mauboy!!
(You just had to rub that Ricki-Lee mistake in! ~ Aussievision)
Sea of Flags, Tonight Again, Sound of Silence or Don’t Come Easy?
I’m afraid it isn’t the fandoms favourite Sound of Silence... as for me it’s absolutely “Tonight again” by Guy Sebastian. It’s a great track that makes me happy the moment it’s played. He is a great singer and it looked like he had so much fun during his Eurovision performance.
So the Dutch have come from a previous run of 8 straigth non-qualifiers to be a consistent performer. How do you think they are going overall and can you see you guys winning the competition?
I just love Anouk for saving Eurovision for us! She stepped up as a known artist when we didn’t qualify for these 8 years in a row. From then on more known artists were willing to represent The Netherlands bringing us great results most of the time. I’m having faith in Waylon too this year, as the guy can put on a fantastic live performance, so hoping for top 10! However, I’m not too convinced we are going to win Eurovision soon. I do love the country-ish ballads we have been sending the last couple of years, but in my opinion it’s time for a different genre in order to take the trophy home!
Wow these were amazing answers and so great to get to know more about you, thanks for your time mate!