Welcome to 'Aussievision Picks', a new series where the Aussievision team choose their favourite songs according to a theme.
For the first ever Aussievision Picks article, the Aussievision team have selected ten of their favourite (non-Eurovision) songs by Eurovision artists. We also decided to not include national final songs.
Which song does Craig think is "the future of European pop music"? Which hit is a "Gen-X kids' classic" according to Fleur? Which song made Emma drive around the block a couple more times in order to finish listening to it? And which chart-topping smash did Kyriakos enjoy far more than its artist's Eurovision entry? Read on to find out - we hope you will learn something new and exciting about each member of the Aussievision team.
Mahmood - 'Barrio' (Italy)
Released: 30 August 2019
Josh: 'Barrio' picks up where 'Soldi' left off with its poignant lyrics, intricate instrumentation and brisk pace. The relatively short length makes the song rush by and almost forces you to replay it. Cashier and cocking gun noises make it reminiscent of M.I.A’s iconic 'Paper Planes'. The accompanying music video is stunning and adds to the stellar production quality Mahmood exudes with every release. All of the above creates a mysterious Mediterranean atmosphere that I don’t ever want to leave.
Craig: 'Barrio' is a beguiling track: like a lot of Mahmood's music, it resists easy classification. Throughout it, he effortlessly combines lyrics that are simultaneously poetic and relatable with a pulsing, hypnotic beat that makes me want to bop. Is it Medpop? Is it electronica? Is it rap? The answer to all these questions is "yes", but ultimately, that doesn't matter. For me, 'Barrio' sounds like the future of European pop music.
Olivia Newton-John - 'Magic' (United Kingdom)
Released: 23 May 1980
Mike: From the Xanadu soundtrack, ‘Magic’ was Olivia at the peak of her world dominating powers. It’s a silky ballad, with classic post-disco, early 80’s production elements. Airy strings and a prominent electric guitar bring very different, yet very complimentary dimensions to it. Olivia delivers a trademark sultry vocal that fits the song perfectly. It doesn’t really vary in tempo, but never gets monotonous. Instead it glides along, taking you on its sumptuous journey. It spent 4 weeks at No.1 in U.S. delivering Olivia one of the biggest hits of her career. A massively underrated classic!
Little Big - 'Go Bananas' (Russia)
Released: 14 November 2019
Wade: 'Go Bananas' is exactly that - Bananas. It's an incredibly lucid track, that screams fun, goofiness and a party atmosphere. One only needs to look at the video clip to instantly get the vibe of the song. It's ludicrous, bizarre and deranged, but in a fun and approachable way.
It's just a jam that doesn't take itself too seriously, I love it!
Kate Miller-Heidke - 'Caught In The Crowd' (Australia)
Released: 27 February 2009
Emma: It's the story behind this song that makes it one of my all time favourites. I never fail to shed a tear at Kate's apology to the high school friend she didn't stand up for when he was being bullied. "I was young and caught in the crowd, I didn't know then what I know now" is a lyric that most of us can relate to and really made me reflect on my own high school experiences. I rarely take in the lyrics of a song on first listen but this got me in straight away. When I reached my destination mid song, I actually drove around the block a couple of times so I could finish hearing the rest of Kate's story. Storytelling through song at its finest.
Las Ketchup - 'The Ketchup Song (Asereje)' (Spain)
Released: 2002
Kyriakos: ‘The Ketchup Song (Asereje)’ has to be one of the catchiest songs to come from the early 2000s since the ‘Macarena’! I love it so much! It's a carefree BOP, which is fun and super infectious! So it’s no surprise that the song went to No. 1 in over two dozen countries across the world including Australia for three weeks.
I love how the song is about a man called Diego who ask’s a DJ in a nightclub who also happens to be his friend to play his favourite song ‘Rapper's Delight’ by the Sugarhill Gang, and Diego dances and sings along in Spanish gibberish. It makes it more epic than the ‘Macarena’.
Unfortunately Las Ketchup’s Eurovision 2006 entry in Athens for Spain didn’t live up to their fun and infectious 'The Ketchup Song (Asereje)'. ‘Bloody Mary’ sounds like a B-side that would work well played in a hotel elevator as you set off for the nightclub, which you then request the DJ plays ‘The Ketchup Song (Asereje)’ and have an awesome night.
KEiiNO featuring Charlotte Qamaniq - 'Black Leather' (Norway)
Released: 28 February 2020
Hayley: Like many, I fell in love with KEiiNO in 2019 and explored some of their other work. While some of their music is very poppy which isn't always the music I go for, I LOVE this song and I listen to it a lot. I love the harmonies and I am pretty sure Alexandra is pitch perfect. It is firmly planted in my Eurovision list on Spotify as an honorary Eurovision song. Listening to the lyrics makes me want to go out and listen to some live music (if only COVID would let me!)
Celine Dion - 'It's All Coming Back To Me Now' (Switzerland)
Released: 29 July 1996
Steven: Although admittedly epically long (even the radio edit is over 5 minutes!), this song really does have EVERYTHING: an exquisite instrumental opening, Wuthering Heights-inspired lyrics telling of a doomed romance, and the awesome vocal stylings of la grande dame of the 90s power ballad. Crescendo after crescendo, (melo)drama upon (melo)drama,… “baby, baby, baby”, it’s incredible. And seeing the live performance completely blew me away.
Dschinghis Khan - 'Moskau' (Germany)
Released: 1979
Fleur: Take a German group, name them after a Mongolian conqueror, convince them to sing about a Russian city and throw in some Cossack dancing. Mix it up with Euro Disco - because well, why not?
Ralph Siegel was onto a winner and Channel 7 could not get enough of it. The fact that it coincided with the 1980 Moscow Olympics was just too perfect. It was the #1 song in Australia for 6 weeks.
As a kid, I absolutely loved this song as did plenty of kids back then. I didn’t even know about Eurovision in 1980. We had the single and it got played regularly at our home - Dschingis Khan was the B side.
Moskau is ridiculously cheesy and far from PC but it takes me back to my childhood. Besides I am always up for Euro Disco. This is not a guilty pleasure. It’s a Gen-X kids’ classic.
Sebastien Tellier - 'La Ritournelle' (France)
Released: 26 September 2005
Estelle: If I could bottle love that transcends space and time and turn it into music, ‘La Ritournelle’ would be the result. Sebastein Tellier truly penned a masterpice with this song, even more impressive seing as there are only eight lines of lyrics in the whole piece. Piano, strings and drums lead us us on an epic journey to the sparse but beautiful lyrics toward the end of the piece. ‘La Ritournelle’ is pure art and beauty, I’ve never heard anything else like it. It is ethereal, other worldly soul crushingly beautiful.
Loreen - 'Ride' (Sweden)
Released: 12 December 2017
Tim: Probably the most enjoyable aspect of ‘Ride’ is that it’s so vastly different to Loreen’s Eurovision winning song and her contributions to Melodifestivalen. The minute long intro of just the same riff on the guitar and Loreen’s vocals creates an almost hypnotic tune throughout the song that has an incredibly slow flow to it. The lyrics also just give that extra bit of mood to the song as it perfectly depicts the story of just getting in the car and having some late night shenanigans. This song always gives me late night drives home vibes and just being alone with the world and the music.
Here are honourable mentions from the rest of the team that didn't make the selected 10 songs:
Benjamin Ingrosso - 'The Dirt' (Cooper)
Duncan Laurence - 'Someone Else' (Hugo)
Lesley Roy - 'I'll Be Fine' (Ally)
Mahmood - 'Il Nilo Nel Naviglio' (Guy)
Måneskin - 'Beggin' (Mark)
Nicki French - 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' (Dale)
Oscar Zia - 'Betong' (Ford)
Did your favourite (non-Eurovision) songs by Eurovision artists make the list? Let us know your favourite song on our socials.