This week, the 16 entries in Spain's national final Benidorm Fest competed in their respective semi-finals.
Those 16 songs became eight to battle it out in this weekend's final.
With live performances now available, the Aussievision team has ranked the final eight songs.
In total, 14 team members voted with points given out in this method:
1st: 12 points
2nd: 10 points
3rd: 8 points
4th: 6 points
5th: 4 points
6th: 3 points
7th: 2 points
8th: 1 point
Here are the results in reverse order:
8. María Peláe - 'Remitente' (35 points)
Highs: 6 points from Mark and Dale
Lows: 1 point from Kyriakos, Josh, Craig and Emma
"Poor Maria Pelae. If Europe hadn't forsaken Blanca Paloma in Liverpool, I think this entry would've been looked at more seriously. The staging is robust, sexy and modern, particularly the choreography. Alas, it is not flamenco's year." ~ Mark
7. Almácor - 'Brillos platino' (41 points)
Highs: 8 points from Cooper, 6 points from Liv and Craig
Lows: 1 point from Steven, Hayley, Mike, Dale and Sam
6. Miss Caffeina - 'Bla bla bla' (54 points)
Highs: 8 points from John Christian, 6 points from Kyriakos, Emma and Sam
Lows: 1 point from Liv and Mark, 2 points from Steven, Craig and Dale
5. Nebulossa - 'Zorra' (83 points)
Highs: 12 points from Josh, 10 points from Liv, 8 points from Steven, Craig and Emma
Lows: 3 points from Sam, 4 points from John Christian, Kyriakos, Hayley, Cooper, Mark, Mike and Dale
"For the past week this song has been on a constant loop. Absolutely addictive and iconic. To see an older artist become a viral hit with a song with such an empowering message is inspirational. Zorra has won the hearts of fans already and to see her actually win Benidorm Fest as such an underdog yet a surprise fan fave would be the cherry on top of an amazing journey for Nebulossa. Queen." ~ Josh
"Queen Nebulossa deserves a good result 👑 this was always going to be a hit, I'm glad the fandom had finally come around to the devastatingly, life-shattering, world-changing entry of 'Zorra'. Staging was a serve." ~ Liv
4. St. Pedro - 'Dos extraños (Cuarteto de cuerda)' (93 points)
Highs: 12 points from Steven and Mike, 10 points from Hayley, Mark, Craig and Dale
Lows: 1 point from Kiel and Cooper, 2 points from Josh
"A good vocal (one of the very few) and a charismatic performer make this my top pick for Benidorm Fest 2024. The staging does need to be pared back though: ditch the silhouette strippers and let’s just focus on the main attraction." ~ Steven
"Just so delicate and beautiful and that staging is wizardry. So hard to stage stuff like this but they nailed it. It’s such a change in direction from the other 7 songs which could work to its advantage." ~ Hayley
"All class. All heart. All Spain. St. Pedro would do his nation proud in May and bring them a very solid result. I don't think they've quite landed on a staging concept that totally captures the romance and timelessness of the song - but there's plenty of time for that." ~ Mark
"Not a fan of how this one is staged - it's giving less "romantic ballad" and more "Naked Attraction". Nonetheless, there's a song and an act with potential here, and if he does end up winning at the end of the day, I think Spain could do far worse." ~ Craig
"This is a really beautiful song and St. Pedro delivers a performance that takes it from restaurant/cafe to something worthy of the Eurovision stage. Its strength here is who it is up against. Seven big entries where he is the calm, beautiful number that people will gravitate to (particularly juries). I think this can get points at Eurovision but among 26 songs, it threatens to be many punters' toilet break." ~ Dale
3. Sofia Coll - 'Here to Stay' (100 points)
Highs: 10 points from Kiel, Mike, Cooper, Josh and John Christian
Lows: 2 points from Liv, 3 points from Craig and Emma
"The English chorus will appeal to the masses here, but could also come across as gimmicky. And that dance break in the second chorus was maybe a bit too long. I can see this being a good enough entry for Spain to send, but one that may struggle to finish on the left-hand side of the scoreboard in the grand final at Eurovision, let alone challenge for the win." ~ Kiel
"This is the gay pop banger and she delivers! This would be a show stopper at Eurovision and such a crowd-pleaser. The live performance was great and Spain would place high at Eurovision with this song." ~ Josh
2. Angy Fernández - 'Sé quién soy' (115 points)
Highs: 12 points from Liv, Emma, Sam, Kiel and John Christian, 10 points from Steven and Kyriakos
Lows: 3 points from Mark, Dale and Mike, 4 points from Craig
"Send this Spain, I am BEGGING you. Angy has the best staging concept, song, performance and presence of the National Final. With a tidy up of technical issues (ie. Sound was quite choppy and some of the camera angles were honestly dire) this would be a CRACKING Eurovision entry. Angy has that quality it factor and stage presence to take her far. Category 5 gagging. Love her." ~ Liv
"I always liked the studio version of 'Sé Quién Soy' but the the live performance of this really blew me away. Angy tells the story of her song so powerfully with her voice and facial expressions...moving from angst about being liked and understood, to relief as she realises she knows who she is. The latter part of the performance is the strongest where she rocks out with her band and dancers and everything steps up a gear. And the wow moment for me...when her dancers remove their masks and they all share an embrace...so moving! Finally, the ending really takes it up another level again...this is how you end a Eurovision song. I love this and I would actually send votes Spain's way if it makes it all the way to Eurovision." ~ Emma
"Since the studio version was released I have been listening to this non-stop and it should have been my douze puan last ranking ... so justice is served! The live performance is artsy. She can sing. She can dance, which is incredible for a rock song. Would go straight to the top of my Eurovision ranking if this wins." ~ Sam
"Oh man - Angy just has win this. Not just cause I don't think Spain has ever sent a rock chick, and cause the song kicks butt. But the staging is Eurovision ready, mashing so many different elements together, and that semi-final performance was full of attitude and vocally fine as well. Another repeat of that and she will be hard to beat." ~Kiel
1. Jorge González - 'Caliente' (123 points)
Highs: 12 points from Dale, Craig, Mark, Cooper, Hayley and Kyriakos, 10 points from Emma and Sam
Lows: 1 point from John Christian, 4 points from Liv
"Was expecting a big performance from Jorge and my god he didn’t disappoint! This has so much energy, the overall package works. Things can be tweaked and elevated for Eurovision. If this isn’t in Malmö then it’s a missed opportunity for Spain to get a good result! I’ll be voting for this in May!!" ~ Kyriakos
"Impact impact impact. There are so many big songs with big production and big choreography but Jorge stands above the rest. It's easy (and a little lazy) to just call this the "man Chanel" appealing to men who like other men (though clearly there is a target demographic..). There are real traditional Spanish flourishes in the music and in his delivery. There are a few moments where I'd like for him to showcase his obvious vocal talent (that last note is supreme) to help garner some more jury love. There are only two songs that can get points at Eurovision and this is one of them. Vote Jorge!" ~ Dale
"Sweet Jesus this is glorious. It may be appealing to a certain demographic but also appeals to me and I would very much like to see this on the stage in Malmo with my own eyes - multiple times. Also - this has been my favourite Spanish song all season and it’s now been elevated to next level. wipes sweat from brow" ~ Hayley
"It would be frankly insane for Spain not to send this act to Eurovision. 'Caliente' isn't just sexy (and boy, is it sexy), it's also stylish and authentically Spanish. Sure, the song lacks guts. But so did 'Slomo' and we all know what happened there. The fairest criticism that can be levelled at 'Caliente' is how similar it is to 'Slomo' in sound and structure. But one twitch of Jorge's oil-slicked pectorals is sure to elicit forgiveness from audiences in Malmo. " ~ Mark
"I had a feeling this one would lift live, and it certainly does - my only criticism is that the dance break currently feels pretty limp. Otherwise, I'm here for this - it's campy, sexy. ~ Craig
So there you have it, Jorge González is our favourite just ahead of Angy with current bookies' favourite St. Pedro back in fourth.
Who will take out the win and represent Spain at Eurovision? Tune in Saturday night in Europe and Sunday morning in Australia to find out.
Benidorm Fest takes place Saturday 10:00pm CET / Sunday 8:00am AEDT and can be viewed via https://www.rtve.es/play/videos/directo/
For continued updates on all the Eurovision Song Contest news follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Threads and TikTok. All links at: https://linktr.ee/aussievisionnet
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