Stockholm 2016: Live-blog Day 2

Stockholm 2016 has started with day two of rehearsals! Ten countries take the stage: Czech Republic, Cyprus, Austria, Estonia, Azerbaijan, Montenegro, Iceland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Malta and Sweden. Team ESC Daily reports live from the press center.

In the following blog, you can find the latest Eurovision news from Stockholm with the newest update appearing on top. For in-depth rehearsal coverage, check our rehearsal blog.

20:18 – End of the liveblog

Thank you guys for following us here on day 2! Rehearsals are over, but stay tuned to ESCDaily for interviews and items, and of course a brand new episode of our talkshow Europe Calling.

20:15 – And finally… the rehearsal of the Swedish singer Frans

19:30 – Lynda Woodruff will be part of the BBC 4 

She is also known as the ‘official’ spokesperson of the EBU in Melodifestivalen and at Eurovision.

19:15 – And also the rehearsal of Cyprus is available

19:00 – Bosnia & Herzegovina’s first rehearsal 

17:50 – Frans repeats performance Melodifestivalen

Singer Frans from Sweden sings the radio-friendly If I Were sorry. Although some Eurovision watchers compare this number with Catch & Release by Matt Simons, it may not be original, but it is timeless. Although the Swedish rehearsal hardly differs from the previous Melodifestivalen performance, this is certainly not a disadvantage.

17:30 – See below Iceland’s rehearsal

17:25 – Malta doesn’t walk on water

Singer Ira Losco from Malta isn’t walking on water, but on a golden glow which is projected on the floor. Although Ira provides excellent vocal performance, there is little match between the text of the song and what is happening on stage. And we do not even know what is going to take place for a costume change.

17:03 – Frans today, France on Friday

But his fans are already ready for it!
France fans

16:40 – Rehearsal Montenegro online

16:25 – Aluminium and barbed wire for Bosnia

A wire fence and a violinist who was wrapped in aluminum foil. That summarizes the first rehearsal of Bosnia.

16:00 – Samra is not feeling well

At the Meet and Greet in the Press Centre, Azerbaijan’s Samra admitted that she is not feeling well currently. She hopes to improve her performance in the next rehearsal round on Friday and of course during the live shows next week. Watch her first rehearsal here.

15:45 – Daniel Gould – professional gambler specialising in TV events – about Iceland

15:15 – Silhouettes for Iceland

The silhouettes of the national final will also be used in Stockholm. After the chorus, there is a close shot of Greta which makes you feel that she walks into the living room. In the last shot you see some birds fly away.

14:55 – Video for Estonia

The clip for Jüri’s first rehearsal is now online. He did not look too enthusiastic this morning.

14:40 – Montenegro copies video clip

The first rehearsal of Montenegro reminds me of their own video clip. The lead singer of the band Highway is dressed in red and seems to crave to the dancer who is standing on a separate stage in front of him. They work with the colors blue, red and white and the camera shots follow each other very quickly.

Montenegro

13:57 – Vocal problems for Azerbaijan’s Samra

Singer Samra from Azerbaijan just rehearsed for the first time and let’s hope that there was something wrong with her in-ears because it doesn’t sound really good. On stage, it also looked very standard.

13:45 – Moldova: Lidia Isac will wear another dress

We have spoken to Lidia Isac: “The staging is related to our video clip, which we released a couple of days ago. We will still improve our show. I will for sure wear another dress, in the avant garde style.”

13:40 – Watch a short impression of the Austrian rehearsal

13:37 – Break almost over

After a long lunch break, Azerbaijan will be the next country. In this morning’s episode of Daily Coffee, Steef van Gorkum and Erik Bolks both said they were very curious about this particular rehearsal.

13:00 – And also the rehearsal of Cyprus is available

12:18 – Czech rehearsal is online

You can watch a snippet of Gabriela’s impressive first runthrough HERE.

12:05 – Estonia goes for classic card game

The singer of Estonia is wearing a dark blue suit, glasses and the theme on stage is obviously a classic card game. The first rehearsal singer Jüri Pootsmann does not much resemble his earlier performances during the national final. The mysterious, little James Bond atmosphere is exchanged for something bigger that clearly still needs some work.

11:30 – Fairytale world for Austria 

After Cyprus, it is time for something totally else. Singer Zoe from Austria sings Loin d’Ici and wears an elegant salmon pink dress. Halfway through the song, there is a fairytale world projected on the screen, but at this moment there is too little interaction between Zoe and the viewer.

Oostenrijk

11:01 – The singer from Estonia is ready for the rehearsal

10:50 – Wolves for Cyprus

Cyprus takes the stage for the rehearsal. The song Alter Ego Minus One reminds me a lot of Somebody Told Me by The Killers. During the first Cypriotic rehearsal, there are many quick shots and some of the band members are behind bars and there is also several times an animated wolf imaged (not on stage, only on the tv-screens).

10:25 – ‘Happy Birthday Dennis!’

Dennis van Eersel presented the first episode of Daily Coffee today on his birthday, which guests Steef van Gorkum and Erik Bolks kindly referred to at the end of the episode. The three of them also discussed the rehearsals of the day to come, stating they are most interested in Cyprus and Azerbaijan’s vocal delivery.

10:16 – She stands

Vocal delivery is great during the first runthrough. Purple and blue are the colours of the performance. Not much movement but song does not need this.

10:10 – ‘I’m sorry, can I see this?’

Gabriela from Czech Republic stops her first runthrough after fifteen seconds to ask some technical questions about the LED-projections of her song. She wants signs on the floor to remember where she has to stand, but the producer tells her this is visually impossible.

Czech Republic - first rehearsal 2016

09:55 – The first rehearsal is about to begin