For the Eurovision fans who follow national selections, it’s easy to be bombarded by countless competing entries. Part of the fun is following the selections to see what the nations have to offer, and ultimately, what each nation determines to be their best chance at Eurovision. With new selections each year, the songs that we loved in one year are often replaced by new songs, and that was the case with today’s National Final Throwback. Hearing a snippet of Knock Knock triggered some nostalgia, but now I’m wondering if I’ll be as impressed with this song as I was back in 2018…
All my memories of this song are of the studio version, and listening to it again, I’m still charmed in the same ways I was back in 2018. This is a unique song matched by unique vocals. I love the prominent piano in the opening and first verse, and I also really love the change in pace to the chorus. It’s lyrically simple, but memorable. From that point, the melodies aren’t super predictable. It’s hard to anticipate where this song will go, but it’s not too disjointed. While I enjoy the first half of the song, I’m left wanting a bit more from the ending. Overall, it was a decent competitor in the line-up.
A song can be incredible in a studio version, but ultimately, it’s all about the live performance. I have almost no recollection of the live performance of this entry, and watching it again now, there were flaws that prevented a strong result. While there were strong visual elements in the performance, such as the lighting and parts of the choreography, overall, it’s clear that this is a style of song more suited for radio airplay, rather than a live performance. The opening verse of the performance is strong, both in a visual and vocal standpoint. The camera cuts worked well, as well as the lighting and fog. By the chorus, however, the song just falls completely flat. It picks up again a bit towards the end, but by that point, the audience attention is lost.
With all things considered, I’ll still give this a 6.5/10. There are some really great moments in this song, even though it wasn’t strong enough to represent Estonia at Eurovision.
Profile
Year: 2018
Country: Estonia
Artist: Nika
Song: Knock Knock