Tag: SMILO

SMILO – Young Again

“Young people singing about wanting to be young again doesn’t quite make sense.”

Tim: Their Melodifestivalen entry may not have been as successful as they’d hoped, but they do at least have a slightly higher profile – they’ve got a Vevo channel now and everything. Anyway, here’s their new one.

Tim: And that is, well, perfectly listenable and danceable really.

Tom: I don’t think it’s either of those!

Tim: Oh. It’s not massive praise there in any case, I’ll grant you, but at the risk of going “argh, all sounds the same” old person, you need to be either be special or very lucky to stand out, and this song doesn’t quite have that.

Tom: Careful, that “all sounds the same” is basically my shtick. But look, that chorus is so overcompressed that it’s difficult to listen to. And it’s syncopated in such a strange way that, yes, there’s giant four on the floor percussion in there, but I’m not sure I could tell you with any confidence when any of it lands.

Tim: Oh, shame. There’s one part I actually really do like a lot, which is the close of the middle eight. I’m not quite sure why, especially since young people singing about wanting to be young again doesn’t quite make sense, but the steady vocal accompanied by just a single drum beat pattern giving swift way into full dance mode does strike me as particularly effective.

Tom: It’s just a shame those lyrics are so anodyne. As someone who generally likes terrible, cheesy Europop, I shouldn’t mind this at all: but for some reason it just completely grates me the wrong way. Probably the early reference to a teddy bear.

Tim: All in, let’s say about 68%, then.

Tom: That is a massively generous grade.

Saturday Reject: SMILO – Weight Of The World

“Standing behind a mixing desk that probably isn’t even plugged into anything”

Tim: Sweden, well known for its EDM output, so what will we get when we put a newish act on stage at the country’s largest music competition?

Tim: Well, for starters, we get two thirds of the act standing behind a mixing desk that probably isn’t even plugged into anything, with a TV on front that for some reason is displaying what appears to be the old Doctor Who opening title sequence.

Tom: See, I went with “old-school Winamp visualisation”, so you know, there are our different reference points.

Tim: On the other hand, we get a great dance track with two good choruses, vocal and instrumental, sparks flying all over the place, and the heart in the bottom left going somewhat mental.

Tom: Mm. It is a bit Aviici-lite, though, isn’t it? I know Eurovision isn’t always the most up-to-date affair, but if you’re trying to do EDM, then sounding even a year or two old might push the young crowd against you — and the older folks won’t vote for it either way.

Tim: Oh, hell no, standard EDM like this is never a good shout for Eurovision – the most recent similar acts that spring to mind are Cascada and Ryan Dolan, coming almost last and dead last respectively. Still very enjoyable, though – a lovely diversion, great way of picking up pace and keeping everyone going, and probably one for my “getting ready to go out” playlist.

Tom: I’m just not sold: the vocals are a bit rough — I know, they’re live, but even so — and the melody feels like it’s been knocked out in an afternoon. Not bad, sure, but this was never a winner.

Tim: They’ve previously been known for tropical house, so have a listen here if you fancy it, but otherwise I’d say they acquitted themselves fairly well.