Thread by @Moof

So, because I’m tired of Coronatweets, and I’m stuck on a 3 hour plane and don’t want to do real work, I thought I’d distract you with some general thoughts on this year’s Eurovision songs, in my first #ESC2020 thread of the year

Not all the songs are out so far, but enough now to start forming opinions, and in general, this is going to be an awesomely amazing year. A much better showing all round than 2019, and possibly better than 2018 levels. Videos are here: youtube.com/playlist?list=…

Retro is big this year. From random cassettes and floppies in #GEO 🇬🇪 to pixel art in #ISL 🇮🇸 to... whatever you want to make of #RUS 🇷🇺... Retro has made a comeback

And there’s a welcome return to less poppy beats. We’ve not had Reggae for a while, and #CZE 🇨🇿 does it well. Similarly the awesome funky of #AUS 🇦🇹 had me bopping in my airplane seat, and #MKD 🇲🇰 have a surprising Tango.

Finger clicks are big this year. If you want to go to an #ESC2020 party this year, learn to snap your fingers so you can join in!

There’s at least two songs I could identify talking openly about Alcoholism. And the somewhat depressing theme of #NED 🇳🇱is not going to endear itself to voters I suspect. Similarly #CHE🇨🇭is far from rosy.

I am genuinely curious to see how #GRC 🇬🇷 translate their excellent video to the stage.

And I honestly can’t work out if #BLR 🇧🇾 is a genuine effort at an entry, or a massive troll. Could be either way, but I suspect it won’t squeeze through the semifinals without a lot of work.

Multiculturalism, Cultural homegeneity and random languages are also appearing more in these songs. I wasn’t expecting to hear #RUS 🇷🇺 sing in Spanish, and #FRA 🇫🇷 seems to have finally started singing partly in English!

@syn will be happy to hear that Hatari’s sartorial legacy is somewhat alive, as seen in #SRB 🇷🇸 and #SMR 🇸🇲, although the kink is half-hearted at best, as no-one can pull it off quite like them

Those of you looking for eastern musical WTFery can rest assured that #UKR 🇺🇦 and #ISR 🇮🇱 have you amply covered.

Predictably, only one of the Big 5 is making much of an effort to win this contest. At least #DEU 🇩🇪 has a catchy song.

It’s too early to say who’s going to win, and I’m rarely right anyway. However, I feel that It’d be remiss of me not to fanboy at my favourite by far this year which is... #AZE 🇦🇿. Everybody now: Like CleopatRRRRRA!

Also, it turns out that the answer to “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?” is Latvia 🇱🇻