Melodifestivalen 2013: Heat Three

Yes, this week it's not exactly a "live blog," but I'm watching it now with no knowledge of the outcome, so it's gonna be pretty damn close! Fingers crossed for Martin!!

 * Eddie, Amanda and Martin getting the most applause at the outset. I certainly wouldn't mind that outcome!

* I can't remember, did Italy really give Sweden no points in last year's Eurovision? I doubt many of the people she was interviewing even watch Eurovision...

EDDIE: That's certainly an interesting stage outfit he's got. I like the bedazzled knees. This is a great song, though I feel like it's going to suffer a bit because it sounds so similar to the previous weeks' opening performances. It's no Euphoria, but at least it's in the right vein. Staging could've been more interesting. 

ELIN: Oh my god she looks awkward during that intro bit. There's not much to say about this song or performance. It's pleasant, but very boring. Of course, that worked for Anna Bergandahl a couple of years ago, so you never know. Still, this seems like an obvious seventh or eighth place.

RAVAILLACS: Old men haven't been very successful in this year's competition. Could a supergroup of them fair better? I fear that they might, as this kind of act always seems to get through to at least the top four. Still, this is a strong heat, so who knows? The song is actually pretty catchy and they're an amusing bunch. I just hope they don't knock one of my favorites out.

AMANDA: I like her stage outfit, definitely, and she's already got more charisma than all tonight's previous performers before even singing one note. The song's pretty good and she's definitely got presence, but it's hard to understand what she's saying! Still, I'd be happy to see this go through. It's not winner material, but at least it's different.

MARTIN: Oh yeah! I've had this song in my head all day and I hadn't even heard the whole thing yet. It's impossibly catchy. I loved the performance, too. It worked very well on TV and the staging was original/cool. I just hope he gets the votes. I'm scared for him, even though this was the best song of the night so far, easily.

CAROLINE: I really do love this woman and think that she's so fun to watch perform. That said, this isn't nearly as good as her last entry. I really think that, if people are voting for her, they're voting for her as an artist and not the song. I do think the staging was very effective, though, and I could see this going through very easily.

STATE OF DRAMA: That lead singer's facial-expression entry was very... um... interesting. I could describe this song in many ways, but a "state of drama" is definitely not one of them. It just needs a little more oomph. It's not bad, but it's pretty boring. "Inoffensive" would be a good word. The singer's got a good voice, though. It all hinges on whether or not the voting public are in a soft rock mood or not.

JANET: Now that's quite a bodysuit! Wow, you've gotta be pretty confident to wear something like that on TV. I definitely like the song a lot more now that I've heard it in full, and she put on quite a performance. This feels like a winner (of this week, not necessarily the whole competition), but it's such a strong heat! Ugh... predicting is going to be hard.

My PREDICTIONS: Final - Caroline, Janet Andra Chansen - Amanda & Ravaillics (and maybe Martin, though State of Drama could sneak in, too) I'm pulling for Martin, but the competition is so stiff!
The only act that feels truly out of the race is Elin. God, who knows. My hopes? Martin and Janet through.

UPDATE:
Top Five (or as Danny said, "resultation" ?) - State of Drama, Caroline, Martin (yay!!), Ravaillics & Janet (yay!) 
6th Eddie
7th Amanda (surprised it was this low, but I guess it was the vocals)
8th Elin (knew it!)

Now, I'm hoping Martin and Janet go through to the final and Caroline and Ravaillics go to andra chansen, though State of Drama feels like an "andra chansen" act if ever there was one...
One thing's for sure: this is gonna be TOUGH. Strong songs, all around.

EDIT: The transition to this retro interval act was very nonexistent. Is every interval act this year going to be the hosts performing? Hate to say it, but it's getting a little predictable. It's basically just been a chance for Danny to show off different styles of dance, and none has been as entertaining as the first week.

EDIT: I'm missing that "family band" from last week. I think you need to have a better grasp on the Swedish language than I do to find this dansband sketch funny.

EDIT: The first act through to the final is... State of Drama
Ugh. Really? It's an okay song, but first to go through to the final? Against the four others? Not cool. As it's shaping up, we're gonna have a weird, underwhelming Final this year.

EDIT:
Andra Chansen - Martin (should've been to the final), Caroline
Out - Janet (WTF?!?)
2nd to the Final - Ravaillics

Jesus... so our Final thus far looks like this:
David Lindgren
Yohio
Sean Banan
the Dead Fish lady
State of Drama
Ravaillics

Seriously??? This is one WEAK final so far. I hope Ulrik has a good song next week, because otherwise I really don't know who's supposed to win this thing (even though I kinda like the stupid Ravaillics song - sadly)