Benjamin Ingrosso performing Dance You Off for Sweden in 2018’s contest. Photo: Andres Putting
We are the heroes of our time The Eurovision Song Contest has wrapped for another year. And while it was Israel who got the win (congratulations to Netta!), once again the Nordic nations featured high up on the final scoreboard, with both Sweden and Denmark gaining a top-ten finish, and Norway and Finland turning in two of the most memorable performances on the night. In the last ten years, Scandinavia has been responsible for four of the contest’s ten wins. An impressive track-record for the northern territory in a competition that sees up to 43 different countries from all over Europe (and beyond, hello Australia!) compete for that coveted win. So what is it that makes the Nordic nations so good at the game? Scan Magazine spoke to some of the artists and songwriters behind the champion songs, to get to the bottom of it. By Karl Batterbee
The most recent Scandinavian win came in 2015, when Sweden won with Heroes, performed by Måns Zelmerlöw. The song went on to become a big hit in most of Europe, including the UK, and one of the song’s writers, Linnea Deb, was also behind the Finnish entry to the 2018 contest earlier this month – the big fan favourite, Monsters, performed by Saara Aalto. “I believe that Sweden is well known for its pop music in general. We have music in school, music schools that aren’t expensive, and maybe there really is something in the water,” Linnea says with a 38 | Issue 112 | May 2018
wink, and continues: “That goes for our neighbour countries too, I guess. There is a studio in almost every basement.” Perhaps the most iconic Eurovision song of our generation is Euphoria by Loreen – another Swedish winner, from 2012. The song’s writer and producer, Peter Boström, believes that we can go way back when trying to pinpoint why Scandinavia gets it so right, in terms of pop: “I think the Nordic countries have an edge over many other nations in the Eurovision because of the strong legacy
of our traditional folk music. I guess we have the simple melodies in our blood.” Loreen herself puts it less down to melodies in her blood, and more down to the very real chill that she feels in her blood. “I don’t know if it’s because it’s so cold in Sweden that people don’t have anything else to do really, but to sit in the studio and write. We can’t go to the beach, let’s write. We can’t do this, let’s write. Everything is closed at six, let’s write,” she says. “But I’m happy that there are so many great writers and producers that still create so much nice music that is so global and which everyone can enjoy.”
A certain sound and tune After Loreen’s win for Sweden in 2012, the contest was held in Malmö the following May. And thanks to yet another Scandinavian win that year, the contest did not have very far to travel in 2014, crossing the bridge to Copenhagen, after Emmelie De Forest’s win for her native Denmark, with Only Teardrops. “I don’t know what it is,” says Emmelie, when attempting