Eurovision 2019 spotlight: Montenegro's D-Mol with "Heaven"...

On we go with my spotlight of the entries that are competing in the Eurovision Song Contest this May in Tel Aviv, Israel. You can check out my series so far by clicking here, and now that the semi-finals running order is set, I will be following it, followed by the "big five" of the UK, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, and the host country Israel. It just so happens that yesterday's song, "Replay" from Tamta, will open the show, so it'll already be a bit easier...

Montenegro - "Heaven" by D-Mol

If you have to pick the darkest of the dark horses in this year's competition, it would be this entry from the former Yugoslav republic of Montenegro. Last year, the country entered with a dramatic Balkan ballad, "Inje" from singer/songwriter Vanja Radovanović, which came in 16th out of 18 in the second semi-final. Personally, that was cruel, since the revamp of the song greatly improved the quality of it, but perhaps the language barrier was too strong to relate to such an emotional piece (hell, the supposed translation of the title is "Hoarfrost", which hell if I know). So this year what do we get? Well, a pop ditty in English so simple that there can be no translation trouble, but one some people say is so bland it could soundtrack a maxi-pad commercial. The group who won the country's national contest, D-Mol (changed already from D-Moll), is a collection of six young singers who share lead vocals throughout the song, but unlike last year's Equinox from Bulgaria, are generic locals instead of a couple "ringers" from America spicing up a Balkan trio Backstreet Boys-style. The song, "Heaven", could easily have been put out in 1990 in America, squeezed between Amy Grant and Michael Bolton hits on the radio. But on the bright side, even though their individual parts sounded a bit weak in the national contest, the six sure know how to harmonize together, and despite the horrid staging at the time (probs budget) seems rather cute at least. Since then the track itself has gotten a big production tweak, and the music video separates them visually so it is more interesting to watch, and inserts some local sounds and sights. Also, I do have a soft spot for earnest corny pop numbers at Eurovision, so maybe that's why part of me is rooting for them to at least make the finals (although the chances are slim, you never know).

It's a shame they won't be able to have that old guy on stage with them (there's an on-stage limit of six). Anyhoo, I got to say this seriously has grown on me more than I had expected. Definitely won't say this would win, but it really does deserve a shot, though the producers may have other plans, putting them in the spot of death performing second after Cyprus' Tamta. But with Greece, Serbia, and Slovenia giving potential points, at least I can picture this not getting a nil. (Rating 6/10)

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As part of Yugoslavia, Montenegro has been in Eurovision since way back in 1961 until 1992. In that time two entries, ironically back-to-back, were from Montenegrin acts. In 1983, Danijel came in all the way up at #4 with "Džuli" ("Julie")...

Then for two years, they competed as Serbia and Montenegro; the second year featured Montenegrin boy-band No Name with "Zauvijek moja" ("Forever Mine"), which landed in the top ten at #7 in 2005. Singer Danijel Alibabić currently is mentoring D-Mol and helped put together the group...

Since 2007, the country has competed on its own, but to much worse results, only managing to qualify for the finals twice in ten tries so far. Out of the two that have, their best result has been in 2015, when singer Knez placed in 13th with "Adio". It's my pick for the country's best entry on their own...

But for pure Eurovision fun, I cannot deny the allure of 2017's entry from Slavko Kalezić, who was a trainwreck at the actual program, but the cheesiest gayness of the studio version of his "Space" still remains a guilty pleasure...