Word on the street is that we are supposed to be deep into Post-Eurovision Depression (PED).
What is PED?
Post Eurovision Depression, or PED, is the annual disorder that manifests hours after the winner is announced, and tends to strike in the warm evenings of June. The experience can contrast from person to person, but the cause seems to be universal: the Eurovision bubble has popped for another year. No rehearsal footage to catch up on, no mid-week national final for musical nutrients. Not even a sea of flags to soothe the soul. After months of build-up, an abundance of songs to rate and a fantastic show, the anti-climax of starting again can be a lot to process. We are in a strange state where next year’s contest feels too far ahead in the future, yet this year’s freshly finished contest is concluded.
Maybe we did Eurovision wrong this year, but my PED is not as bad as it was last year around this time. A couple of factors:
There were not as many dance and uptempo bops in ESC22 compared to ESC21.
Because ESC20 was canceled because of the pandemic, I think ESC21 songs on a whole were exceptional. I think that extra year really helped with the quality of the songs.
This was the first year that I followed ESC during the national selections and the pre-parties, which typically run from late December to early May. By the time Eurovision week rolled around (2nd week of May), I think that I was over the contest. I was kinda like could y'all just pick the darn winner?
(Slightly controversial factor): Because of Russia invading Ukraine, I felt that the focus of this year's contest was more about supporting Ukraine (which was fine) than the contest itself. Folks always say that politics are not allowed in Eurovision, but I think politics this year played a huge role in the contest . . . especially with the number of televotes Ukraine received.
I figure that I would make a quick now and then post reflecting my top ten songs right before ESC22 week and during the 1st week of July. My full rankings are near the end of this post.
Aside from the number 1 spot, it looks like my top ten remained unchanged for the most part. While I do not speak a lick of Dutch, I probably listen to S10's De Diepte at least once a day. I guess Belgium, Estonia, and Lithuania left my top ten and were replaced with Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Cyprus. Note that my Now Top Ten has nothing to do with the artists' ESC22 performances, it's primarily based on the number of my regular playlists that the songs have slipped into.
