The rehearsals for Melodifestivalen 2024 have begun!
Phoenix have been given accreditation for this years Melodifestivalen by SVT – meaning we can bring you all the information you need about this years rehearsals!
Here are our thoughts on what we’ve seen from the Heat 1 so far…
You can read all about the artists competing by clicking here – 🇸🇪Sneak Peek: Melodifestivalen 2024 Heat 1
Adam Woods – ‘Supernatural’
Adam begins in a white square, which begins to “unravel” and crawl forwards along with him as he begins the first chorus. Clever use of the LEDs helps to stop the stage ever feeling empty, and along with Adam’s incredible stage presence viewers will definitely be drawn in to this performance of ‘Supernatural’. The song begins with monochrome LEDs before they turn blue, gold and red. During the bridge, the floor pulsates with each beat, building into a strong final chorus. The LED is also interactive, a frequent feature we’ve come to see in national finals and Eurovision post-Måns Zelmerlöw’s win in 2015.
Vocally, Adam has nailed each run through, especially during the afternoon rehearsals on Friday. There’s a big note towards the end, which he’s improved on hitting with each rehearsal. It was evident during Friday’s artist and dress-rehearsals that Adam was a lot more confident on stage, with improved camera angles and lighting.
You can see images from his rehearsal below!
Samir & Viktor – ‘Hela världen väntar’
Samir & Viktor begin ‘Hela Världen Väntar’ on a structure made up of stairs (Viktor on one side, Samir on the other). As they reach the first chorus, they’re joined by 5 dancers on the stair-structure, all dressed in white. As the beat-drop hits, the pair make their way to the centre of the structure as we get some impressive breakdancing from one of the dancers prior to the second verse. In the first rehearsal, the staging remained mainly blue, but was adjusted for the run through on Friday, now with the LED background and lighting starting off using red and gold tones.
There’s also been an improvement in the performance during Friday’s rehearsal – the nerves of returning to the stage have gone, and they both have the same energy and stage presence they’ve had in their previous participations. There’s a lot of pre-recorded backing vocals in the chorus, but as the song doesn’t require any “big” moments (beside’s one section from Samir in the final chorus), these vocals add an extra layer of support to Samir & Viktor during the chorus.
You can see images from their rehearsal below!
Melina Borglowe – ‘Min melodi’
Probably the most consistent of those taking part in Heat 1 across both days of rehearsals, Melina’s performance really stands out between the bigger pop tracks before and after ‘Min Melodi‘. Dressed in green and surrounded by a number of lamps, she remains in the centre for the entire song, with gold lighting and minimal smoke behind her. ‘Min Melodi’ is a very gentle song, and feels extremely authentic, which Melina helps to sell – you can tell she’s really happy to be performing at the contest even just in the rehearsals, making this is a welcome addition to a returnee-heavy Heat.
You can see images from her rehearsal below!
Elisa Lindström – ‘Forever Yours’
Elisa begins with a close up camera shot for the start of ‘Forever Yours’. She’s standing on a large, fan shaped prop, blocking out the LED screen for the first verse. As the second verse begins, she’s joined by 4 dancers as she makes her way to the front of the stage, and does choreography alongside them during different sections of the second half of the song. We also have quite a bit of pyro towards the end, really selling this entry to viewers both in Malmö Arena and those watching at home. This is extremely different to what we last saw of Elisa in 2021, where she took on a ballad with ‘Den Du Är’. Her vocals have been polished in each run through, and she gets more confident with the dance routine the more she performs. Outfit wise, she’s in a simple white dress, which stands out on the black & pink background, with pink glitter on her right leg. During Friday’s rehearsal, she seemed a lot more comfortable with the choreography and nailed each run through vocally. If viewers are looking for a classic Schlager track, ‘Forever Yours’ will definitely be picking up votes during Heat 1.
You can see images from her rehearsal below!
Lisa Ajax – ‘Awful Liar’
One of the strongest vocalists in this heat, Lisa Ajax returns with an entry that really helps to showcase her voice, completing every rehearsal effortlessly. This is another performance remaining relatively unchanged between rehearsals – Friday just saw some more refined lighting and camera angle choices that equalised the focus on Lisa to the focus on the dancers. The performance begins with Lisa standing in the centre of the stage, with both dancers appearing from the first chorus onwards to do an interpretive dance routine. For the second half of the song, Lisa moves to the side of the stage to sit on one of the rock-like props, before she returns to the centre for the big final chorus of ‘Awful Liar’.
You can see images from her rehearsal below!
Smash Into Pieces – ‘Heroes Are Calling’
Smash Into Pieces return with ‘Heroes Are Calling’, which starts with lead-singer Chris alone on the stage, before the rest of the band join him for the first chorus. This year, we get to see a lot more of the group, with more camera shots of each member compared to last years effort ‘Six Feet Under’, helping to build a better connection for the viewer. There’s a lot of red and blue lighting here, with a heavy focus on the red-laser style lighting towards the bridge and final chorus. In ‘Heroes Are Calling’, the lead up to the last chorus features a ‘choir’ like pre-recorded track, which was turned up for a better effect during Friday’s rehearsal.
You can see images from their rehearsal below!
Melodifestivalen 2024 Heat 1 takes place on February 3rd 2024 at 20:00 CET // 19:00 GMT Live on SVT – click here to watch live.
Who’s your Melfest Heat 1 favourite? Leave a comment below to let us know!
Thank you to SVT, Melodifestivalen & Stina Stjernkvist for all of the images from this weeks rehearsals, and thank you to SVT for our accreditation for the show!
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