Italy | Il Volo - "Grande amore"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto and Gianluca Ginoble are Il Volo. They first appeared to the public in 2009, when they competed in the Italian reality show Ti lascio una canzone. They went on to become one of the main names within the current Italian music scene. They won the popular Festival di Sanremo with the song "Grande amore", a romantic and very dramatic display of love in form of an operatic pop ballad.

Netherlands | Trijntje Oosterhuis - "Walk along"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

Trijntje Oosterhuis was born in Amsterdam in 1973. She is one of the most popular singes in the Netherlands, and is currently one of the judges of The Voice of Holland. She will represent her home country with "Walk along", a very modern pop song with an infectious chorus and a very gentle melody. The song is composed by the 2013 Dutch representant Anouk.

Portugal | Ella Nor - "Há um mar que nos separa"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

The editors of Sounds European! aren't the biggest fans of the recent history of Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest (with some few excepions). But this year, we are very happy with the country's choice for the festival: "Há um mar que nos separa", by Ella Nor (Leonor Andrade, born in Quinta do Anjo in 1994), delivers everything we expect from Portuguese music. A deep song which overflows rhythm and great vocals!

Updated on December 25th, 2017, with the new stage name of the artist.

Montenegro | Knez - "Adio"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

Born in Cetinje in 1967, Knez will represent Montenegro with "Adio". The song was composed by a known name to the Eurovision family, Željko Joksimović. And we can totally see his hand in the song: it is a very traditional Balkan ballad, which starts with a very beautiful instrumental part and grows into an epic finish.

Russia | Polina Gagarina - "A million voices"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

When the first news regarding Polina Gagarina's representing Russia on Eurovision started appearing, our team doubted it. But then she was confirmed, and we couldn't be more glad! The Russian diva will go to Vienna with "A million voices", a strong ballad which explores the best of her voice.

Serbia | Bojana Stamenov - "Beauty never lies"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

Bojana Stamenov is a Serbian singer who was born in 1986 in Belgrade. She rose to fame after being fourth place on the Serbian version of the reality show Got Talent. Bojana was selected to represent her country on this year's Eurovosion. Her entry is entitled "Beauty never lies", and it is a very powerful pop dance track.

Belarus | Uzari feat. Maimuna - "Time"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

Belarus is coming strong this year! The very young Uzari, who was born in Minsk in 1991, will do the singing, while Maimuna, a very talented violinist born in Saint Petersburg in 1980, will provide some violin power! They won the Belarusian Eurofest in the end of 2014 with "Time". The song is a very nice uptempo song completed grandiosely with the mellow sounds of the violin.

Romania | Voltaj - "De la capăt (All over again)"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

Voltaj is a Romanian band which was formed in Bucharest in 1982. They are one of the most famous and traditional bands from the country. Now, they'll represent it on Eurovision, with "De la capăt (All over again)". It is a touching song with very well developed instrumentals, convincing vocals and a great message behind. The rare use of the Romanian language is another detail to praise – it is only the third time Romania has an entry with it since 2000.

Iceland | María Ólafs - "Unbroken"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

The sweet María Ólafsdóttir was born in Blönduós, Iceland, in 1993. She won the Icelandic National Final, called Söngvakeppnin, with the song "Unbroken", a beautiful and pure pop smasher with a very catchy chorus.

Estonia | Elina Born feat. Stig Rästa - "Goodbye to yesterday"

EUROVISION

From May 12th to May 18th, Sounds European! will review the best entries of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is going to take place in Vienna – with semifinals on May 19th and 21st and the final on the 23rd.

A duet for Estonia. The very young singer Elina Born will join forces with the popular singer and songwriter Stig Rästa. The duet won landslide the popular Eesti Laul and will flag the Estonian flag with "Goodbye to yesterday", a dramatic pop song with a very cool retro feeling.