"És el moment de corregir..." Every contest needs an underdog, and there is no greater underdog in Eurovision than the principality of Andorra. Dwarfed by larger nations with strategically dispersed populations, it is a dot on the ESC map that barely registers with most viewers, despite almost always deserving to. It is one of very few countries left in the competition never to have qualified for the final, so after their abortive makeover last year it comes as no surprise that they are returning to the strategy which saw them come as close as they ever have to a Saturday night berth with Salvem El Món in 2007. Resting on the only crutch they have - the language card, which admittedly they can only play to Spain and, to a lesser extent, Portugal - they have once again come up with a catchy entry in Catalan and English performed by a spunky young singer: La Teva Decisió (Get A Life).
The new Luxembourg, Andorra is contemporary Eurovision's greatest importer, shipping in performers from various other European countries in lieu of what is clearly limited local talent. This year they have chosen cute-as-a-button Susanne Georgi, hailing from Denmark - who are of course in the 2nd semi, depriving her of what little support she might otherwise have relied upon to counteract as best she could the hoover effect of such rivals as Turkey and Armenia. Her gorgeous, glottal vocals are what make La Teva Decisió the attractive proposition it is. Light and poppy without lacking depth (like the composition), they add something to the song which sees it working as a package much more effectively than I would ever have expected it to. Of course, as per any Andorran entry in a semi-final where televoting holds sway, the problem is not so much the song itself as overcoming the headstart other countries have under the current system.
Being the underdog, what the principality has to hope for with La Teva Decisió is a groundswell of support not dissimilar to the one that saw the audience asking "Where is Andorra?" during the 2007 final. And it may just happen: people seem generally disposed to like the song, and given the same kind of energetic but unassuming performance Anonymous delivered in Helsinki it may just win the audience over. After all, it has the broadest appeal of any Andorran entry to date. That said, the 1st semi is the harder to pick in terms of who will qualify, and for La Teva Decisió it will be an uphill struggle from the outset. I would desperately love to see it make the final, even if it were only to come last once it got there, but I'm reticent to suggest that it will on televoting alone. The juries may decide to throw it a lifeline; I hope someone does. As underdogs go, Andorra is faithful and uncomplaining, and has more than earned its chance to show Europe what it's capable of.
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