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Last May, Ell & Nikki, an obscure duo from Azerbaijan, won the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest. The country’s President, Ilham Aliyev, treated the musical win like a military triumph, describing it as “a victory for the people of Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijani state.” By winning the pan-European singing contest — which, kitschy as it is, [...]
Critics deride the Eurovision Song Contest as a cultural Chernobyl where sex appeal has more value than musical ability. There’s some truth in that. In recent years contestants have danced salaciously in giant hamster wheels (Ukraine) and stood on wind machines while wearing pink tutus (Albania). But look past the froth and sequins and it [...]
In the opening bars of “Be My Guest” — Ukraine’s entry for the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest — the Ukrainian surma horn suggests that something highly traditional is about to unfold. Within 15 seconds, however, strains of folk music and visions of stiff-jacketed, strutting Cossacks give way to decidedly modern pop. There’s an electronic synthesizer. There’s a [...]
According to scholars, the fact the Mayan calendar ends by the winter solstice of 2012 is not an omen of the apocalypse, but a rather savvy political move by an ancient monarch. To that end, Global Spin offers its predictions for Latin American politics before this fateful year draws to a close.
