Ukrainian rock band O. Torvald will represent Ukraine at the Eurovision Song Contest in May.
Ukraine is the host country of the 2017 contest. It has received the right to host when Ukrainian singer Jamala won the Eurovision in Sweden in 2016.
O. Torvald won the final of the national selection on Feb. 25, performing their song “Time.”
Because of last year’s victory of Jamala, O. Torvald won’t compete in the semi-finals: It automatically made it to the final of the contest that will take place in Kyiv on May 13.
In the final stage of the national selection, O. Torvald competed against another band, Salto Nazad and solo performers Melovin, Tayanna, Illaria and Rozhden.
O. Torvald performs their Eurovision song “Time” at the final of the national selection on Feb. 25.
The performances were evaluated by judges, while the TV audience voted via SMS.
O.Torvald and Tayanna received the same total score, but the band has got more SMS votes which had a priority over the judges.
Ukraine is one of the six countries that automatically made it to the final of the 2017 Eurovision, together with France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom.
The contest will take place at the International Exhibition Center, a performance and exhibition venue on the left bank of Kyiv.
Last year, Jamala won the Eurovision fans’ hearts with “1944” – a song about the deportation of Crimean Tatars by the Soviet regime, which many found too political for the contest since it reflected the current events in Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.
On the contrast, O.Torvald will perform a clearly non-political song. Their “Time” is an energetic rock song about what really matters to people when their time is running out.
O.Torvald is a young band, but not a real newcomer to Ukrainian music industry: The band was formed more than 10 years ago in Poltava, a city 340 kilometers southeast of Kyiv. However, they rose to fame among mainstream audience only several years ago.
The band is led by vocalist and guitarist Yevhen Halych. Halych used to be a TV host at M1 music channel.
O. Torvald recorded six albums and performed at various Ukrainian and international music festivals, such as Zaxid Fest in western Ukraine, Prosto Rock in Odesa and Ekolomyja in Poland.
Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Kyiv on May 9, 11 and 13 in the International Exhibition Center (15 Brovarskiy Ave.). Tickets to the Grand Final that will take place on May 13 cost Hr 1,000 – 15,999 (€ 34 – 553). Tickets for semi-final are available at www.concert.ua for Hr 766 – 9,794 (€27 – 345).
