urovision. The great European song contest, in which countries are invited to send their top performers to be judged on who has written the best song of 2004.

Held in Turkey, this year's edition will include a special "homage to ABBA", the most famous group to emerge from the contest to become a worldwide phenomenon.

Stylus asked our World Pop Correspondent Edward Oculicz to comment on this year’s entries. Because there are 22 of them, we’ve decided to spread them over two days. So, without further ado, the first eleven:

FINLAND: Jari Sillanpää - It Takes Two To Tango

This will benefit greatly from being first up on the night, because it's actually quite a decent song with a lot of memorable bits in it: the accordion is excellent, as are the string flourishes and the It's-Raining-Men-esque hallelujahs. The angels-and-devils imagery of the chorus stick in the mind despite its slight rubbishness, and the dramatic jump into the final chorus is a great pop moment, even if this is not actually a great pop song.

BELARUS: Alexandra & Konstantin - My Galileo

This is either one of the best songs in the qualifier, or the worst depending on your mood. It'll do well, as it's delightfully cheesy. The vocals swoop all over the place and catch the ear, as does the floating chorus, which is actually quite good fun to sing along with. Do it now - my Ga-leee-laaay-ooooh!

SWITZERLAND: Piero & The Music Stars - Celebrate!

Oh yay, let's go and party. Delivered with the enthusiasm of a sedated newsreader, this doesn't really do anything, which is a bit of a shame as with a bit of tweaking, it could have been good. This tweaking would involve a bigger beat, changing the chorus (that "Have a wonderful time!" has GOT to go) and getting some people who aren't telegraphing their intense distaste for uptempo pop to, you know, sing it properly.

LATVIA - Fomins & Kliens - Dziesma Par Laimi

The music in the chorus reminds me quite a bit of 2003's excellent Icelandic entry, "Open Your Heart", but the verses are closer to 2003's dire Irish entry. Unfortunately the verses are far too long, meaning it seems like forever before you get to the middling good bits. Pretty dreadful, all up, actually.

ISRAEL - David D'Or - To Believe

Without wishing to get all Terry Wogan, Israel must be a victim of politics. I mean, they're often frowned upon in Europe for the things they do, and the fact that they always seem to enter lovey-dovey songs probably further infuriates a number of other countries. The fact that David D'or sounds as if he has no testicles certainly does nothing for this song either, although the arrangement is rather tasteful. Bring back Dana International.

ANDORRA - Marta Roure - Jugarem A Estimar-Nos

Actually, I rather like this. It's got quite a nice sound to it, both in the calm verses and the slightly quicker chorus. Musically, it's as pretty as non-ballads get, and the atmosphere is generally good. It's certainly very well sung, and the words sound quite lovely in their indecipherable way.

PORTUGAL - Sofia Victoria - For Magia

Mind-drillingly pointless Eurodance with brass and overly enthusiastic singing that seems to be truly unaware of how dull the song is. The Eurovision equivalent of a Beyonce Knowles single, then. Though at least this is going to bomb out spectacularly in a most gratifying manner to those who appreciate Good Proper Pop.

MALTA - Julie & Ludwig - On Again, Off Again

The meshing of a proper male singer who could probably be doing opera or theatre with a light poppy singer (who also sounds like she could do some light opera) works quite well. It's a cute, slight little ditty which sounds extremely cheap and quickly thrown together, but it works on the charisma of the vocalists. Older viewers will really like this. Malta always does well in this competition, and it's hard to imagine them not making the final. Extra points for the giggle.

MONACO - Maryon - Notre Planete

What I said about Portugal, except this is in French and is about PROTECTING THE PLANET! Worst subject for a song ever. And the bit you think is a lead-up to the chorus is actually the chorus. Hideous, only included to make the French entry sound good.

GREECE - Sakis Rouvas

This isn't really a very good song, it's all very "Shake Your Bon Bon", except Greek. Will pick up a large idiot vote if Sakis appears without a shirt, which is rather likely. It's just rather hard to determine if Sakis has any presence on the basis of this song, because he's so... muted. May be an unflattering mix, it sounds constricted where it should be wild and loud - if it's performed well, it could go quite far though.

UKRAINE - Ruslana - Wild Dances

A lot of buzz around this one. It sounds like the chase sequence from a mid-1980s cartoon sequence, but yes, oh yes, we have a fantastic comedy Euro-accent (see also: Tatu), and the overall tone is something Shakira should consider pinching if she gets around to another album.

Coming tomorrow: the next 11...