We’ve become used to seeing Lithuania in the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest, after their entries from 2011 to 2013 all qualified despite not being particularly favoured by fans or the bookmakers. That made it all the more of a surprise when the Baltic nation got stuck in the semi-final in Copenhagen last year. Vilija’s Attention finished in 11th place, but the quirky song with the weird fashion choices was actually a whole 17 points away from a qualification position.

Following another long and confusing selection process, the artists chosen to get Lithuania back on track are Monika Linkytė and Vaidas Baumila. Vaidas is very familiar to the escgo! community, having won the “Hottest entrant in a national final or at Eurovision” title at our ChatAwards 2014. Monika cannot boast a similar reputation, but she does have the letter “ė” in her surname, and that’s pretty cool too.

Their song, This Time, has a friendly and accessible vibe that makes it a natural choice to open the second semi-final in Vienna. It was also performed in solo versions during the Lithuanian selection, but its narrative seems particularly well suited to a duet. Mumford-esque (or, if we’re being less generous, Malta 2014-esque) strumming and folksy overtones combine with a mainstream melody, simple harmonies and plenty of playful interaction between the singers to create a pleasing end result, albeit one that isn’t exactly building any new bridges musically.

My verdict is that Lithuania’s result will depend on precisely that interaction. Considering they were thrown together as duet partners, Vaidas and Monika have good chemistry together, keeping the viewer’s interest alive when the song threatens to get tired and repetitive in its last minute. Some of the lyrics are beyond cheesy (“My God, stop for a minute and think/How ’bout we just go out for a drink?” – spare me, please!) and the kiss that Vaidas and Monika will presumably still be building into their performance is almost a step too far – but generally speaking, the performance aspect gives this song a lightness and a certain hint of “real life” (we know they’re acting it, but so do they, so it’s fine) that makes it stand out from the crowd.

I think it’s a qualifier, even in a semi-final that’s a tough one to call – and given the right position in the starting order, I genuinely believe its easy charms could cut through a lot of the more heavy-handed balladry on offer at ESC 2015 and bring Lithuania its best result since LT United nearly a decade ago. (And whatever else happens, Vaidas will surely be the hot favourite – no pun intended – to defend his ChatAwards title later this year.)

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