Australia 2022: Sheldon Riley with ‘Not The Same’

In a competitive Australia Decides, Sheldon Riley managed to come through the middle and take the victory with ‘Not The Same’.

Let's not stand on ceremony: this is a great song and one of the best of the year. The build, the main chorus hook, the bridge, the production - all fantastic and in studio form this is I'd say the strongest thing that's come by. It's hands down a better composition than ‘River’ for comparison.

There's a reason however this now sits above 30-1 and It’s the “other stuff” alluded to in last weeks odds review. There's 3 main issues that are all going to have a massive negative impact on the chances of this- Sheldon’s live performance and persona, the song’s lyrical context and the Australia branding. The first issue can be overcome if the staging is entirely reworked, drop the mask, drop the dress, brighten it up- this is 101 stuff and if Sheldon loves Eurovision as much as he claims he should understand this too- don't try and be a conchita-esque character and compromise if Australia's aim is maximum points. There's always going to be a televote drag with this and it doubles down on Australia's exclusivity in general and whatever changes are made it will cost them the win- it needn't cost them a top 10 however.

I don't believe qualification will be an issue and song quality alone in this field is enough for a mid table finish if Australia receive half the usual jury generosity. I'm assuming this improves and may come back into the mix to nab an e/w spot.

Personal Rating: 9/10

Competitive Rating: 7/10

Early Prediction: Semi 2 1st- 5th, 6th-10th in the Final