Today I reflect on the participation and musical successes of James aka PoohSnap, who unfortunately isn't featured in my top 100 ranking for the year (as Keke Palmer would say, sorry to this man).
PoohSnap made his first appearance in the contest during TSC 346 in which he voted as a jury member. His first ever 12 points were rewarded to Tom Grennan, an artist that topped my 2018 TSC ranking, and was heavily considered for my 2019 list before getting cut at the last minute (not to beat a dead horse, but SORRY TO THIS MAN). That was the moment I knew PoohSnap had an eye for excellence, would go on to bless the contest with his distinctive music taste, and reward Eoin with a plethora of points that would inspire the two of them to team up in a Turney Time group game.
While PoohSnap had a total of *4* songs shortlisted for my 2019 ranking, sadly none of them made the final cut for a spot in my top 100. That's why I'm dedicating this blog to celebrate the entries of Pooh's that I legitimately enjoyed, but couldn't justify placing in my official blog series.
Between Mountains - Into the Dark
TSC 353 - 23rd place, 36 points (7 points given)
I was surprised to hear this song in TSC considering Between Mountains are a relatively obscure Icelandic band that I didn't expect anyone outside of ESCT to be familiar with. I initially thought someone took inspiration from my ESCT national final so I was flattered at the idea that somebody would enter this into the contest. I was wrong in my assessment, but glad that this was submitted nonetheless, and it remains the first song of Pooh's that I ever voted for!
SVALA - For The Night
TSC 365 - 14th place, 37 points (8 points given)
There appears to be a theme with the first two entries featured: both are performed by Icelandic artists. I'm happy to see Pooh's familiarity with the Icelandic music scene (maybe he can help me put together an Icelandic national final for ESCT one time). I think I've enjoyed every song I've heard by SVALA from Paper, to her work with Steed Lord, to this. For The Night is extremely chill, and it came extremely close to cracking my top 100 list.
Amanda Tenfjord - The Floor Is Lava
TSC 366 - 16th place, 42 points (3 points given)
I'd like to think that this song inspired 'the floor is lava' meme, even though the contrary is probably the case. I seriously underrated how catchy this song was. I found myself humming it a lot following its contest, and it would have gotten more points had I been voting today.
Maniac will always be Pooh's most iconic entry as it's the closest he's ever come to winning the contest. People also mistook this for my entry as it was considered to have a sound (and video styling) that I tend to submit, which I like to think isn't an inaccurate assessment. This was entered at a fantastic time, satisfying the theme requirements for that week, but also fitting a hypothetical Halloween theme that some people were expecting. Maniac satisfied both parties, hence why I think it came so close to winning. This song is totally up my alley and looking back I actually regret not putting it in my top 100, thus inspiring this appreciation post.
And that's it. You can say that Pooh really did snap, and I hope PoohSnap returns to the contest when we relaunch in 2020 as I've enjoyed his presence and distinctive music taste!
