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United Kingdom UNITED KINGDOM 2022 - Sam Ryder - Space Man

How do you rate this entry?

  • 12

    74 30.1%
  • 10

    32 13.0%
  • 8

    34 13.8%
  • 7

    33 13.4%
  • 6

    20 8.1%
  • 5

    14 5.7%
  • 4

    8 3.3%
  • 3

    12 4.9%
  • 2

    6 2.4%
  • 1

    4 1.6%
  • 0

    9 3.7%

  • Total voters
    246

escYOUnited

Administrator
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September 28, 2009
Posts
1,355

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If I was an astronaut, I'd be floating in mid-air
And a broken heart would just belong to someone else down there
I would be the centre of my lonely universe
But I'm only human, and I'm crashing down to earth

If I was an astronaut, I'd have a bird's eye view
I'd circle 'round the world and keep on coming back to you
In my floating castle, I'd rub shoulders with the stars
But I'm only human, and I'm drifting in the dark

I'm up in space, man
Up in space, man
I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
There's nothing but space, man
And I want to go home

If I was an astronaut, I'd speak to satellites
My navigation systems would search for other life
But I'd be up here thinking 'bout what I'd left behind
'Cause I'm only human with the real world on my mind

I'm up in space, man
Up in space, man
I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
There's nothing but space, man
And I want to go home

Gravity keeps pulling me down
As long as you're on the ground, I'll stick around
Stick around
I'll stick around

I'm up in space, man
Up in space, man
I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
There's nothing but space, man, no
Oh, I'm in the wrong place, man
Nothing but, nothing but, nothing but space, man
Nothing but, nothing but, nothing but space, man

I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
Nothing but space, man
And I want to go home​
 

midnightsun

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Joined
February 26, 2016
Posts
3,927
Location
Germany
I love the song but I don’t see the live quality of Sam Ryder that everyone praises.
I even think this will do a little worse in May than it could DUE to his live qualities.
(auto correct said 'love qualities' :sneaky:)

This song is kinda uplifting (despite the lyrics) and needs a quirky mischievous staging without neglecting the vocals. All I saw of him was too much fooling around and the voice wasn’t that impressive either so if he manages a good staging this is definitely top 10 at least.
 

Franzilein

Well-known member
Joined
March 5, 2015
Posts
1,366
Difficult song to sing despite being radio-friendly. If he nails it, I am sure juries will honour him. Staging has also a lot of potential with the space theme. Could be quite the dark horse (is it that dark though, seems to be loved by a lot here huh).
 

I bims

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February 23, 2021
Posts
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Location
Germany
So it's official now. Germany is by far the worst Big 5 member...

Well I looked up his Tik Toks and Sam has PIPES. He should nail this song live pretty flawlessly and that will give him a huge edge over others because it's not an easy song. It will stand out. Now just don't fuck up the staging.
 

ArmpitOfEurope

Well-known member
Joined
February 12, 2022
Posts
991
Enjoying the verses, then the ridiculous '' Im up in space, maaan '' lyric comes on.
He has a nice voice but theres something childish/comedic/annoying about his mannerisms.
Its ok, passable. :6:
 

ChiversLookDivine

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Joined
March 2, 2022
Posts
278
I love the song but I don’t see the live quality of Sam Ryder that everyone praises.
I even think this will do a little worse in May than it could DUE to his live qualities.

Apologies, but I don't think I understand this critique. Does he have a good live voice, or not?

I appreciate the attempt to criticise the song without using the word 'beige' like everyone attaches to Switzerland or Belgium for sending something straightforward, but I'm not sure I follow.
 

spinachpie

Well-known member
Joined
March 19, 2012
Posts
476
I love the song but I don’t see the live quality of Sam Ryder that everyone praises.
I even think this will do a little worse in May than it could DUE to his live qualities.
(auto correct said 'love qualities' :sneaky:)

This song is kinda uplifting (despite the lyrics) and needs a quirky mischievous staging without neglecting the vocals. All I saw of him was too much fooling around and the voice wasn’t that impressive either so if he manages a good staging this is definitely top 10 at least.

You don't think his live voice is good? Honestly? Fair enough if you don't like his voice, but his live vocals are insane.
 

ChiversLookDivine

Well-known member
Joined
March 2, 2022
Posts
278
Also, I think everyone in the last 2 pages confused about how a 'beige' song is getting such a good reaction on here and elsewhere are missing the point on a few aspects of the entry beyond just the song:

-Space Man is a strong reflection of the British music industry. Now you could argue that means the British charts are quite beige... and you'd probably be right. But Space Man, unlike Embers or Bigger Than Us or other entries, actually fits into British chart music. Musically it even 'sounds' British, with some comparing it to Elton John - I think this is an aspect we've always missed. Most countries send songs that are authentically their sound (think Cypriot/Greek entries), but the UK have always lacked a consistent sound.

-Sam Ryder himself is a huge live performer with a huge online following. In previous years we've sent singer-songwriters who weren't performers and looked like rabbits in the headlights on stage. We've sent West End rejects who grimaced and gurned through their performances. Sam is an actual live performer, the sort of the guy we've been desperate to send for years. People say the song is barely better than Embers or previous entries (I'd disagree) but I would say the song is the weakest part of the package. Ryder, though, has the ability to turn this song from a 6/10 studio version to 9/10 live on stage. Think 2018 when both Germany and Austria had very standard studio songs perform extremely well on the night. Not only is Space Man 'jury bait' but his online presence on TikTok and other platforms gives him a leg-up with the televoters that some are underestimating. Sam Ryder also looks like a star, whereas the last few guys look like they were found in the smoking area of a pub.

-The music video shares the same motifs as the lyrics video, which suggests a greater creative vision, which suggests a strong plan for staging that we've never had before.

-You need to stop comparing Space Man to Embers/Last Breath or Bigger Than Us. Apart from being sung by a guy, there aren't a lot of similarities. I kinda wish we'd sent a female bop last year as a palate cleanser because Space Man is miles better than our last few years.

I will concede that Space Man is the weakest part of the 2022 'package', which in a song contest isn't always a good sign. But there are other aspects at play that are giving this a lot more support and justified reasons to speculate about a Top 15 finish. Sam Ryder himself is the main one.
 

0scar

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Joined
December 26, 2014
Posts
2,124
Location
Utrecht
This song makes me want to go across the North Sea again though, as it has been too long since I've went to the UK
 

empo21

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March 9, 2020
Posts
3,796
Location
Чаршия
This is UK? Finally a proper Jesus since Iceland 2013

:8: with potential to upgrade. One of the better ballads this year so it's very welcome.

Also never would've thought that 'Space Man' is actually 'Space, Man' :D Who's sending a song called "Not Your Man, Pal' next year?
 

Hook2Hook

Active member
Joined
June 20, 2021
Posts
247
I don't get it why BBC don't just let him sing live...
However my first impression about this song was a year ago, he sang another two original songs that day, personally I still like Whirlwind, Tiny Riot way better...
 

HayashiM

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Joined
January 26, 2019
Posts
3,993
Location
Prague, Czech Republic
To be fair, yes, since I have joined, the trajectory seems pretty much always the same in this thread.
"Meh, this was a disappointing result, will BBC ever change?"
... months of speculations mostly going nowhere...
The song gets released / wins You Decide: "you know what, this is not that bad, we have expected it to be worse but it might actually have a chance?"
...May comes, song flops, rinse and repeat.

We won't know until May if it is still the same trajectory yet again. But I see something in this song, so I hope we're not.
Oh, and as I had a negative opinion about Embers since the very beginning and didn't see any reason why would anyone vote for it, there's just no comparison in my books :)
 

reginanoctis

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May 19, 2015
Posts
100
Location
Sweden
This sounds like that kind of song you hear in a commercial, that makes you think "oh, this is pretty good music for a commercial, I should listen to the whole thing" and then you do and then it turns out it's not really enough to carry a full song. Sorry. It's not bad but I don't expect the UK to do much better than usual.
 

theditz83

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February 7, 2010
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Scotland & Moisantia
It's annoying me that they did a big One Show performance that wasn't live vocal, since clearly that's where a lot of the doubt is coming from now - can he sell this live? Will his live vocal be up to this? They could've easily done a more intimate performance to allow him to sing fully live and show off his obvious talent but now we're left with the potential of weeks of "he just mimed, he probably can't sing live" (which is unjustified).
 

spinachpie

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Joined
March 19, 2012
Posts
476
It's annoying me that they did a big One Show performance that wasn't live vocal, since clearly that's where a lot of the doubt is coming from now - can he sell this live? Will his live vocal be up to this? They could've easily done a more intimate performance to allow him to sing fully live and show off his obvious talent but now we're left with the potential of weeks of "he just mimed, he probably can't sing live" (which is unjustified).

I think you are overthinking everything. Most people who would have watched that One Show performance would have thought it was live (which we can tell it wasn't).

I am not sure who would be saying 'he just mimed, he can't sing live'. He has loads of videos all over social media showing his live vocals. At this point, it's not even a point of debate :p
 

theditz83

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Location
Scotland & Moisantia
I think you are overthinking everything. Most people who would have watched that One Show performance would have thought it was live (which we can tell it wasn't).

I am not sure who would be saying 'he just mimed, he can't sing live'. He has loads of videos all over social media showing his live vocals. At this point, it's not even a point of debate :p
Don't get me wrong, I'm not doubting his live vocal ability, but you only need to read back in the past 10-15 pages to see the number of people that are doubting him. They clearly haven't delved deep into YouTube/live vids to find any evidence, but I guess those kinds of conversations will always crop up with such a high-register composition.
 
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