Even Bild Admired Agathonas At Eurovision

Cheery, dynamic, professionally perfect and above all optimistic, Koza Mostra along with the “heavy artillery,” the Greek folk singer of rebetiko Agathonas Iakovidis, managed to stir up Eurovision despite only a sixth-place finish among 26 countries.

The Greek group’s performance drew much critical praise, even though they didn’t win. The German newspaper Bild wrote that the group’s Alcohol Is Free song is described as “a love confession to Ouzo” and notes that “for these Greeks there was no bankruptcy”.

“Koza Mostra from Thessaloniki is one of the most famous ska bands in Greece, while the folk pop singer Agathonas Iakovidis is a big name for many decades,” the newspaper wrote.

It continued: “While the 58-year-old Iakovidis undertook the traditional part, with the stringed musical instrument baglama, the men with the kilts were actually jumping in the Balkan rhythms. The mixture was good: Koza Mostra and Agathonas Iakovidis advanced to the final”.

The newspaper noted that the crisis didn’t affect Greece’s participation in the contest, unlike Portugal and Slovakia, and that the song does not encourage alcohol use, but symbolizes the spirit of freedom.

Finally the article concludes saying: “Anyway, if the men with the kilts manage to stir up the audience, no one will notice the lyrics. Besides, the lyrics are in Greek.”