The Wiwi Jury — our in-house team of music unprofessionals — is reviewing and rating the 37 competing songs in Eurovision 2025. Next we review Croatia, who have chosen Marko Bošnjak with “Poison Cake”.
Were we asking for a second slice? Read on to find out!
Marko Bošnjak – “Poison Cake” (Croatia Eurovision 2025)
Review: Marko Bošnjak – “Poison Cake”
Deban: My first reaction to “Poison Cake” was unpalatable. However, since then, I have grown to appreciate the duality of Marko Bošnjak’s artistry. Sugary and acidulated at the same time, “Poison Cake” harbours a range of conflicting flavours. But this isn’t a bad thing. Like salt and caramel, both flavours have found a good marriage. Marko’s audience connect with the sweet child star they remember and within three minutes, his personality darkens before our very eyes. If executed well, this could be a Top 5 finish. However, his delivery at Dora gives pause for thought.
Score: 6.5
Simon: Marko is a sweetheart and is deservedly loved in the Eurovision community, but “Poison Cake” feels like too many ideas brought together in three minutes. I love the theme of taking revenge on bad people doing bad things to you. It’s just that a nursery rhyme and aggressive dubstep is kind of an odd combination. Vocals are slay, which elevates the performance, but it needs to clear up the messiness to do better at Eurovision, otherwise too few people will want a slice of the Croatian cake this year.
Score: 4
Antranig: I’m trying to eat healthier at the moment but I will make an exception for a slice of “Poison Cake”. I’m all about the bass, so for me, this song is probably the best Eurovision 2025 entry musically. But dear lord, the lyrics in the pre-chorus are so cringeworthy. It takes a great deal away from the whole experience. However, I love the explosive chorus and I love the bridge as the song moves towards its climax. There’s a lot to like about Croatia and Marko, enough to overlook some of the drawbacks, and I think he’ll be serving his “Poison Cake” in the final.
Score: 7.5
Scarlett: As a fan of dark, experimental entries, I really wanted to like “Poison Cake.” Every snippet explored interesting musical ideas (rock! industrial! bubblegum!), but this genre-melding song did not quite hit the mark as a whole. The lyrics, with their relentless metaphors around cake and baking, were a bit much. Let’s hope that Marko, with his strong stage presence, manages to string all the different ingredients of the song together in the live performance.
Score: 4.5
Croatia Eurovision 2025 ranking
In the Eurovision 2025 Wiwi Jury, we have 17 jurors but only have room for four reviews. The remaining scores are below:
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Andreas: 4.5 Bernardo: 1.5 Burak: 6.5 Cinan: 8.5 Jonathan: 7.5 Jordi: 4 Lucy: 2.5 |
Pablo: 5 Ruxandra: 6 Suzanne: 5.5 Tom: 6 Tomas: 4.5 William: 5 |
We have removed the highest and lowest scores prior to calculating the average. This is to remove outliers and potential bias. We have removed a high of 8.5 and a low of 1.5.
Wiwi Jury verdict: 5.30/10
What do you think of Croatia’s Eurovision 2025 entry? Share your own score and review for Marko Bošnjak’s “Poison Cake” below!
