Hard rock and hoods for Slovakia

"Why would I be nervous? No, I'm not!" - that's what Max Jason Mai said to Eurovision.tv right before his rehearsal. Don't Close Your Eyes is the only hard rock song in this year's competition, so we wanted to know from Max Jason Mai how he trains his voice before his first sound check. "Just like a classical singer", he explained and demonstrated some vocal exercises right away for our camera.

"Yes, it is dangerous to enter the Eurovision Song Contest with a hard rock song, but that's just my style", he admitted right before going back to his dressing room.

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Before the Slovak soundcheck, the drummer of Max Jason Mai's band was already showing his abilities on the drum kit on stage. The whole band had the dark appearance of a hard rock band, wearing sunglasses, hoods, and jeans.

The light scene was mainly in black and white, with flashing spotlights above and in the back of the stage. On the LED screens, metal structures flashing in white and red were displayed. Next to Max Jason Mai, there were three musicians playing electric guitars, and the whole band gave the performance of an experienced rock band full of energy.

Max Jason Mai sold his song very well today, with a strong rock voice and an energetic stage appearance. The cameras quickly changed between close-ups and wide angles to fit the mood and beat of the song.

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Max Jason Mai started his press conference by stating: "I feel great after this rehearsal!" On the fact that he wrote both the lyrics and the music of his Eurovision song himself, he said: "I have always enjoyed music, arts, performing, so it was a great opportunity to join all this together."

The Slovak delegation also showed an innovative gadget which is a world's first: A digital signature card - when you hold it against a smartphone camera, it initiates a multimedia presentation. One more nice work of art was presented - an amulet showing a symbol representing male and female energy, which was created by Max Jason Mai himself.

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"I'm a rock'n'roll singer, and my career started in a garage band, so I want to stay with my roots. Also, there are so many different styles of music in the Eurovision Song Contest." He added: "There are so many rock fans who think that Eurovision sucks, and maybe this is a step to bring those people to the Eurovision Song Contest."

"How important is image and appearing in the Eurovision Song Contest?", an Australian journalist asked. "It's extremely important for me", Max Jason Mai explained. "My body, my skin, my whole appearance - all that matters."

The rehearsal video has been removed on the request of the Slovak Delegation.