Croatia's Anti-War Satire Goes Mustachioed

MAY 15 2023 · 12:25

Let 3 · "Mama ŠČ!" · Croatia · 2023 Placement: 13 · Score: 123 · Language: Croatian, English · Composers: Damir Martinović Mrle, Zoran Prodanović Prlja, Ivan Bojčić, Matej Zec · Venue: M&S Bank Arena · Host: Liverpool, United Kingdom · Type: protest · Broadcast: streaming era Let 3 — four middle-aged men from Rijeka, Croatia, sporting enormous bushy moustaches, military-dictator costumes, and ridiculous hats — take the Liverpool stage for 'Mama ŠČ!', an anti-war satire skewering authoritarian military leaders. The chorus is unintelligible absurd noise ('ŠČ!'). Mid-song they strip to reveal coordinated comic underwear. 123 points for 13th place. Context Let 3 had been a Rijeka punk-rock institution since 1987, specializing in absurdist political satire. Their Dora 2023 Croatian selection victory over conventional pop candidates was considered a national rejection of bland Eurovision formatting. The song's 'ŠČ' nonsense-syllable refrain was a deliberate target of the rise of strongman politics. Legacy 'Mama ŠČ!' became a viral meme across Eurovision fan communities. Let 3's post-contest touring schedule expanded dramatically across Europe. The 13th-place finish was considered a strong result for their deliberately alienating aesthetic. Their Eurovision appearance became a template for subsequent absurdist-satire entries like Finland's 2024 Windows95man.