Malta's Eurovision hopes lie with Firelight this year, and frontman Richard Edwards hopes his self-penned song Coming Home will strike a chord with voters across Europe.
Richard is joined in Firelight by sister Michelle (piano) and brothers Daniel (acoustic guitar) and Wayne William (backing vocals). The band is completed by Tony (upright bass) and Leslie (drums & harmonica).
Coming Home is a driving folk pop song, which builds real momentum as Richard and Michelle trade vocals in the last half of the song.
Richard said: "There was a personal story behind the song but I think it will mean different things to different people. It may be especially poignant for the thousands of Europeans who work abroad spending months away from their families."
Edwards is no stranger to Eurovision - he has entered the Maltese national selection before both in a group and as a solo artist, and was runner up in 2011 to Glen Vella with the song 'Finally'.
It is with Firelight however he has finally reached the Eurovision stage, and the 31-year-old says it is means a lot doing so surrounded by those close to him.
"It is a great honour to be representing Malta. To win alongside my family and friends in Firelight was something special. I’ve been a fan of the Eurovision for as long as I can remember.
Growing up, our home was always full of music. Dad is a singer and my Mum was a dancer. My sister and brothers and I have been making music together from a young age."
Looking ahead to the semi final, Edwards won't be drawn on which countries they see as rivals for qualification, but says they are looking to make the most of being the first act on stage.
"There are a lot of good songs and I would think every artist has a chance. We are delighted to be performing first on the night. We will try to give the performance of our lives."
What about your personal favourites then Richard?
"I think Paula & Ovi from Romania and Aram MP3 from Armenia are strong, but there are many other great performers too," he said.
Music video for 'Coming Home'
Firelight are aiming to continue Malta's recent run of success at Eurovision, with Gianluca Bezzina giving the island their best result since 2005 last year by finishing eighth with Tomorrow. It was a big improvement on preceding years, where Malta failed to qualify for the final four times in six attempts.
The renewed popularity of folk in recent years thanks to bands such as Mumford & Sons and Noah & The Whale seems to be transferring to Eurovision, with more countries sending songs in this style at recent contests, with Latvia and Switzerland also choosing the folk route this year.
I asked Richard why he feels this is.
"Music is always evolving. All I can tell you is that we in Firelight have been working to produce a different sound, a fusion of rock, pop and folk. It is going down well in Malta. We just hope the rest of Europe finds it appealing, " he replied.
The band have been busy on the campaign trail, making promotional visits to the likes of the UK, Russia and the Netherlands, getting a warm welcome by fans across Europe.
Eagle-eyed UK fans may rememeber Richard from his appearance in the 2005 series of The X Factor, where he made the last 80.
"The X Factor experience was great fun. Simon Cowell gave me the thumbs up and I made it to boot camp performing alongside the likes of Leona Lewis. It would be fantastic if the Eurovision led to Firelight getting greater exposure in the UK and elsewhere in Europe. We would love to tour more and this is a big opportunity. I just hope people who like Coming Home will vote for Malta."
If you do like Coming Home, you can help the dream for Valletta 2015 to become reality by voting 01 in the second semi final.
The song is available to buy on iTunes here
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