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I watched it this year, as did an American friend 鈥� who, like me, married a Swede and ended up migrating. When her preferred act won the contest, she told me she jumped up roaring and punching the air, 鈥渓ike it was the effing Super Bowl loll.鈥�

鈥淭丑颈蝉 is your Super Bowl now,鈥� I replied 鈥� and it鈥檚 true, in more than just the viewership percentages. Eurovision is as much of an extravagant must-watch cultural celebration for Europeans as the Super Bowl is for Americans; and, with the current Canadian push to move away from America culturally and economically (since we can鈥檛 do anything about geography), it鈥檚 a great time to check out the sort of show Europe has to offer.

And what a show! Even if you only know 鈥淓urovision Song Contest鈥� from the Will Ferrell movie of the same name, you might already have a good idea of what a joyful campy celebration it can be.

It鈥檚 a spirit that鈥檚 strong in a favourite to win this year鈥檚 contest : Sweden鈥檚 entry a brilliantly alliterating song title which means basically “Just Take a Sauna.” It鈥檚 performed by (pronounced KAI), a musical-comedy trio that is so genuinely lighthearted and unselfconscious that it seems the inverse of a squad of Super Bowl cheerleaders.

KAJ, whose members hail from Finland鈥檚 largely Swedish-speaking V枚r氓 area, has moved from the position of beloved underdog in Sweden鈥檚 local contest to viral cross-Europe sensation 鈥� all on the basis of a song where they wear dorky-chic suits, play the accordion, and extol the virtues of sweating profusely in a small wooden room.

a Eurovision expert on the high number of 鈥渘ovelty acts鈥� in this year鈥檚 contest 鈥� a characterization which definitely applies to KAJ. He speculated that it has to do with 鈥渢he chaos in the world鈥� right now leading people toward 鈥渆scapism.鈥�

I don鈥檛 think he鈥檚 wrong, but I would describe the appeal of KAJ as something deeper than escapism: it鈥檚 joy, and a longing for the deeply human.

In a world littered with AI 鈥渃ontent鈥� and dominated by powerful men who don鈥檛 seem to be enjoying themselves unless someone is suffering and they鈥檙e profiting, there is something downright life-affirming about seeing three goofy dudes from small-town Finland sing about how great it is to roast your sausage in a sauna.

Everything about the 产补蝉迟耻产谤枚诲别谤 (sauna brothers), as KAJ refer to themselves in “Bara Bada Bastu,” is deeply, joyfully, human. The song itself is bouncy and catchy and takes delight in relatable little joys: that moment when the clock signals the end of the work day and you鈥檝e got your favourite relaxation activity on deck; clever references to cosy cultural in-jokes; and the sheer fun of being silly (the performance begins with a close-up shot of a roasting sausage).

And they鈥檙e doing this in their own language 鈥� the V枚r氓 dialect of Swedish, which boasts about 5,000 speakers. In a contest with global reach, this is no small deal. Since Eurovision changed its language rules in 1999, entries from Sweden have normally been written and sung in English 鈥� because that鈥檚 the best chance of gaining international chart-topping success. But KAJ clearly does not care. The band just wants us all to have a good time in a sauna.

So, do yourself a favour: just go take a sauna! And if you can鈥檛, because saunas are a lot scarcer (and pricier) than they are in Sweden and Finland, just watch KAJ perform “Bara Bada Bastu” at this year鈥檚 Eurovision. It may not improve your circulation, but it will make you feel, at least briefly, better about humanity.