Finland’s greatest triumph and worst nightmare became one yesterday, as death-schlock-metal band Lordi delivered the country’s first-ever Eurovision victory with its ear-bleeding anthem, “Hard Rock Hallelujah”.

As with the irrational hand-wringing over Lordi’s qualification process, I’m sure Finns everywhere are having mixed emotions over this. But hey, I say this is fair compensation for having to settle for the silver in men’s hockey at Torino this year.

In retrospect, this shocker-rocker upset seems to have been inevitable. As is the prospect of an Americanized version of “the contest good taste forgot”:

NBC announced plans earlier this year to replicate the formula — a forerunner of “American Idol”-style talent contests — in the United States, with acts from different states competing for viewers’ approval.

The European Broadcasting Union, which runs Eurovision, said it was in talks with NBC over rights. If successful, the American version could go ahead as early as this fall, said the group’s director of television, Bjorn Erichsen.

I’ve got odds on Delaware winning the first one!