Eurovision 2022 has its first song. The Bulgarian rock supergroup Intelligent Music Project has released their “Intention”, their song for Turin. The song was debuted this morning on the BNT 1 show The Day Begins with Georgi Lyubenov.
The song delivers a classic ’80s rock sound, complete with dramatic rock harmonies and attitude-laden guitar. The action-packed song takes a moment to pause with a peaceful middle-eight, but also treats rock fans to a squealing guitar solo.
Lyrically, the song tells a story of coping with the stresses of life, dealing with the hurdles that come one’s way. In the chorus, lead singer Ronnie Romano snarls “And in time I’ve always known / I’m never in the safety zone / I took the fight, but was I right? / They were sending me to war”.
While the song is titled “Intention”, that word only features once in the song lyrics.
“Intention” comes with a music video that features the band playing their song, while at the same time a kid is playing a video game. He plays as a woman who is stalked by a mysterious figure — and there’s a twist at the end.
The video ends with the text: “It’s never too late to set foot on the right path. All you need is the right intention”.
Intelligent Music Project – “Intention” (Bulgaria Eurovision 2022)
“Intention” lyrics – Intelligent Music Project (Bulgaria)
And I can move on from here
How simple: life goes on
Humble – that’s how I feel
“Sparking hot flames, holding on”
Younger days run so clear
Through my mind, replaying my crime
Tearing me up, spreading fear
Obsession in my own time.
What life’s taken away, I’m not missing
Will I sit back and sigh?
A thunder of thoughts, I’m dismissing
Too scared to even try
And in time I’ve always known
I’m never in the safety zone
I took the fight, but was I right?
They were sending me to war
My intention is strong and real
Only power steels my will
The illusion of safety’s surreal
Don’t let it go for the kill!
What life’s taken away, I’m not missing
Will I sit back and sigh?
A thunder of thoughts, I’m dismissing
Too scared to even try
And in time I’ve always known
I’m never in the safety zone
I took the fight, but was I right?
They were sending me to war
I don’t want to take on the pain
So I go seek inner signs or a calling
The more freedom I gain
The less real life I’m recalling.
And in time I’ve always known
I’m never in the safety zone
I took the fight, but was I right?
They were sending me to war
What do you think of “Intention”? How should the Intelligent Music Project stage it in Turin? Tell us your thoughts below!
As an American, this sounds like the soundtrack to a bad AutoZone commercial. XD
the amount of disappointment I felt from the first second of listening….
Bulgaria 3/10
I like the influences I hear but the problem is its an album track at best, not a single/number 1 and not a Eurovision winner…But good luck to them and it will be cool to hear it live
I’m so disappointed…They should withdraw! Nobody in Bulgaria likes them or the song!
What was this. Belarus’ both attempts this year were more interesting, at least scandalous 😀
It’s like they were on a mission to create the lamest rock song possible. It sounds like a theme song of a really bad 90’s sitcom. And the fact that the band members could pass as grand parents of Maneskin doesn’t help.
Completely agree! The part of their being grand parents, strikes me as a bit ageist, though, sorry…
Sorry Bulgaria, no qualification for you next year.
Well, Bulgaria is definitely not winning next year that’s for sure.
His voice is on fire! I love it
It’s not about doing rock song, it’s the fact that they do awful rock and they don’t look good visually as well, especially the front man, looks ridiculous and dated. There is no charisma style or good music here. Bulgaria must change the selection
probably stay in the semi if it’s not get a revamp 🙁
Am I the only one who feels Dragonball Z vibes while listening?
I read a comment earlier that it sounds like an English dubbed version of Naruto opening theme song. Lol.
“Maneskin won last year, people love rock again! Let’s send a bunch of dudes in their forties, with a generic song and outdated 80’s sound. Also, release it first, six months before Eurovision. That will work”.
PLEASE REVAMP IT.
Everyone mark my words, this is NOT Bulgaria’s entry. They will revamp it or completely scrap it. It’s pretty obvious why they released it so early. So they can have time to react to people’s demands.
It Probably should be revamped If it wants a better chance at eurovision, But what if they don’t do it and this is what we get for May? It would put Bulgaria in a very vulnerable position.
As it is Bulgaria it may still qualify but only just. Nothing special about it but not offensive.
sorry but this is bad, replace the song and the artist
I welcome rock in ESC but this is very weak. The only thing that could save it is an exceptional staging but I don’t see that happening.
Maybe the rock of this year must be entrusted to Circus Mircus from Georgia.
If the rumours of the YGL being involved with them is true, because I get big joke act vibes from Circus Mircus.
Bulgaria is the first country in a line of probably many that have a go at sending a rocky song with the title mentioned only once in the song to try to follow the success of “Zitti e buoni”. Alas, this lacks about everything that made Maneskin a strong entry: energy, freshness, youthful anger, charisma, any kind of buildup. This is the weakest entry we have had in years from Bulgaria, and no revamp in the world can save this from not qualifying.
I really hope this will get a revamp
It builds up to a big chorus but when it gets there it falls flat. I’m thinking about Minus One and their song which got bigger and bigger. Even the Young Georgian Lotiaz did it better.
I agree. Absolutely average just like Minus One.
Kinda liked the song and loved the message at the end of the video but, unless there’s a revamp, this is almost surely an NQ 🙁
Edit: I could elaborate on why I like it and its flaws but there’s already comments that explain that better than I could
It’s alright, but definitely not a very competitive song. It doesn’t have the “oomph” that is needed in most rock songs for Eurovision.
Special day today as it’s the first time since I follow Eurovision and all the pre-season that Albania isn’t the first country to deliver us his song for the contest in May. It feels strange in a way but it’s exciting at the same time because the calendar of national selection is already busy and sounds highly promising. About the Bulgarian song, I kinda like it as it immediately made me think to a K.T Tunstall style song but without her voice ofc which make the thing less interesting here. It’s a good song but how about a live performance… Read more »
I beg to differ. Even though KT Tunstall is more on the pop side, her songs have a lot more energy to it, especially in the chorus.
Wow. Now that’s an early release. All the rock vibes at the start are completely misplaced when the singing starts. That is not a rock song.
It sounds like a B side song from a rock band in the 90’s.
Umm..no!
Next!!!!!
welp a non-event in every sense… they have such little faith in it that they haven’t even uploaded it on streaming services
You know it’s gonna be a good reading when you see 142 comments.
I wasn’t expecting to but I really enjoyed it on first listen 🙂
It’s not awful, but from a band called Intelligent Music Project you expect something a little more daring and challenging than this. It seems they avoided any risks to appeal to a large enough audience… but the result is something that will appeal to no one.
Oh no.
I did not expect Bulgaria to flop?!
This was underwhelming…sorry ;( At least they have time to revamp it.
This will need Sasha Jean Baptiste …
Just to qualify…
for each sjb hit there’s three misses and i fear they’ll be misses with our without her
She did also Georgia in 2021 😀
makes sense as the staging was the only non-abysmal thing about that performance
Well suddenly Bulgaria doesn’t seem like the sure qualifier they were for years..
so disappointing, coming from Bulgaria. i hope this is not a sign of things to come this year…
Out of 36 countries that have to go through the semi finals, 16 of them have to be eliminated. Not every song can be a winner, and you need some weak songs in the contest because somebody has to stay behind. As disappointing as Bulgaria’s entry is, Let’s hope Bulgaria isn’t among the weakest For 2022.
let’s hope that they are, because if this is not among the weakest this year, we’ll have a terrible ESC on our hands in Turin!
It’s not that memorable or as powerful as Blind channel or Måneskin, but I probably shouldn’t compare. I feel like this leans more towards pop rock. I hope it gets a revamp and I hope Bulgaria qualifies!
It’s not really memorable. I feel this song leans more towards pop rock, but anyway, it’s not as powerful as Blind Channel or Måneskin. But I probably shouldn’t compare… I hope it
So random
It’s good, but quite forgetable. I don’t think this will stand out – not even if there were no other rock bands (and there most likely will be).
I suspect it will be revamped in the spring sometime before Turin.
But for now, I can’t. It will obviously be compared to Måneskin and Blind Channel but it just feels empty.
Sorry Bulgaria, shame because I know you can go better but for now, it’s a no for me.
Feels uninspired. But kudos for the effort.
As a fan of rock this is really underwhelming. The chorus especially, it feels like it’s holding back.
That’s exactly what I said in the comment section. It’s not the worst song Bulgaria has sent, but it is certainly not the best and definitely not a winner for 2022.
I kind of feel this songs are three separate songs, none of them going anywhere. They are very early with their song, hope they’ll change it!
It’s so outdated that even the child plays ps4 instead of ps5 :p Anyways, good luck on May!
It’s more realistic than a ps5 since it’s so hard to find one 😉
It’s not that hard but it’s very very expensive even here in Mexico, where it’s usually cheaper than most places.
lol that was my first thought as well
Eurovision 2022 starts with a bang then! This has an authentic 80s rock sound, filled with a catchy chorus, driving beat and killer guitar solo. I am really pleased that this is in the competition. It bodes well for hopefully a diverse and compelling competition!
It’s clear to me they’re a skilled group of musicians, but they all feel underplayed, because as many here already pointed this song feels so tamed, especially for a rock one. The guitar solo, the drums, the vague message of the lyrics, everything sounds rehashed. I complain when basic pop songs do that, so I see it as just basic rock. About its chances to qualify, it’s still early to tell, but I fear Bulgaria will depend too much on the “dad vote”.
For sure, there are young people who consume old school rock too. But will they feel the appeal for this one? Because Maneskin had the glam and classic rock angle, Blind Channel had the nu-metal angle, AWS was metal shaped under modern influences and all of them sounded like fresh takes on older sub-genres. This time is a veteran band doing something typical from their own generation. Even if we go back in time and think about Lordi or Wig Wam, they had fun aesthetics that could attract people from all ages and backgrounds. Sadly, I have trouble seeing the… Read more »
Maneskin, Blind Channel, Lordi and Wig Wag had powerful songs that were complemented with a quality staging. Eurovision is not only about the ear, it’s also about the eye.
True. This band doesn’t seem to have a particular identity which is something that counts a lot in Eurovision, so Bulgaria will have to find a way to make the entry interesting to the eyes, otherwise it will be just a random band playing.
i really want to like this but the chorus just falls so flat i feel like it throws off the whole feel of the song.
The chorus is the weakest part of this song. It feels like it’s holding back.
On a positive note, the fact that the Bulgarians released this song so early gives me hope that they might make major changes to the song or create an entirely new song (similar to what Albania did in 2015). Otherwise the song as it stands right now is dead on arrival at Eurovision.
Olivia Rodrigo called.
I can see her sampling this in her next album lol
Meh. Hopefully we are not going to get too many more uninteresting rock songs sent to Torino.