- “Intention” by Intelligent Music Project (Bulgaria)
- “Brividi” by Mahmood & BLANCO (Italy)
- “Sentimentai” by Monika Liu (Lithuania)
- “River” by Ochman (Poland)
- “De Diepte” by S10 (Netherlands)
Intention – Intelligent Music Project
My first thought is that the chorus is kinda underwhelming. I feel like the pre-chorus does a decent job building up the tension but the chorus just doesn’t pay off. “Intention” also gives me “opening credits” vibes. Could be because of all of the TV shows I’ve watched growing up. But hey, it’s kinda fitting considering this is the first entry of the competition. It can only get better, right? My verdict is… it’s not terrible, but “not terrible” isn’t going to win the contest. Also, considering how much I loved Bulgaria’s entry last year, I’m a little disappointed this time around.
Brividi – Mahmood & BLANCO
Mahmood is back and he seems to have traded his hand-claps for a more melancholy entry (and a duet partner). Not that I’m complaining, though. I love when Mahmood and BLANCO’s voices harmonize in the chorus. There’s something so satisfying about BLANCO’s raspy voice and Mahmood’s smooth voice together. Even when they trade lines back and forth, it’s so satisfying to hear the juxtaposition of their voices. So… I might have replayed “Brividi” a bunch of times since I first heard it. I think it’s safe to assume that I absolutely love this song. I’m interested to see how this entry will compare with the rest of the competition.
Sentimentai – Monika Liu
“Sentimentai” starts off ambiguously, which is pretty cool. You think the song might be in a major key until Monika Liu gets to the end of the phrase. I wasn’t expecting a funky reggae vibe from this song. In fact, this song makes a lot of odd instrumentation choices. Normally, I like when the song develops through changes in instrumentation, but the pulsing bass in the second verse and the distorted guitar in the bridge are a bit much. Personally, this song sounds a little old-fashioned for my taste. But if it’s your vibe, how can I be mad at that?
River – Ochman
For some reason, this song sounds like the love child of “Arcade” by Duncan Laurence and “The Lucky One” by Uku Suviste. Maybe it’s because of the water? But in all seriousness, the way in which “River” sets up this serious tone with a single note reminds me of Uku Suviste’s entry and Ochman repeating “Gonna take my body down to the river” reminds me of the line “Loving you is a losing game” from Duncan Laurence’s entry. If I’m being honest, I’m not a fan of his vocal timbre. And I started to get fatigued by the chorus when it repeated for the third time, which doesn’t really help his entry. He’s just not my personal favourite. No hard feelings, dude.
De Diepte – S10
“De Diepte” is beautifully sorrowful. I had a good feeling about this song the moment I read these lyrics:
Do you know the feeling
Your dream is never coming true
Do you feel afraid sometimes
Things will never change
Depressing, I know, but those lyrics are one heck of a way to open a song. What kept me interested in this song was S10’s voice. I love both the conviction and despair in her voice. I get the feeling that fans of Hooverphonic would like this song. This song fills the gloomy void that “The Wrong Place” left last year. A solid second choice this week.
Who has my vote (for now)?
Do I even need to answer this question? Of course my top entry this week was from Mahmood and BLANCO! I wonder if Italy could possibly defend its top spot for two years in a row with “Brividi.” That would be a first for me to see. Guess I’ll just have to see how stiff the competition is. See you next week!