[Review] Chungha - Snapping

After the disaster that was Somi's debut, my ears desire cleansing. Chungha has been a hot commodity ever since she embarked on her solo journey. Starting with "Why Don't You Know," I feel she has steadily improved in her discography all the way to "Gotta Go" earlier this year. Considering I label that track as one of the best of the year thus far (more on that later), "Snapping" has some hype to live up to and expectations to surpass. Shoutouts to my boy Thanos.

Right off the bat, "Snapping" delivers where Som's "Birthday" failed which is in the instrumental. It's consistent in the background and doesn't have any major changes and the subtle bass during the chorus is very fitting (because it's the strongest part of the song). Also quietly appearing in the chorus are harmonies which most people probably aren't paying attention to but I am! Chungha delivers an amazing chorus that rivals the one from "Gotta Go." The bridge is short, but does the job despite the heavier usage of English (hmm).

"Snapping" does falter in the vocals. By that I mean Chungha drops the lower notes that delighted in "Gotta Go" for higher octaves. As with most singers, it's not that she sounds bad per se, but she has certainly shown that her lower register is way more (at the very least equal) appealing compared to these high notes. It's not the end of the world but I'm always gonna dock points when an artist isn't being used to maximum effectiveness. Alluded to previously, we have another song with suspect English. While I'll give Chungha the benefit of the doubt, some of these lines are questionable at best and horrible at worst. Sure, overall it's less awful than Somi but that's hardly an accomplishment.

Where this comeback really shines is through the sense of sight. Chungha is gorgeous and her stylists love her as much as we do because she always looks amazing. Although she would have stunned even more in jet black, I can appreciate the blonde change - because you're not a Kpop singer if you haven't gone blonde at least once in your first two years. Combine those visuals with a solid choreography and you have a treat. The MV wastes no frames and focuses on the visual spectacle with close shots of Chungha's charismatic expressions and wide choreography angles. That sequence with Chungha surrounded by the backup dancers behind curtains was sick and easily the best part of the video.

While I'd never put "Snapping" ahead of "Gotta Go" (or even "Roller Coaster"), it's primarily because of the dangerous levels of English present in the former. The lines don't really make sense and even when they mixed languages, some lyrics were still questionable. Nonetheless, Chungha's strengths are in visual and dance, both of which delivered in this comeback. If you don't look into the song and sit back for the audio, "Snapping" is electric but a deeper dive into the finer details leaves me a little unsatisfied.