At first glance, this work could seem closer to an arduous scholarly challenge than the latest pop album by an artist who just had a previous single featured a global pop icon. Broken into four separate parts and sung in thirteen languages, this is a breathtaking classical-tinged opus that delves into female mystery, spiritual ascent, and physical transformation, often by way of the perspective of different saintly figures. The dissolution of a love affair—a topic handled with raw honesty elsewhere—soars skyward on this record, carried by the lush sound of a major orchestra and contributions from an award-winning composer among an extensive roll call of collaborators. The pure audacity by itself renders the efforts of other pop stars look rather laughable.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
That this album manages to avoid dry academic posturing feels nearly miraculous, and complete praise going to the artist. While it's not her first project to blend historical sounds and modern styles, the stakes feel far higher on Lux, with the tightrope walk far more dramatic. The element that really raises her fourth album, outside of its multilayered tunes, dense arrangements, and engrained drama, proves to be a core sense of fun. Similar to the iconic artist during her peak, you find a wondrous sense to Rosalía's voice that pulls you up in its tornado. Even when she's tearing hearts in two, the listener nevertheless desire to stay right there through the ride.
A Signature Moment of Joy
This playful spirit comes forth brightly on a stirring piano-led song about a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched melancholy over more than four moments. Then, everything falls silent, to reveal we hear a gleeful laugh followed by a comment before a hilariously over-the-top string crescendo crashes down like cartoonish impact. The track immediately segues to the wild single driven by galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a surprise appearance from none other than herself.
"The magic of Lux is that the listener rarely exactly know—nor wish to predict—where you is going to next."
Nearly each track concludes in a completely different point than where it began. A track explores the fleeting nature of celebrity with a delicate symphony before disintegrating in electronic chaos. Another, a cut that recalls the artist's earlier rhythmic style starts off dark and brooding, featuring prowling beats, before sudden traditional handclaps and a heavenly choir enter to soften its rough corners.
The Bridge Between Experiment and Pop
Another crucial balancing act on Lux is straddling the gap of radical experimentation and mainstream accessibility. It is no surprise that it has become the artist's highest-charting release to crack the Top 5 of key markets: at its core a suite of utterly catchy hits. One track sung entirely in the English language builds around a chorus that seems to collect more and more infectious melodies while it spins skyward. That trick gets repeated on a different powerful ballad that expands and contracts, intertwining layered tunes as a complex tapestry.
- A dance-infused song seduces via its playful, Disney-adjacent flair and a chant-along hook.
- Lyrically, it aligns the cultural honesty of other heartbreak anthems, lambasting a former lover labeled an "emotional bully".
- Across the album, the singing carry a painted-on edge, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a blade: "Top prize in acting like a motherfucker / You've won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Ears
This album represents popular music on a grand level, a hungry grasp for high artistry amid of looming artificial sameness. It eschews self-absorption in favor of glorious transcendence, creating a dramatic drama that masterfully manages its inherent ridiculousness. This is a deep source of hidden treasure that takes time to completely explore but never feels like hard work. Where other big pop albums of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, this record is a lavish banquet at which the characters at it, perhaps intoxicated on holy wine, flit from discussions about historical figures, the profound sensation of soul-shattering sadness, and shared stories about hopeless men. It is a contemporary theatrical production from music's most restlessly creative visionary.
