At first glance, this album may look more like a challenging academic quiz than a new popular music project by a musician whose previous single was a collaboration with an international K-pop icon. Split into 4 distinct parts and sung in 13 languages, this is a breathtaking classical-tinged work investigating female mystery, religious ascent, and corporal change, frequently via the perspective of various female saints. The end of a love affair—a topic handled with grounded openness elsewhere—is shot upwards here, supported by the lush presence of a full orchestra and work from an award-winning songwriter within a vast roll call of collaborators. Its sheer ambition alone makes the work of other artists look quite modest.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
That Lux manages to escape dry intellectual posturing feels nearly miraculous, with complete praise going to Rosalía. While this is not the first time project to fuse historical sounds with modern styles, the ambitions are far greater here, and the balancing act more precarious. What really elevates this fourth album, beyond its complex tunes, dense arrangements, and engrained drama, proves to be a core spirit of playfulness. Similar to the legendary artist during her peak, there is a captivating sense to Rosalía's singing which sweeps the listener up in its whirlwind. Even when she's breaking your heart apart, you still desire to stay right there for the ride.
A Signature Moment of Exuberance
This playful spirit comes forth brightly on a stunning Italian ballad inspired by Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched melancholy for more than four minutes. Then, everything falls silent, and we hear a gleeful giggle followed by a comment prior to a hilariously exaggerated orchestral crescendo crashes down like cartoonish impact. The track then segues to the frenetic track featuring galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a cameo appearance from none other than Björk.
"The charm with Lux lies in you rarely quite know—nor want to know—where it is going next."
Almost each song ends in a completely distinct point than how it started. A track explores the transient trappings of fame with a delicate orchestration before disintegrating into electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut echoing her earlier rhythmic work begins out dark and brooding, with prowling beats, before fluttering flamenco handclaps and an angelic chorus enter to smooth the song's rough edges.
The Balance Of Experiment and Pop
A key balancing act on the album is straddling the line between radical experimentation and broad accessibility. This is no surprise that the album has become the artist's highest-charting work to break into the Top 5 of major markets: at its core a collection of truly catchy hits. A song sung entirely in the English language builds on a refrain that seems to collect more and more infectious hooks as it spirals upward. That feat gets repeated on a different expansive track that expands and contracts, weaving layered tunes like an intricate tapestry.
- A waltz-like song seduces with its jaunty, Disney-adjacent flair and a chant-along hook.
- In its words, it shares with cultural honesty of other heartbreak anthems, eviscerating a former partner described as an "emotional terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the singing have a painted-on smile, like a fairy-tale figure concealing a knife: "Gold medal in acting like a scoundrel / You've the podium of disappointment."
A Maximalist Feast for the Ears
Lux is popular music on a maximalist scale, an ambitious reach for capital-A Art amid of impending AI-generated blankness. It rejects self-absorption in favor of glorious transcendence, creating an over-the-top drama that skillfully manages its built-in excess. It is an abundant well of buried treasure that requires patience to fully mine but doesn't feels like a chore. Where some major pop albums of the year felt like a meager scraps, this record offers a lavish feast where the guests at it, perhaps tipsy on holy drink, flit from conversations about ancient saints, the profound feeling of heartbreaking grief, and common stories about useless partners. It is a contemporary musical from music's truly restlessly inventive practitioner.