At first glance, this work could seem closer to an arduous scholarly quiz than a new popular music record from a musician who just had a last hit featured an international pop star. Broken into four separate movements and voiced in 13 tongues, it is a head-spinning orchestral-influenced album that delves into feminine mystery, religious ascent, and physical change, often via the lens of various saintly figures. The dissolution of a relationship—a theme treated with raw honesty elsewhere—is shot upwards on this record, buoyed by the lush presence of a full symphony orchestra and input from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within an extensive list of collaborators. Its sheer audacity by itself renders the work of contemporary pop stars seem rather laughable.
Transcending Academic Pretense
The fact that this album manages to avoid overly academic posturing feels nearly a miracle, with sole praise going to Rosalía. Although this is not the first time album to fuse the past with the present, its ambitions feel far greater on Lux, and the tightrope walk far more precarious. The element that really elevates her fourth release, beyond its multilayered melodies, dense arrangements, and engrained drama, is a core spirit of playfulness. Similar to the legendary artist at her peak, there is a wondrous quality to the vocalist's singing which sweeps the listener into its tornado. When she's tearing hearts in two, you nevertheless desire to stay right there for the journey.
A Prime Moment of Joy
That exuberant spirit comes forth clearly during a stirring piano-led ballad about Saint Clare. It bathes in a string-drenched melancholy over several moments. Then, everything falls silent, and we hear a spontaneous laugh and a declaration prior to a comically exaggerated string surge crashes in with comedic impact. The track then segues into the frenetic single driven by galloping orchestration, a powerful choral group, and a surprise role from the artist herself.
"The charm with Lux is that you rarely exactly know—nor want to predict—what it is going to next."
Nearly every song finishes in a totally distinct point than how it started. One moment explores the transient nature of celebrity with a featherlight orchestration before collapsing into electronic chaos. Another, a cut that recalls her earlier rhythmic style starts out dark and brooding, with prowling beats, until fluttering traditional handclaps and an angelic chorus enter to soften the song's rough edges.
The Bridge Between Experiment & Pop
Another crucial balancing act of the album is navigating the line of radical experimentation and broad accessibility. It is little coincidence that it has become the artist's highest-charting release to break into the upper reaches of key markets: its heart contains a suite of truly undeniable pop songs. One track performed entirely in the English language swells on a chorus that feels to gather increasingly nagging hooks as it spins skyward. This trick is echoed by a different powerful ballad that grows and constricts, intertwining multiple melodies like an intricate weave.
- A dance-infused number seduces via its jaunty, Disney-adjacent flair and a chant-along chorus.
- Lyrically, it aligns with cultural impact of other breakup songs, lambasting a former lover described as an "emotional terrorist".
- Across these tracks, the singing carry a painted-on edge, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a knife: "Top prize in acting like a scoundrel / You have the podium of letdown."
A Maximalist Feast for the Soul
Lux is pop on a maximalist level, a hungry grasp for capital-A artistry amid of looming AI-generated blankness. It rejects self-absorption in favor of glorious elevation, crafting a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its own inherent excess. It is a deep source of hidden gems that takes patience to completely explore but doesn't feels like a chore. Where other big pop albums of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, this record is a sumptuous feast at which the characters around it, some intoxicated on holy wine, flit from discussions about historical saints, the galvanizing sensation of soul-shattering sadness, and shared gossip about useless men. It is a modern-day theatrical production from music's truly restlessly creative practitioner.
