At first glance, Lux might appear more like a challenging academic examination than a new popular music album from a musician whose previous single featured an international pop icon. Split across 4 different movements and performed in 13 tongues, it is a breathtaking orchestral-influenced opus investigating female mystery, religious ascent, and physical change, often via the lens of different saintly figures. The dissolution of a romance—a topic treated with raw honesty elsewhere—is shot heavenward here, supported by the constant presence of a full symphony orchestra and input from an award-winning songwriter among a long list of collaborators. The pure audacity by itself renders the efforts of other pop stars look rather modest.
Rising Above Academic Exercise
That this album manages to transcend dry academic posturing feels nearly a miracle, and complete praise belonging to the artist. While it's not her first project to alchemize the past and modern styles, the stakes feel much higher on Lux, with the tightrope walk more dramatic. The element that really raises her fourth album, beyond its multilayered tunes, dense arrangements, and engrained theatricality, proves to be a core sense of playfulness. Similar to the iconic artist at her peak, there is a wondrous sense to Rosalía's singing that pulls the listener up in its whirlwind. Even when she's tearing your heart apart, the listener still desire to stay alongside her for the journey.
A Signature Moment of Joy
That exuberant spirit shines clearly during a stirring piano-led song about a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched melancholy over more than four minutes. Then, everything drops away, to reveal there's a spontaneous giggle and a comment prior to a comically over-the-top orchestral surge thuds in like comedic impact. The song then segues into the wild single featuring galloping strings, a powerful choir, and a cameo appearance from none other than herself.
"The charm of this album is that you never exactly know—or even wish to predict—what it is going to next."
Nearly each song ends at a totally distinct place than how it started. One moment examines the transient trappings of fame with a delicate orchestration only to disintegrating into digital chaos. Another, a song that recalls her previous rhythmic work starts off dark and brooding, with menacing beats, until fluttering traditional handclaps and a heavenly choir enter to soften its rough corners.
The Balance Of Experiment & Pop
A key achievement on the album is straddling the gap between radical innovation and mainstream appeal. This is no coincidence that the album has become her first work to crack the Top 5 of key charts: at its core a collection of truly catchy hits. A song performed primarily in the English language builds on a refrain that seems to collect increasingly nagging melodies while it spins skyward. That trick is repeated on another expansive ballad that grows and constricts, intertwining layered tunes as an intricate tapestry.
- A waltz-like number seduces via its jaunty, theatrical flair and an anthemic hook.
- Lyrically, it aligns with cultural impact of contemporary heartbreak anthems, lambasting a former partner labeled an "emotional terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the singing carry a painted-on edge, akin to a storybook character hiding a knife: "Gold medal in acting like a scoundrel / You have won the trophy of disappointment."
An Opulent Feast for the Ears
Lux represents popular music on a grand level, a hungry reach for high Art in an era of looming AI-generated blankness. It eschews self-absorption in favor of glorious transcendence, crafting a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its inherent excess. This is an abundant well of buried treasure that requires time to fully explore but never feels like a chore. While some major pop albums of the year felt like a meager meal, Lux is a sumptuous feast where the guests around the table, some intoxicated on sacred drink, flutter between discussions about historical saints, the profound sensation of soul-shattering grief, and shared stories about useless men. It is a contemporary musical from music's most restlessly inventive practitioner.
