Initially, this album could seem more like an arduous university examination than a new popular music album by a musician whose last single featured an international pop icon. Divided across 4 distinct sections and performed in 13 tongues, we have a head-spinning classical-tinged album exploring feminine mystique, spiritual transcendence, and corporal change, frequently through the perspective of various women saints. The dissolution of a relationship—a topic handled with raw honesty elsewhere—is shot upwards here, supported by the constant sound of a major symphony orchestra and contributions from an award-winning composer among a long roll call of collaborators. Its sheer audacity by itself renders the work of other artists look quite small.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
That Lux manages to escape overly intellectual posturing is nearly miraculous, with full credit going to the artist. While it's not her first project to alchemize the past with the present, the scale feel far greater on Lux, with the tightrope walk more dramatic. The element that really elevates this fourth release, beyond its multilayered tunes, rich arrangements, and engrained theatricality, proves to be a core sense of fun. Much like the legendary Björk during her peak, you find a wondrous sense to Rosalía's voice which sweeps the listener up in its whirlwind. When she's breaking hearts in two, you nevertheless want to be right there for the journey.
A Signature Moment of Joy
That exuberant energy shines brightly during the stirring Italian song about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched melancholy over more than four minutes. Suddenly, all the music falls away, and we hear a spontaneous laugh followed by a declaration prior to a comically exaggerated string crescendo crashes in like comedic impact. The song then shifts to the wild track featuring galloping strings, an imposing choir, and a cameo role from none other than Björk.
"The magic of Lux lies in the listener rarely exactly know—nor wish to know—where it will go next."
Nearly each song ends at a totally different point than how it began. A track explores the transient nature of fame over a featherlight orchestration before collapsing in electronic chaos. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls her earlier rhythmic work begins out moody and brooding, featuring menacing beats, before fluttering flamenco handclaps and an angelic choir arrive to smooth its rough corners.
The Balance Between Experiment and Accessibility
A key balancing act on Lux is navigating the gap between radical innovation and mainstream appeal. This is little coincidence that the album has become the artist's highest-charting work to break into the upper reaches of major markets: at its core a collection of truly undeniable hits. One track sung primarily in the English language swells around a refrain that seems to gather more and more nagging melodies as it spins upward. This trick gets echoed by another expansive ballad that grows and contracts, intertwining multiple melodies as a complex weave.
- A dance-infused song charms with its jaunty, Disney-adjacent drama and a chant-along hook.
- Lyrically, it aligns with pop culture honesty of contemporary heartbreak anthems, eviscerating an ex- partner labeled an "psychological bully".
- Across the album, the singing have a painted-on edge, akin to a storybook figure concealing a blade: "Gold medal in acting like a motherfucker / You've the podium of letdown."
An Opulent Feast for the Soul
This album is pop on a grand level, a hungry grasp for capital-A Art in an era of impending AI-generated sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of glorious transcendence, crafting an over-the-top drama that skillfully controls its own inherent ridiculousness. It is a deep well of buried treasure that requires patience to fully explore but never seem like hard work. While other major releases of the year felt like a meager meal, this record is a sumptuous feast at which the characters around the table, some intoxicated on sacred wine, flit from discussions about ancient figures, the galvanizing sensation of heartbreaking sadness, and common gossip about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from pop's truly endlessly inventive practitioner.
