At first glance, this work may look more like a challenging academic quiz rather than the latest pop record by a musician whose previous single featured a global pop icon. Split into four distinct parts and sung in 13 languages, this is a dizzying classical-tinged opus that delves into female mystery, spiritual ascent, and physical transformation, frequently through the perspective of different female saints. The end of a love affair—a topic handled with grounded honesty elsewhere—soars skyward here, supported by the lush presence of a full symphony orchestra and input from an award-winning composer among an extensive list of contributors. The pure audacity alone renders the efforts of other pop stars look rather modest.
Transcending Scholarly Pretense
The fact that this album succeeds in escape overly academic chin-stroking is nothing short of a miracle, with full praise belonging to the artist. While this is not her first project to blend the past with the present, the ambitions feel far higher here, with the balancing act more precarious. The element that really elevates this fourth release, outside of its complex tunes, dense arrangements, and engrained drama, proves to be a core spirit of playfulness. Much like the legendary Björk during her peak, you find a captivating quality to Rosalía's singing that pulls you up in its whirlwind. When she is breaking hearts in two, the listener nevertheless want to stay right there for the journey.
A Prime Moment of Joy
This playful energy comes forth clearly during a stirring piano-led song inspired by Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool over more than four moments. Then, everything falls away, to reveal there's a gleeful giggle and a declaration prior to a hilariously over-the-top string crescendo crashes in with cartoonish impact. The track immediately shifts into the wild single driven by racing strings, a powerful choral group, and a surprise role from none other than herself.
"The charm of this album is that the listener never quite understand—nor want to predict—what it will go to next."
Almost each track concludes in a completely different place than how it started. One moment examines the transient nature of celebrity with a delicate symphony only to collapsing into electronic cacophony. Another, a song that recalls her previous trap-infused work starts off dark and sinister, featuring prowling vocals, until fluttering traditional rhythms and an angelic chorus enter to smooth the song's rough edges.
The Balance Of Experiment & Pop
A key achievement of Lux is straddling the line between radical experimentation and mainstream accessibility. This is no coincidence that it has become her highest-charting work to break into the upper reaches of key markets: at its core a collection of truly catchy pop songs. One track performed primarily in English swells around a refrain that seems to collect increasingly infectious hooks as it spins skyward. This feat is echoed on another expansive track that grows and constricts, intertwining layered melodies like a complex weave.
- A waltz-like song seduces via its jaunty, Disney-adjacent drama and a chant-along chorus.
- Lyrically, it shares the cultural impact of contemporary heartbreak songs, lambasting a former lover labeled an "emotional terrorist".
- Across the album, the singing have a painted-on smile, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a blade: "Gold medal in being a scoundrel / You've won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Feast for the Soul
Lux is popular music on a maximalist scale, an ambitious grasp for capital-A artistry in an era of looming artificial blankness. It rejects self-absorption for glorious elevation, creating an over-the-top drama that masterfully manages its own inherent ridiculousness. This is a deep source of buried treasure that requires time to completely explore but doesn't feels like hard work. Where some big releases of the year seemed like a meager meal, Lux is a lavish banquet at which the guests around it, some tipsy on holy drink, flit between discussions about historical saints, the profound sensation of heartbreaking sadness, and shared stories about hopeless men. It is a modern-day musical from music's most restlessly creative visionary.
