At first glance, Lux could seem more like a challenging academic quiz than the latest pop album by a musician who just had a last hit was a collaboration with an international pop icon. Broken into four distinct parts and performed in 13 languages, we have a breathtaking symphonic work investigating female mystique, religious ascent, and corporal change, often via the lens of various female saints. The dissolution of a relationship—a topic handled with raw honesty elsewhere—is shot heavenward on this record, buoyed by the constant sound of a full symphony orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within a vast roll call of collaborators. Its sheer ambition by itself makes the efforts of other pop stars appear quite modest.
Transcending Scholarly Exercise
The fact that Lux manages to escape dry academic posturing feels nothing short of miraculous, and complete credit belonging to Rosalía. Although it's not her first album to blend the past and modern styles, its ambitions are far greater here, with the tightrope walk more precarious. What truly elevates this fourth release, outside of its multilayered tunes, dense arrangements, and inherent drama, proves to be a core sense of fun. Similar to the legendary artist during her height, you find a captivating quality to Rosalía's voice that pulls you into its tornado. When she is breaking hearts apart, you nevertheless want to be right there through the ride.
A Prime Moment of Exuberance
This exuberant energy comes forth clearly on the stirring Italian ballad inspired by a saint. It bathes in a sorrowful melancholy over several minutes. Then, all the music falls away, and there's a spontaneous giggle followed by a comment before a hilariously over-the-top orchestral surge thuds in like comedic impact. The track immediately segues to the wild single featuring galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a surprise role from none other than herself.
"The magic with Lux lies in the listener rarely exactly know—or even wish to know—what you will go next."
Nearly each track ends in a totally distinct place from how it began. One moment examines the fleeting trappings of celebrity over a delicate symphony only to collapsing in electronic cacophony. Another, a song echoing the artist's previous rhythmic work begins off moody and sinister, with prowling beats, until fluttering traditional rhythms and a heavenly chorus arrive to soften its rough corners.
The Balance Of Experiment & Pop
A key achievement on Lux is straddling the line of bold experimentation and mainstream accessibility. This is little coincidence that the album has achieved her first release to break into the Top 5 of key markets: its heart contains a collection of utterly catchy hits. One track sung primarily in the English language swells around a refrain that feels to gather increasingly infectious melodies while it spins upward. This feat gets echoed by a different powerful ballad that expands and contracts, intertwining layered melodies like a complex tapestry.
- A waltz-like number charms with its playful, Disney-adjacent flair and an anthemic hook.
- In its words, it shares the cultural honesty of contemporary heartbreak songs, lambasting an ex- lover described as an "psychological bully".
- Across the album, the singing have a sharp edge, akin to a storybook figure concealing a knife: "Top prize in acting like a motherfucker / You've the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Feast for the Ears
This album is popular music on a maximalist level, an ambitious reach for capital-A artistry in an era of looming artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of sublime transcendence, crafting a dramatic drama that skillfully manages its own inherent ridiculousness. This is an abundant well of hidden treasure that requires patience to completely mine but never seem like hard work. While some major pop albums of the year felt like feasting on scraps, Lux is a lavish feast where the guests around the table, perhaps intoxicated on holy wine, flit between discussions about historical saints, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and shared gossip about useless men. It is a contemporary musical from music's most restlessly inventive practitioner.
