Initially, this album might appear closer to a challenging academic challenge rather than a new pop project by an artist who just had a last hit was a collaboration with a global pop icon. Split across four distinct sections and voiced in thirteen languages, we have a dizzying classical-tinged work exploring female mystery, religious ascent, and physical change, often via the perspective of different saintly figures. The dissolution of a love affair—a topic treated with grounded honesty elsewhere—is shot skyward here, carried by the constant sound of a full symphony orchestra and input from a Pulitzer-winning composer among an extensive list of contributors. Its sheer audacity by itself renders the efforts of other pop stars seem quite laughable.
Transcending Scholarly Pretense
That Lux succeeds in avoid overly academic posturing feels almost a miracle, with complete credit going to Rosalía. Although it's not the first time album to blend the past and the present, its stakes are much greater here, and the tightrope walk more precarious. What truly raises this fourth release, beyond its multilayered tunes, dense compositions, and inherent drama, is an essential spirit of playfulness. Similar to the iconic Björk at her height, there is a captivating quality to the vocalist's singing that pulls you up in its tornado. When she's breaking hearts apart, you still want to be right there through the journey.
A Prime Example of Joy
That exuberant spirit comes forth brightly during a stunning Italian song about a saint. It luxuriates in a sorrowful melancholy over several minutes. Then, everything falls away, to reveal we hear a spontaneous laugh and a declaration prior to a hilariously exaggerated string crescendo crashes in with comedic force. The track immediately segues to the frenetic single driven by galloping strings, an imposing choir, and a surprise appearance from none other than herself.
"The charm of this album lies in you never exactly understand—nor wish to know—what you is going next."
Nearly each song ends in a totally distinct point than where it started. One moment examines the transient nature of celebrity with a delicate orchestration only to collapsing into digital chaos. Another, a cut echoing the artist's earlier rhythmic work begins off moody and brooding, featuring menacing beats, until sudden traditional handclaps and an angelic chorus arrive to smooth the song's jagged edges.
The Bridge Of Art and Pop
A key balancing act of Lux involves navigating the gap of radical experimentation and mainstream appeal. It is little surprise that the album has become the artist's first release to break into the upper reaches of major charts: at its core a collection of truly undeniable pop songs. A song sung entirely in the English language builds around a refrain that feels to gather increasingly infectious hooks as it spirals upward. This feat is repeated by another expansive ballad that grows and contracts, weaving layered tunes as an intricate tapestry.
- A dance-infused song charms via its playful, Disney-adjacent flair and an anthemic chorus.
- Lyrically, it shares the pop culture honesty of other heartbreak anthems, eviscerating a former lover labeled an "psychological terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the vocals carry a painted-on smile, akin to a fairy-tale figure concealing a blade: "Top prize in being a motherfucker / You have the podium of letdown."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Soul
Lux is pop on a grand level, an ambitious grasp for high Art in an era of looming artificial blankness. It rejects self-absorption in favor of glorious elevation, creating a dramatic spectacle that masterfully manages its own inherent excess. It is a deep well of hidden gems that requires patience to fully explore but doesn't seem like a chore. While other big releases of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, this record is a sumptuous feast where the guests around it, perhaps intoxicated on holy drink, flutter from discussions about ancient figures, the profound sensation of heartbreaking grief, and common stories about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a modern-day theatrical production from music's truly restlessly inventive practitioner.
