Initially, this album may look more like a challenging university quiz than a new popular music album by an artist whose last hit was a collaboration with an international K-pop star. Broken across 4 distinct parts and voiced in 13 tongues, this is a breathtaking orchestral-influenced album investigating feminine mystery, religious transcendence, and physical change, often through the lens of different women saints. The end of a love affair—a theme handled with grounded honesty elsewhere—is launched heavenward on this record, supported by the lush sound of a full symphony orchestra and work from an award-winning composer among a long roll call of contributors. Its sheer daring by itself makes the efforts of other pop stars look rather laughable.
Rising Above Scholarly Pretense
The fact that this album succeeds in transcend overly intellectual posturing feels nearly miraculous, with full praise belonging to the artist. While this is not her first project to blend the past and modern styles, the ambitions are much higher here, and the balancing act more pronounced. The element that really raises her fourth album, outside of its complex tunes, rich arrangements, and inherent drama, proves to be a core spirit of fun. Much like the legendary artist during her peak, you find a captivating sense to Rosalía's singing that pulls the listener into its whirlwind. When she is breaking hearts in two, the listener still desire to stay right there through the ride.
A Prime Moment of Joy
That playful energy shines brightly on the stirring piano-led ballad about a saint. It bathes in a string-drenched whirlpool over several moments. Suddenly, all the music falls away, to reveal there's a gleeful giggle and a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top orchestral crescendo crashes in like cartoonish force. The track then segues into the wild single featuring racing orchestration, a powerful choir, and a cameo appearance from the artist herself.
"The magic with Lux lies in you never exactly understand—or even want to know—what it is going to next."
Nearly every song concludes in a totally distinct point than where it began. One moment explores the transient trappings of fame over a featherlight orchestration before collapsing in digital cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut echoing the artist's earlier trap-infused style begins off dark and brooding, featuring menacing beats, until fluttering traditional rhythms and an angelic chorus arrive to smooth the song's jagged edges.
The Balance Of Experiment and Pop
A key achievement of the album involves navigating the line of radical innovation and mainstream appeal. It is no coincidence that it has become the artist's first release to break into the Top 5 of major markets: at its core a suite of utterly catchy hits. One track sung primarily in English builds on a chorus that seems to gather increasingly infectious hooks as it spirals skyward. That trick gets echoed by another powerful track that expands and constricts, weaving multiple tunes like an intricate tapestry.
- A waltz-like number seduces with its jaunty, theatrical flair and a chant-along chorus.
- In its words, it shares the pop culture honesty of contemporary heartbreak songs, lambasting a former partner labeled an "psychological terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the singing have a sharp smile, akin to a fairy-tale character concealing a blade: "Gold medal in being a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of letdown."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Ears
Lux represents popular music on a maximalist level, an ambitious grasp for capital-A Art in an era of impending artificial sameness. It rejects solipsism for glorious elevation, creating an over-the-top spectacle that masterfully manages its own built-in ridiculousness. This is an abundant source of buried gems that takes patience to completely explore but never seem like a chore. While some major releases of the year felt like feasting on scraps, this record offers a sumptuous banquet at which the guests around it, perhaps intoxicated on sacred drink, flit between discussions about historical saints, the galvanizing feeling of heartbreaking grief, and common stories about hopeless men. In essence, it's a modern-day musical from music's most restlessly creative visionary.
