On the surface, Lux might appear closer to an arduous university examination than the latest popular music project by a musician who just had a last single was a collaboration with a global K-pop star. Broken across four separate parts and sung in thirteen languages, it is a head-spinning orchestral-influenced work investigating female mystery, spiritual transcendence, and bodily change, often by way of the prism of different saintly figures. The dissolution of a romance—a theme treated with grounded honesty elsewhere—soars skyward here, carried by the lush presence of a major orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within a vast roll call of collaborators. Its sheer daring alone renders the efforts of contemporary pop stars look quite modest.
Rising Above Academic Exercise
The fact that Lux manages to transcend dry academic posturing feels nearly miraculous, and full praise going to the artist. Although this is not the first time project to fuse historical sounds with the present, the scale feel far higher here, with the balancing act far more precarious. The element that truly raises this fourth album, outside of its complex tunes, dense arrangements, and inherent theatricality, is an essential spirit of joy. Similar to the legendary artist during her peak, you find a captivating sense to Rosalía's voice which sweeps you into its tornado. When she's tearing your heart apart, the listener still desire to be right there through the ride.
A Signature Moment of Exuberance
This exuberant spirit comes forth brightly during the stirring piano-led song about a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool over more than four moments. Then, everything drops silent, and there's a spontaneous giggle and a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top orchestral surge crashes down like comedic force. The track immediately shifts into the frenetic track featuring racing strings, a powerful choral group, and a cameo role from none other than Björk.
"The charm of Lux is that you never quite understand—or even wish to know—what it is going to next."
Nearly every song concludes at a totally distinct place from how it began. A track examines the transient trappings of fame with a featherlight symphony before collapsing in electronic chaos. Elsewhere, a song echoing the artist's previous rhythmic work begins out moody and brooding, with prowling vocals, before fluttering flamenco rhythms and a heavenly chorus arrive to smooth the song's jagged corners.
The Bridge Between Experiment & Pop
A key balancing act of Lux involves straddling the gap of radical experimentation and broad accessibility. This is little surprise that the album has achieved her highest-charting work to break into the upper reaches of key markets: at its core a suite of utterly catchy hits. One track sung entirely in the English language builds on a chorus that feels to gather more and more nagging hooks as it spirals skyward. That trick is echoed on another expansive ballad that grows and contracts, weaving layered tunes like an intricate weave.
- A dance-infused song seduces via its playful, theatrical drama and a chant-along chorus.
- Lyrically, it aligns with cultural honesty of contemporary breakup songs, lambasting a former partner labeled an "psychological bully".
- Throughout the album, the vocals have a sharp edge, akin to a storybook figure concealing a blade: "Top prize in acting like a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Feast for the Ears
This album represents pop on a grand scale, a hungry grasp for capital-A Art in an era of looming artificial blankness. It eschews self-absorption for glorious elevation, creating a dramatic drama that skillfully manages its inherent ridiculousness. It is a deep source of buried treasure that requires patience to fully mine but never feels like hard work. Where other major releases of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, Lux offers a sumptuous banquet at which the characters around it, some intoxicated on holy wine, flit between discussions about historical saints, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering grief, and common stories about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from pop's truly restlessly creative visionary.
