Initially, this album may look more like an arduous scholarly examination than the latest pop record from a musician whose previous single was a collaboration with an international K-pop star. Divided into four distinct parts and sung in thirteen languages, we have a dizzying orchestral-influenced album investigating feminine mystery, spiritual transcendence, and physical transformation, often through the lens of different women saints. The dissolution of a relationship—a topic treated with grounded honesty elsewhere—is shot upwards here, buoyed by the constant presence of a full orchestra and work from a Pulitzer-winning composer among a long list of collaborators. Its sheer daring by itself makes the work of contemporary pop stars seem quite small.
Rising Above Academic Exercise
That this album manages to escape overly academic posturing is nearly a miracle, with sole credit belonging to Rosalía. While it's not her first project to alchemize historical sounds and modern styles, the stakes feel much greater on Lux, and the balancing act far more precarious. The element that truly raises her fourth release, beyond its multilayered melodies, rich compositions, and inherent drama, is a core spirit of playfulness. Similar to the legendary artist at her peak, you find a captivating quality to the vocalist's voice that pulls the listener into its tornado. When she is breaking hearts in two, you nevertheless want to stay right there through the journey.
A Prime Moment of Exuberance
This exuberant energy comes forth brightly on a stirring Italian ballad about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a sorrowful whirlpool over more than four minutes. Then, all the music drops silent, to reveal there's a gleeful giggle followed by a comment prior to a comically exaggerated orchestral surge crashes in like cartoonish impact. The track then shifts into the wild single featuring racing strings, a powerful choral group, and a cameo role from none other than herself.
"The charm with Lux lies in the listener never exactly know—or even want to predict—what it will go next."
Almost every track finishes at a completely different place from where it started. One moment explores the transient nature of fame with a featherlight orchestration only to collapsing in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls her previous trap-infused work starts off moody and sinister, with prowling beats, before fluttering flamenco rhythms and a heavenly chorus enter to smooth its rough corners.
The Balance Of Art and Pop
Another crucial balancing act of the album involves navigating the line of radical experimentation and mainstream accessibility. This is little surprise that it has achieved her first release to break into the Top 5 of major markets: at its core a collection of truly catchy pop songs. A song performed primarily in English swells on a chorus that feels to collect more and more nagging melodies as it spirals skyward. This feat gets echoed by another powerful ballad that expands and constricts, intertwining layered tunes as a complex tapestry.
- A dance-infused number charms with its playful, theatrical flair and an anthemic hook.
- Lyrically, it aligns with pop culture impact of contemporary heartbreak songs, eviscerating an ex- lover described as an "emotional terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the singing carry a painted-on edge, akin to a storybook figure hiding a knife: "Top prize in acting like a scoundrel / You've the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Ears
Lux represents pop on a maximalist scale, a hungry reach for capital-A artistry in an era of impending artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism for sublime transcendence, creating an over-the-top spectacle that skillfully controls its inherent excess. This is an abundant well of buried treasure that takes patience to fully explore but never seem like a chore. Where other major releases of the year seemed like a meager meal, Lux is a sumptuous feast where the characters around it, some intoxicated on sacred wine, flutter between discussions about historical figures, the profound feeling of soul-shattering grief, and common stories about hopeless partners. It is a contemporary musical from pop's most restlessly inventive practitioner.
