On the surface, this work may look more like a difficult scholarly quiz rather than the latest popular music project from an artist who just had a previous hit was a collaboration with a global pop icon. Broken into 4 distinct sections and sung in 13 tongues, we have a dizzying classical-tinged opus exploring feminine mystique, spiritual ascent, and bodily transformation, often through the perspective of various women saints. The dissolution of a relationship—a topic treated with grounded openness elsewhere—is shot skyward here, carried by the lush presence of a major symphony orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning composer within a long roll call of collaborators. Its sheer daring alone renders the efforts of contemporary pop stars look quite modest.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
That this album manages to transcend overly intellectual chin-stroking feels almost miraculous, with complete praise going to Rosalía. Although it's not her first album to blend the past with modern styles, its scale are much higher here, and the balancing act far more pronounced. The element that truly raises this fourth album, outside of its complex tunes, rich compositions, and inherent theatricality, is a core sense of joy. Much like the iconic artist at her height, you find a captivating quality to Rosalía's voice which sweeps you into its tornado. When she is tearing hearts apart, the listener still want to be alongside her through the ride.
A Prime Moment of Exuberance
This playful spirit comes forth brightly on a stirring piano-led ballad about Saint Clare. It bathes in a sorrowful whirlpool for more than four minutes. Then, all the music falls away, to reveal we hear a spontaneous laugh and a comment before a hilariously exaggerated orchestral surge thuds in like cartoonish force. The song immediately segues to the frenetic single driven by galloping strings, an imposing choir, and a cameo appearance from the artist Björk.
"The magic with this album lies in you rarely quite understand—nor want to predict—where you will go to next."
Nearly every track finishes in a completely distinct point than where it started. A track explores the fleeting nature of fame over a featherlight orchestration only to disintegrating in electronic chaos. Another, a cut echoing the artist's earlier trap-infused work begins off moody and sinister, with menacing beats, until fluttering traditional handclaps and an angelic choir arrive to soften its jagged corners.
The Bridge Between Art & Pop
A key balancing act on the album is navigating the gap of radical innovation and mainstream accessibility. It is little surprise that it has achieved her first work to crack the upper reaches of major charts: its heart contains a collection of utterly undeniable pop songs. A song performed primarily in English builds around a chorus that seems to collect more and more nagging hooks as it spins upward. This trick gets echoed by a different powerful ballad that expands and constricts, intertwining layered tunes as an intricate tapestry.
- A waltz-like song seduces via its playful, theatrical flair and a chant-along hook.
- In its words, it aligns with pop culture honesty of contemporary breakup songs, lambasting a former lover described as an "psychological terrorist".
- Across these tracks, the singing have a sharp smile, like a storybook character concealing a knife: "Top prize in being a scoundrel / You've the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Soul
This album is pop on a grand scale, an ambitious reach for capital-A Art amid of impending AI-generated blankness. It eschews solipsism in favor of sublime transcendence, creating a dramatic drama that skillfully controls its inherent ridiculousness. This is an abundant source of hidden treasure that takes time to fully mine but never seem like hard work. Where other big pop albums of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, Lux offers a sumptuous banquet at which the guests around the table, some intoxicated on holy wine, flutter between conversations about ancient saints, the galvanizing feeling of heartbreaking sadness, and shared stories about useless men. It is a contemporary theatrical production from pop's most endlessly creative practitioner.
