At first glance, this album could seem more like a difficult university challenge than the latest popular music record by a musician who just had a previous single was a collaboration with an international K-pop icon. Split across 4 separate parts and sung in thirteen languages, this is a head-spinning symphonic opus that delves into feminine mystique, religious transcendence, and physical change, often by way of the perspective of different female saints. The dissolution of a romance—a theme handled with grounded honesty elsewhere—is shot skyward on this record, supported by the constant presence of a full orchestra and work from an award-winning songwriter among an extensive roll call of collaborators. Its sheer audacity by itself renders the efforts of contemporary artists look quite small.
Rising Above Scholarly Pretense
That this album succeeds in escape overly intellectual posturing is nearly miraculous, and full credit belonging to Rosalía. Although it's not the first time album to alchemize the past and modern styles, the ambitions feel far greater here, and the tightrope walk more pronounced. What really elevates this fourth album, beyond its multilayered melodies, rich compositions, and inherent drama, is an essential sense of joy. Much like the legendary artist during her peak, you find a wondrous quality to Rosalía's singing that pulls you up in its whirlwind. Even when she's breaking your heart in two, you still desire to stay alongside her through the ride.
A Prime Example of Exuberance
This exuberant energy comes forth brightly during a stirring Italian ballad about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool over more than four moments. Then, everything falls silent, and there's a gleeful laugh followed by a comment before a comically exaggerated orchestral surge crashes down like comedic force. The track immediately segues to the wild track featuring galloping strings, a powerful choir, and a surprise appearance from the artist herself.
"The magic of Lux is that the listener never quite understand—nor want to predict—where it is going next."
Almost every track finishes at a totally different point than how it began. A track examines the transient trappings of fame with a delicate orchestration only to disintegrating in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls the artist's previous rhythmic style starts out moody and sinister, featuring prowling vocals, before sudden flamenco rhythms and an angelic choir enter to smooth the song's rough corners.
The Bridge Of Art & Accessibility
Another crucial achievement on Lux involves straddling the line of radical innovation and mainstream appeal. This is no coincidence that it has become the artist's highest-charting release to break into the upper reaches of key charts: at its core a collection of truly catchy pop songs. A song sung primarily in English swells on a chorus that seems to gather increasingly infectious hooks while it spirals skyward. This feat gets repeated by another expansive track that grows and constricts, intertwining multiple melodies like a complex tapestry.
- A waltz-like song charms with its jaunty, theatrical drama and a chant-along hook.
- In its words, it aligns the pop culture impact of other breakup anthems, eviscerating a former lover described as an "psychological terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the vocals have a sharp smile, like a storybook figure concealing a knife: "Gold medal in acting like a scoundrel / You have the podium of letdown."
An Opulent Banquet for the Ears
Lux represents pop on a maximalist level, an ambitious grasp for high Art amid of looming AI-generated sameness. It eschews solipsism for glorious transcendence, creating an over-the-top spectacle that masterfully manages its built-in excess. This is an abundant well of buried gems that takes patience to completely mine but never seem like hard work. While some big releases of 2025 felt like feasting on scraps, Lux offers a sumptuous feast where the guests at the table, perhaps tipsy on sacred drink, flit from conversations about historical saints, the profound feeling of soul-shattering grief, and shared gossip about hopeless men. In essence, it's a modern-day musical from pop's most restlessly creative practitioner.
