On the surface, Lux may look more like a difficult academic examination rather than the latest pop record by a musician who just had a last single featured a global pop icon. Divided into four distinct parts and performed in 13 tongues, we have a breathtaking classical-tinged album that delves into female mystique, religious transcendence, and corporal change, often via the prism of different women saints. The end of a relationship—a theme treated with raw honesty on another major 2025 album—is launched heavenward here, supported by the lush sound of a major symphony orchestra and input from a Pulitzer-winning composer among a long roll call of collaborators. Its sheer daring by itself renders the efforts of contemporary pop stars appear rather laughable.
Transcending Scholarly Exercise
That this album manages to escape overly intellectual chin-stroking feels nearly a miracle, with full credit going to the artist. While it's not her first album to alchemize the past with the present, the ambitions are far higher on Lux, with the tightrope walk far more pronounced. What truly raises her fourth album, beyond its multilayered tunes, dense compositions, and inherent drama, is an essential spirit of fun. Similar to the legendary artist during her height, there is a wondrous sense to Rosalía's voice that pulls the listener up in its whirlwind. Even when she is tearing hearts in two, you still desire to stay alongside her through the journey.
A Prime Example of Exuberance
That exuberant energy shines clearly during a stunning Italian song about a saint. It bathes in a string-drenched melancholy over more than four moments. Suddenly, everything drops away, and there's a gleeful giggle and a declaration before a comically exaggerated string crescendo thuds down with comedic impact. The song immediately segues to the frenetic track driven by galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a cameo role from none other than herself.
"The charm of Lux is that you rarely exactly understand—nor wish to predict—where it is going to next."
Almost every song ends at a totally different point than where it began. A track explores the fleeting trappings of celebrity over a delicate orchestration before collapsing into electronic chaos. Another, a cut echoing the artist's previous rhythmic work begins off moody and brooding, with prowling vocals, until fluttering traditional handclaps and an angelic chorus arrive to soften the song's rough corners.
The Balance Between Art & Pop
Another crucial balancing act on the album is navigating the line between bold experimentation and broad accessibility. It is little surprise that the album has achieved the artist's first work to break into the Top 5 of key markets: at its core a suite of truly catchy pop songs. A song sung primarily in English swells on a chorus that feels to gather increasingly nagging melodies while it spirals skyward. That feat gets repeated by a different expansive track that expands and contracts, weaving multiple melodies as an intricate weave.
- A dance-infused number seduces with its jaunty, theatrical drama and a chant-along hook.
- Lyrically, it shares with cultural honesty of other breakup anthems, eviscerating an ex- lover labeled an "emotional bully".
- Across the album, the vocals carry a painted-on smile, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a knife: "Top prize in acting like a motherfucker / You've the podium of letdown."
An Opulent Feast for the Ears
This album represents pop on a grand level, an ambitious reach for capital-A artistry in an era of looming artificial sameness. It rejects solipsism in favor of glorious transcendence, crafting a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its built-in excess. This is a deep source of buried treasure that requires patience to fully explore but doesn't seem like a chore. While some major releases of the year felt like a meager meal, Lux offers a sumptuous banquet where the guests at the table, perhaps tipsy on sacred wine, flit between conversations about historical figures, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common stories about hopeless men. It is a contemporary theatrical production from music's truly restlessly creative visionary.
