Initially, this album could seem more like a challenging academic challenge than the latest popular music project by an artist who just had a previous single was a collaboration with a global pop star. Split across four different parts and sung in 13 tongues, it is a head-spinning classical-tinged album investigating feminine mystique, religious transcendence, and corporal transformation, often via the perspective of different female saints. The end of a romance—a topic treated with raw openness on another major 2025 album—is shot heavenward here, buoyed by the lush sound of a full orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within a long list of collaborators. Its sheer daring by itself renders the work of other artists seem quite small.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
That Lux manages to avoid dry academic posturing feels nothing short of miraculous, with complete credit belonging to the artist. Although this is not her first album to blend the past with modern styles, its ambitions are much higher on Lux, with the tightrope walk far more precarious. The element that really elevates this fourth release, outside of its multilayered tunes, dense compositions, and inherent drama, is an essential spirit of joy. Much like the iconic artist at her peak, you find a captivating sense to Rosalía's singing which sweeps the listener up in its whirlwind. When she is tearing your heart in two, you still want to be alongside her through the journey.
A Signature Moment of Joy
This exuberant spirit comes forth clearly during the stunning Italian song inspired by a saint. It bathes in a sorrowful melancholy for more than four minutes. Suddenly, all the music falls away, and we hear a spontaneous laugh and a declaration before a comically exaggerated string crescendo thuds in with comedic force. The track then shifts to the wild single featuring galloping strings, a powerful choral group, and a cameo role from the artist Björk.
"The magic of Lux lies in you never quite understand—or even want to know—where it will go to next."
Almost each song concludes in a completely distinct place from how it started. One moment explores the fleeting nature of celebrity over a delicate symphony only to collapsing in digital cacophony. Another, a song echoing her earlier rhythmic work begins off dark and sinister, with menacing vocals, until fluttering traditional handclaps and a heavenly chorus enter to smooth its jagged corners.
The Balance Between Experiment & Pop
Another crucial balancing act of Lux involves straddling the line of radical innovation and broad accessibility. It is little surprise that it has achieved her first release to crack the upper reaches of major markets: its heart contains a suite of utterly catchy hits. A song performed primarily in the English language swells on a refrain that feels to gather increasingly infectious melodies while it spins skyward. That feat gets repeated on a different expansive track that grows and contracts, intertwining multiple tunes as a complex weave.
- A dance-infused number charms with its jaunty, theatrical drama and an anthemic chorus.
- In its words, it aligns with pop culture honesty of contemporary breakup anthems, lambasting a former partner described as an "psychological bully".
- Across the album, the singing have a sharp smile, akin to a fairy-tale character hiding a knife: "Top prize in acting like a motherfucker / You've won the trophy of letdown."
An Opulent Feast for the Soul
This album is popular music on a grand scale, an ambitious grasp for capital-A Art in an era of impending artificial blankness. It rejects solipsism for glorious elevation, creating a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its inherent excess. This is an abundant well of hidden gems that requires time to fully explore but doesn't feels like a chore. Where some big releases of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, this record is a lavish feast at which the guests at the table, perhaps tipsy on sacred drink, flutter from conversations about historical saints, the galvanizing sensation of heartbreaking grief, and common gossip about useless partners. In essence, it's a modern-day theatrical production from pop's truly endlessly inventive practitioner.
