At first glance, Lux might appear closer to a difficult scholarly challenge rather than a new popular music album from an artist whose previous single featured a global K-pop star. Split into four different parts and performed in thirteen tongues, it is a dizzying classical-tinged album exploring feminine mystery, religious ascent, and bodily transformation, often by way of the lens of various women saints. The dissolution of a love affair—a topic treated with raw openness elsewhere—soars heavenward here, supported by the lush sound of a full orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within an extensive roll call of contributors. Its sheer audacity by itself renders the work of other pop stars look rather modest.
Transcending Scholarly Exercise
The fact that this album manages to avoid dry academic chin-stroking is almost miraculous, and full credit belonging to the artist. While this is not the first time album to blend historical sounds and modern styles, its stakes are far higher on Lux, and the tightrope walk far more precarious. The element that really raises her fourth album, outside of its complex melodies, dense compositions, and engrained theatricality, proves to be an essential sense of fun. Similar to the iconic Björk during her height, there is a wondrous quality to Rosalía's voice which sweeps the listener up in its tornado. Even when she's breaking hearts in two, the listener nevertheless want to stay alongside her through the ride.
A Prime Example of Exuberance
That playful spirit shines brightly on a stunning piano-led ballad about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched melancholy over more than four moments. Then, all the music falls away, and we hear a gleeful laugh and a comment prior to a hilariously over-the-top string surge thuds down with cartoonish impact. The track immediately segues to the frenetic single featuring galloping orchestration, a powerful choir, and a surprise appearance from none other than Björk.
"The magic with this album is that the listener never exactly understand—or even wish to know—what it is going to next."
Almost each track ends in a totally distinct point from where it began. A track examines the transient nature of celebrity over a featherlight symphony before disintegrating into digital cacophony. Another, a cut echoing the artist's earlier trap-infused style starts out dark and sinister, with menacing vocals, until fluttering traditional handclaps and a heavenly choir enter to smooth the song's rough edges.
The Bridge Of Experiment and Pop
Another crucial achievement on the album is navigating the line of bold innovation and mainstream accessibility. This is no surprise that the album has achieved her first release to break into the upper reaches of major charts: its heart contains a collection of utterly catchy pop songs. One track sung primarily in English swells on a refrain that seems to collect more and more infectious hooks as it spins skyward. That trick is echoed on a different powerful track that grows and contracts, weaving multiple tunes as a complex weave.
- A dance-infused song charms via its jaunty, Disney-adjacent drama and an anthemic chorus.
- Lyrically, it aligns with pop culture impact of contemporary heartbreak songs, lambasting an ex- lover labeled an "psychological bully".
- Throughout these tracks, the vocals have a sharp smile, akin to a fairy-tale figure concealing a blade: "Top prize in being a scoundrel / You have won the trophy of letdown."
An Opulent Banquet for the Ears
This album represents popular music on a maximalist scale, an ambitious grasp for high Art in an era of impending AI-generated sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of glorious transcendence, creating a dramatic spectacle that masterfully controls its inherent excess. This is an abundant well of buried treasure that takes time to fully explore but doesn't feels like hard work. Where other major releases of the year felt like feasting on meal, this record is a sumptuous feast at which the guests at the table, perhaps intoxicated on holy drink, flutter from conversations about ancient figures, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common gossip about hopeless men. In essence, it's a modern-day theatrical production from music's most restlessly inventive visionary.
