On the surface, this album may look closer to a difficult scholarly quiz rather than the latest pop project by an artist who just had a previous hit featured a global pop icon. Divided into four different sections and voiced in thirteen tongues, it is a dizzying symphonic work exploring feminine mystique, spiritual ascent, and corporal transformation, frequently via the prism of different women saints. The end of a love affair—a theme treated with grounded honesty on another major 2025 album—soars upwards on this record, buoyed by the constant sound of a major symphony orchestra and contributions from an award-winning composer among a vast roll call of contributors. The pure audacity by itself renders the efforts of contemporary pop stars look rather laughable.
Transcending Scholarly Exercise
That this album manages to transcend overly academic chin-stroking feels nearly miraculous, with full praise belonging to Rosalía. While it's not the first time project to alchemize historical sounds with the present, the ambitions are much greater on Lux, and the tightrope walk more dramatic. The element that truly raises this fourth release, beyond its multilayered melodies, rich arrangements, and inherent theatricality, proves to be an essential spirit of playfulness. Much like the legendary artist at her peak, you find a captivating quality to the vocalist's singing that pulls you into its whirlwind. Even when she's tearing hearts in two, the listener still want to be right there through the journey.
A Prime Moment of Exuberance
This playful spirit comes forth clearly on the stunning Italian song inspired by Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a sorrowful melancholy over several minutes. Suddenly, all the music drops away, to reveal there's a gleeful laugh and a comment prior to a hilariously exaggerated string crescendo crashes down with cartoonish impact. The song immediately shifts to the wild track featuring galloping strings, a powerful choir, and a cameo appearance from none other than herself.
"The magic with this album is that the listener never exactly understand—or even wish to know—where you is going to next."
Nearly every song finishes in a completely different place from how it began. A track explores the fleeting nature of fame with a delicate symphony before disintegrating in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut echoing the artist's previous trap-infused work starts off moody and sinister, featuring menacing vocals, until fluttering traditional rhythms and a heavenly chorus enter to soften the song's jagged corners.
The Balance Of Experiment & Pop
A key achievement of Lux involves straddling the gap of bold experimentation and mainstream accessibility. It is little surprise that it has achieved her highest-charting work to crack the upper reaches of major charts: its heart contains a suite of truly undeniable hits. One track sung primarily in the English language builds around a chorus that feels to gather more and more nagging melodies while it spirals skyward. That trick is echoed by a different expansive ballad that grows and constricts, intertwining layered melodies like an intricate weave.
- A dance-infused song seduces via its playful, theatrical drama and an anthemic chorus.
- Lyrically, it shares the pop culture impact of other breakup songs, lambasting a former lover described as an "emotional bully".
- Throughout the album, the singing have a painted-on edge, akin to a storybook figure concealing a knife: "Gold medal in acting like a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of letdown."
An Opulent Feast for the Ears
This album is popular music on a grand scale, a hungry reach for capital-A artistry in an era of looming AI-generated blankness. It eschews solipsism in favor of sublime transcendence, crafting an over-the-top spectacle that masterfully manages its own inherent excess. It is an abundant well of hidden gems that takes time to completely explore but never feels like a chore. While some big releases of the year seemed like a meager meal, Lux is a sumptuous banquet at which the guests around it, some tipsy on sacred wine, flutter between discussions about historical figures, the profound sensation of heartbreaking sadness, and shared stories about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from music's most restlessly inventive practitioner.
