Initially, this album might appear more like a difficult university examination than the latest pop project from an artist whose previous single was a collaboration with a global K-pop icon. Divided across four different parts and performed in thirteen languages, it is a dizzying orchestral-influenced opus exploring feminine mystique, spiritual transcendence, and corporal change, often through the lens of different female saints. The dissolution of a romance—a topic handled with raw honesty on another major 2025 album—soars skyward on this record, carried by the constant sound of a major symphony orchestra and input from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within an extensive roll call of collaborators. The pure daring by itself renders the work of other artists seem quite laughable.
Rising Above Academic Exercise
That this album succeeds in escape dry intellectual posturing is nearly a miracle, with sole praise belonging to the artist. Although this is not her first album to fuse historical sounds with modern styles, its ambitions are much greater on Lux, and the tightrope walk far more precarious. What really raises this fourth release, beyond its complex melodies, rich compositions, and engrained drama, is a core sense of fun. Similar to the legendary Björk at her height, you find a captivating quality to Rosalía's singing that pulls you into its tornado. Even when she's tearing your heart in two, the listener nevertheless want to be right there for the journey.
A Prime Example of Joy
This exuberant energy comes forth brightly on a stirring piano-led ballad about a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched melancholy over several minutes. Suddenly, everything falls away, and there's a gleeful laugh followed by a declaration before a comically over-the-top orchestral crescendo crashes down with comedic impact. The track then shifts to the frenetic track featuring racing orchestration, an imposing choir, and a cameo role from the artist herself.
"The magic of this album is that you rarely exactly understand—or even want to predict—what you is going next."
Nearly each song concludes in a completely distinct place than where it began. A track explores the fleeting trappings of fame over a delicate orchestration before collapsing in electronic chaos. Elsewhere, a cut echoing the artist's previous trap-infused style begins out dark and sinister, featuring menacing vocals, until fluttering flamenco rhythms and a heavenly choir enter to soften the song's rough corners.
The Balance Of Experiment & Pop
Another crucial achievement on the album involves straddling the line between bold innovation and broad accessibility. It is no surprise that it has achieved the artist's highest-charting release to break into the Top 5 of key charts: its heart contains a collection of truly catchy pop songs. A song sung primarily in the English language builds on a refrain that feels to gather more and more infectious hooks as it spins skyward. This trick gets repeated by another powerful track that grows and constricts, intertwining multiple tunes like a complex weave.
- A dance-infused number charms via its playful, theatrical flair and an anthemic hook.
- In its words, it shares with pop culture impact of other heartbreak songs, eviscerating a former partner labeled an "psychological bully".
- Throughout the album, the vocals have a painted-on smile, akin to a fairy-tale figure hiding a blade: "Gold medal in being a motherfucker / You have the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Ears
Lux is popular music on a grand scale, a hungry reach for high Art amid of looming AI-generated blankness. It eschews self-absorption for sublime transcendence, crafting a dramatic drama that masterfully manages its built-in excess. It is a deep source of hidden treasure that requires time to fully explore but doesn't seem like hard work. While other major releases of the year seemed like a meager scraps, Lux is a sumptuous feast at which the guests at the table, perhaps tipsy on sacred drink, flutter from conversations about historical figures, the profound sensation of soul-shattering grief, and shared stories about useless partners. It is a contemporary musical from music's truly endlessly creative practitioner.
