On the surface, this work may look more like a challenging scholarly challenge rather than the latest pop project by a musician whose previous single featured a global pop icon. Divided into four distinct parts and voiced in 13 languages, this is a head-spinning symphonic work exploring feminine mystery, religious transcendence, and physical change, often by way of the perspective of different women saints. The end of a relationship—a theme treated with grounded openness elsewhere—is launched skyward here, buoyed by the lush presence of a major orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning composer among a long roll call of collaborators. The pure ambition alone makes the efforts of other pop stars appear rather modest.
Transcending Scholarly Pretense
The fact that this album manages to escape overly academic chin-stroking feels almost a miracle, with complete praise going to Rosalía. While it's not the first time album to blend historical sounds with the present, its ambitions are far greater here, and the balancing act more precarious. The element that really raises her fourth album, beyond its multilayered melodies, dense compositions, and engrained drama, is an essential sense of fun. Similar to the legendary Björk at her peak, there is a captivating sense to the vocalist's singing which sweeps the listener up in its whirlwind. When she is tearing your heart in two, the listener still want to be right there for the journey.
A Signature Moment of Joy
This exuberant energy shines brightly during the stunning piano-led song about Saint Clare. It bathes in a sorrowful melancholy over more than four moments. Suddenly, everything falls away, to reveal we hear a spontaneous laugh and a declaration prior to a comically over-the-top orchestral crescendo thuds in with comedic force. The song then segues into the wild track featuring galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a surprise appearance from the artist herself.
"The charm with this album is that the listener rarely quite understand—or even want to predict—what it will go to next."
Almost every song concludes at a completely distinct point than how it started. One moment examines the fleeting nature of celebrity over a featherlight orchestration only to collapsing into electronic cacophony. Another, a cut that recalls the artist's earlier trap-infused work starts off dark and brooding, featuring prowling vocals, until sudden traditional rhythms and an angelic chorus enter to smooth its rough corners.
The Bridge Between Art & Accessibility
A key balancing act on Lux is navigating the gap of bold innovation and mainstream appeal. It is no surprise that it has achieved the artist's first release to crack the Top 5 of major markets: its heart contains a collection of utterly undeniable pop songs. A song performed entirely in English swells around a chorus that feels to collect more and more infectious melodies as it spins skyward. That feat gets echoed by another powerful track that grows and constricts, weaving layered tunes like an intricate tapestry.
- A dance-infused song charms with its jaunty, theatrical flair and an anthemic hook.
- In its words, it shares with pop culture honesty of other heartbreak anthems, eviscerating a former lover labeled an "emotional bully".
- Throughout the album, the vocals have a painted-on edge, like a fairy-tale character hiding a blade: "Gold medal in being a motherfucker / You've the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Soul
This album is pop on a maximalist level, an ambitious grasp for capital-A Art in an era of looming AI-generated sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of sublime elevation, creating an over-the-top spectacle that skillfully manages its inherent excess. It is an abundant source of buried treasure that takes time to fully explore but doesn't feels like hard work. Where some big releases of 2025 felt like feasting on scraps, this record offers a sumptuous banquet where the guests at it, perhaps intoxicated on sacred wine, flutter between conversations about ancient saints, the galvanizing sensation of soul-shattering sadness, and shared gossip about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a modern-day musical from music's truly endlessly inventive visionary.
