On the surface, this album could seem more like an arduous scholarly quiz than a new popular music record from a musician whose previous single featured an international pop icon. Divided across four distinct parts and sung in 13 tongues, it is a breathtaking orchestral-influenced work that delves into feminine mystery, religious transcendence, and physical change, often via the lens of different saintly figures. The dissolution of a romance—a topic treated with grounded honesty elsewhere—is shot heavenward here, supported by the constant sound of a full symphony orchestra and input from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter among an extensive roll call of collaborators. The pure audacity by itself renders the efforts of contemporary artists look rather small.
Transcending Academic Pretense
The fact that this album manages to escape dry academic chin-stroking feels nearly a miracle, with complete praise belonging to Rosalía. Although this is not her first album to alchemize the past and the present, the scale are much higher on Lux, and the balancing act far more dramatic. The element that really elevates this fourth release, outside of its multilayered tunes, dense arrangements, and engrained drama, proves to be an essential spirit of playfulness. Similar to the legendary artist during her peak, you find a captivating quality to the vocalist's voice which sweeps the listener up in its whirlwind. When she is tearing hearts in two, you still desire to be alongside her through the journey.
A Prime Example of Exuberance
That exuberant energy shines clearly during a stirring piano-led song inspired by Saint Clare. It bathes in a string-drenched whirlpool for more than four moments. Then, all the music drops away, and we hear a spontaneous giggle followed by a comment prior to a comically over-the-top orchestral crescendo thuds in with cartoonish impact. The track immediately shifts into the wild single featuring galloping strings, an imposing choir, and a cameo role from none other than Björk.
"The charm of Lux is that you rarely quite know—or even wish to know—what you will go next."
Nearly every track finishes at a totally distinct point from how it started. A track examines the fleeting trappings of celebrity with a delicate symphony before collapsing into electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a song echoing the artist's previous trap-infused work begins out moody and sinister, featuring menacing vocals, until fluttering flamenco rhythms and a heavenly choir arrive to soften the song's rough edges.
The Balance Of Experiment and Accessibility
Another crucial achievement on Lux is navigating the gap between bold experimentation and broad appeal. This is little surprise that the album has achieved her first work to crack the Top 5 of key charts: at its core a suite of utterly undeniable pop songs. A song performed entirely in the English language builds around a refrain that feels to collect increasingly infectious melodies while it spirals skyward. This trick is repeated by another expansive ballad that expands and contracts, intertwining layered tunes like an intricate tapestry.
- A waltz-like number seduces via its jaunty, theatrical flair and a chant-along chorus.
- In its words, it shares with pop culture impact of contemporary heartbreak anthems, lambasting a former partner labeled an "emotional bully".
- Across the album, the vocals carry a painted-on edge, akin to a storybook character concealing a blade: "Top prize in being a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of disappointment."
An Opulent Feast for the Soul
Lux represents popular music on a maximalist scale, an ambitious grasp for high Art in an era of looming artificial sameness. It eschews self-absorption in favor of glorious elevation, creating a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its inherent ridiculousness. It is a deep source of buried gems that takes time to completely explore but never feels like hard work. While other big pop albums of 2025 felt like feasting on meal, this record offers a sumptuous feast where the guests around it, perhaps tipsy on holy drink, flit between conversations about ancient figures, the galvanizing sensation of soul-shattering grief, and common gossip about useless partners. In essence, it's a modern-day musical from pop's most endlessly inventive practitioner.
