Initially, this work may look closer to a challenging university quiz rather than the latest popular music album from an artist who just had a last hit was a collaboration with an international K-pop icon. Split across four distinct parts and performed in 13 tongues, this is a breathtaking orchestral-influenced opus exploring feminine mystery, spiritual ascent, and physical transformation, often via the prism of different women saints. The dissolution of a love affair—a theme handled with grounded honesty on another major 2025 album—is shot upwards on this record, buoyed by the constant sound of a major orchestra and work from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter among a long list of contributors. Its sheer ambition alone renders the work of contemporary pop stars appear rather modest.
Rising Above Scholarly Pretense
The fact that this album manages to escape dry academic posturing feels almost a miracle, and complete praise belonging to Rosalía. Although this is not the first time project to alchemize the past and modern styles, its ambitions feel much greater here, and the balancing act far more dramatic. The element that truly elevates this fourth release, outside of its complex melodies, rich compositions, and engrained drama, proves to be a core spirit of fun. Much like the iconic artist at her height, there is a wondrous sense to Rosalía's singing that pulls you into its whirlwind. When she is tearing your heart in two, you nevertheless desire to be right there for the journey.
A Prime Moment of Joy
That playful spirit comes forth brightly during the stunning Italian song about Saint Clare. It bathes in a sorrowful melancholy over several moments. Suddenly, all the music drops away, to reveal we hear a gleeful laugh and a comment before a hilariously exaggerated string crescendo crashes in with comedic impact. The track then shifts to the frenetic track driven by galloping orchestration, a powerful choir, and a surprise role from the artist Björk.
"The charm with this album is that you never exactly understand—nor want to know—what you will go next."
Almost each song ends at a completely different point from how it started. One moment explores the fleeting trappings of fame with a featherlight orchestration before collapsing into digital cacophony. Elsewhere, a song echoing her earlier rhythmic style begins off dark and brooding, featuring menacing beats, before sudden flamenco rhythms and an angelic chorus enter to smooth its jagged edges.
The Bridge Between Art & Pop
Another crucial balancing act on the album is straddling the line of bold innovation and broad appeal. This is little coincidence that it has become the artist's first work to crack the Top 5 of major charts: its heart contains a suite of utterly undeniable hits. One track performed entirely in the English language builds around a chorus that seems to collect more and more nagging melodies while it spirals upward. That trick gets echoed on another expansive track that grows and constricts, intertwining multiple tunes as an intricate weave.
- A waltz-like number seduces via its jaunty, Disney-adjacent drama and a chant-along chorus.
- In its words, it shares the cultural impact of other heartbreak anthems, eviscerating a former lover labeled an "emotional terrorist".
- Throughout these tracks, the singing have a sharp edge, akin to a fairy-tale character hiding a blade: "Top prize in being a scoundrel / You have the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Soul
Lux represents popular music on a grand scale, a hungry grasp for capital-A Art amid of looming artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of sublime elevation, crafting an over-the-top spectacle that masterfully controls its own inherent excess. It is a deep source of buried treasure that requires patience to fully mine but doesn't seem like a chore. While some major releases of the year felt like a meager scraps, this record offers a lavish banquet where the characters around it, some intoxicated on sacred drink, flutter from discussions about ancient figures, the profound feeling of heartbreaking sadness, and common stories about useless men. It is a modern-day musical from music's most endlessly creative practitioner.
