At first glance, this album might appear closer to a challenging scholarly examination rather than a new pop record by a musician whose previous single featured an international K-pop icon. Divided across four separate sections and voiced in thirteen languages, this is a breathtaking classical-tinged album investigating female mystery, spiritual ascent, and physical change, frequently by way of the lens of various saintly figures. The end of a love affair—a topic treated with grounded openness on another major 2025 album—is shot heavenward on this record, carried by the constant sound of a major symphony orchestra and contributions from an award-winning composer within a vast roll call of collaborators. Its sheer ambition by itself makes the efforts of other pop stars appear rather modest.
Transcending Academic Pretense
The fact that Lux manages to avoid overly intellectual chin-stroking feels nothing short of miraculous, and full credit going to Rosalía. While it's not the first time album to fuse the past with modern styles, the ambitions are far higher on Lux, with the tightrope walk far more pronounced. What really elevates this fourth album, outside of its complex melodies, dense compositions, and engrained drama, is an essential sense of joy. Much like the legendary Björk during her height, you find a wondrous sense to Rosalía's singing which sweeps you into its whirlwind. Even when she is tearing hearts in two, the listener still desire to stay alongside her through the ride.
A Prime Example of Joy
This playful spirit comes forth clearly during a stunning Italian song inspired by a saint. It luxuriates in a sorrowful whirlpool for more than four minutes. Suddenly, all the music falls away, to reveal there's a gleeful giggle and a comment prior to a hilariously exaggerated orchestral crescendo crashes in like comedic impact. The song then segues into the wild single driven by racing orchestration, a powerful choir, and a surprise role from the artist Björk.
"The charm with this album is that you rarely exactly know—nor wish to predict—what it will go to next."
Nearly each song ends in a completely different point from where it started. A track explores the transient trappings of celebrity over a featherlight symphony before disintegrating in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls the artist's earlier trap-infused work starts out dark and brooding, with menacing vocals, before sudden flamenco handclaps and a heavenly choir enter to smooth the song's jagged corners.
The Balance Of Art and Accessibility
A key balancing act on the album involves navigating the gap of bold innovation and mainstream accessibility. It is little coincidence that it has achieved the artist's first work to crack the Top 5 of major charts: its heart contains a suite of utterly catchy pop songs. A song performed entirely in English builds on a chorus that feels to collect increasingly infectious hooks while it spins upward. This feat is repeated by a different powerful track that expands and constricts, weaving multiple melodies like an intricate weave.
- A waltz-like number seduces with its playful, theatrical flair and an anthemic hook.
- In its words, it aligns the pop culture honesty of contemporary breakup anthems, lambasting a former partner described as an "emotional terrorist".
- Across the album, the vocals carry a painted-on edge, like a storybook figure concealing a knife: "Top prize in acting like a scoundrel / You've the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Feast for the Soul
Lux is pop on a grand scale, a hungry grasp for high Art amid of looming AI-generated blankness. It eschews solipsism for glorious transcendence, crafting an over-the-top drama that skillfully manages its inherent excess. This is a deep well of buried treasure that requires patience to completely mine but never seem like a chore. While other major releases of the year felt like a meager meal, Lux offers a sumptuous feast where the characters at the table, some tipsy on holy wine, flutter from conversations about ancient saints, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common gossip about useless partners. It is a contemporary musical from pop's truly endlessly inventive visionary.
