At first glance, this work could seem more like a challenging scholarly quiz rather than the latest popular music project by a musician whose last hit was a collaboration with an international K-pop star. Broken across four separate sections and sung in thirteen tongues, this is a dizzying orchestral-influenced album that delves into female mystery, religious transcendence, and physical transformation, frequently by way of the prism of different women saints. The end of a relationship—a topic treated with raw openness elsewhere—is launched upwards on this record, buoyed by the lush presence of a major orchestra and input from an award-winning songwriter among a long list of contributors. The pure audacity by itself renders the efforts of contemporary pop stars appear quite modest.
Transcending Academic Exercise
That this album manages to avoid overly academic chin-stroking feels nearly miraculous, with complete credit belonging to Rosalía. Although this is not the first time album to fuse historical sounds with the present, its stakes are far higher here, with the balancing act far more precarious. What truly raises her fourth release, outside of its multilayered tunes, rich compositions, and engrained drama, is a core spirit of playfulness. Similar to the legendary artist at her peak, there is a wondrous sense to Rosalía's singing which sweeps the listener into its whirlwind. When she's tearing hearts in two, the listener nevertheless want to stay alongside her for the journey.
A Signature Example of Exuberance
This exuberant spirit shines clearly on a stirring Italian ballad inspired by a saint. It bathes in a string-drenched whirlpool over more than four minutes. Suddenly, all the music drops silent, and we hear a spontaneous laugh and a declaration before a hilariously exaggerated string crescendo thuds down with cartoonish impact. The song then segues to the wild track driven by racing orchestration, a powerful choir, and a cameo appearance from the artist Björk.
"The magic of Lux lies in you rarely exactly understand—nor wish to predict—what it is going to next."
Nearly every track ends at a totally distinct place from where it began. A track examines the transient nature of celebrity over a featherlight symphony only to disintegrating into electronic chaos. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls the artist's earlier rhythmic work begins out dark and brooding, featuring prowling beats, until fluttering traditional handclaps and a heavenly choir enter to smooth its jagged corners.
The Bridge Of Art and Pop
A key balancing act on the album is straddling the gap of radical innovation and mainstream accessibility. It is no surprise that it has become the artist's first work to break into the Top 5 of major markets: at its core a collection of utterly catchy pop songs. One track performed entirely in English swells around a chorus that seems to collect increasingly nagging hooks while it spins skyward. That trick is echoed on another powerful ballad that expands and constricts, weaving layered melodies as a complex tapestry.
- A waltz-like number charms with its jaunty, Disney-adjacent drama and an anthemic hook.
- In its words, it aligns with cultural impact of contemporary breakup anthems, lambasting a former lover described as an "psychological terrorist".
- Across these tracks, the singing carry a sharp smile, like a storybook character hiding a knife: "Gold medal in acting like a scoundrel / You have the podium of letdown."
A Maximalist Feast for the Ears
Lux represents popular music on a grand level, a hungry grasp for high Art in an era of looming artificial sameness. It rejects solipsism in favor of glorious transcendence, crafting a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its own built-in excess. It is a deep well of buried gems that takes time to fully mine but never feels like hard work. While some big pop albums of 2025 felt like feasting on scraps, Lux offers a lavish banquet at which the characters at the table, perhaps tipsy on holy wine, flutter from conversations about ancient figures, the galvanizing sensation of heartbreaking grief, and shared gossip about useless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from pop's most restlessly inventive practitioner.
