Initially, Lux could seem closer to a challenging academic examination than a new popular music album by an artist who just had a last hit was a collaboration with a global pop star. Broken into four separate parts and sung in thirteen languages, it is a breathtaking orchestral-influenced work investigating female mystique, religious ascent, and physical transformation, often via the perspective of different women saints. The dissolution of a romance—a theme handled with grounded honesty elsewhere—soars skyward on this record, buoyed by the lush presence of a major orchestra and input from a Pulitzer-winning composer within a vast list of collaborators. The pure ambition alone makes the work of contemporary pop stars appear rather small.
Rising Above Academic Pretense
The fact that this album manages to avoid dry academic posturing feels nearly a miracle, and full credit going to Rosalía. While this is not the first time project to blend the past and the present, its scale feel far greater here, and the balancing act far more pronounced. The element that really raises her fourth release, outside of its multilayered tunes, rich compositions, and inherent theatricality, is an essential sense of playfulness. Much like the iconic artist at her peak, there is a wondrous quality to Rosalía's voice which sweeps you into its tornado. Even when she is breaking hearts apart, the listener still want to stay alongside her for the journey.
A Signature Example of Joy
This exuberant spirit shines clearly during a stirring piano-led song about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool over several minutes. Then, everything drops away, and we hear a spontaneous laugh and a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top string surge thuds in like cartoonish impact. The track then segues into the wild single featuring galloping orchestration, an imposing choral group, and a surprise appearance from none other than herself.
"The charm with Lux is that you never quite know—or even want to predict—where it is going next."
Almost each song finishes at a completely different place than where it began. One moment explores the transient trappings of celebrity with a featherlight symphony only to disintegrating in digital cacophony. Elsewhere, a song that recalls the artist's previous trap-infused style begins out moody and sinister, with menacing vocals, before fluttering flamenco handclaps and an angelic choir arrive to smooth its rough corners.
The Bridge Of Art & Accessibility
Another crucial achievement on the album involves straddling the line between radical experimentation and mainstream appeal. It is no surprise that the album has achieved the artist's first release to break into the upper reaches of major charts: its heart contains a suite of utterly catchy hits. One track performed primarily in the English language swells around a refrain that feels to gather increasingly nagging hooks as it spirals upward. This trick gets echoed on another powerful ballad that expands and contracts, intertwining multiple melodies like a complex weave.
- A waltz-like song charms with its playful, theatrical flair and a chant-along hook.
- In its words, it shares the pop culture impact of other breakup anthems, lambasting a former lover labeled an "psychological terrorist".
- Throughout these tracks, the singing carry a sharp smile, akin to a fairy-tale character concealing a knife: "Top prize in acting like a scoundrel / You have the podium of letdown."
An Opulent Feast for the Soul
This album represents pop on a grand scale, an ambitious grasp for high Art amid of impending artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism for glorious elevation, creating an over-the-top spectacle that skillfully manages its inherent excess. It is an abundant source of buried gems that requires patience to completely mine but doesn't feels like hard work. Where some major releases of the year felt like a meager meal, Lux is a sumptuous feast at which the guests at it, perhaps intoxicated on holy wine, flutter from discussions about historical figures, the profound feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common gossip about hopeless partners. It is a modern-day musical from music's most endlessly creative practitioner.
