At first glance, this album may look closer to an arduous university examination than the latest pop project from a musician whose previous hit featured a global pop star. Broken into four separate sections and performed in 13 tongues, it is a breathtaking classical-tinged work exploring female mystery, spiritual ascent, and physical change, frequently via the perspective of different women saints. The dissolution of a love affair—a theme handled with raw openness on another major 2025 album—soars upwards here, supported by the constant sound of a major orchestra and contributions from an award-winning songwriter among an extensive list of contributors. The pure daring by itself renders the efforts of contemporary pop stars appear rather modest.
Rising Above Academic Pretense
The fact that this album manages to transcend dry academic chin-stroking feels nothing short of miraculous, and sole praise belonging to the artist. Although it's not the first time album to fuse historical sounds with the present, its ambitions are much greater on Lux, and the balancing act more precarious. What truly raises her fourth release, beyond its multilayered melodies, rich arrangements, and inherent drama, is an essential sense of fun. Similar to the legendary Björk at her height, you find a wondrous sense to Rosalía's voice that pulls you into its whirlwind. Even when she is tearing hearts apart, you still want to be right there for the journey.
A Prime Example of Joy
That playful spirit shines clearly during the stirring Italian ballad about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool for several minutes. Then, all the music falls away, and there's a spontaneous laugh and a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top string crescendo thuds in like cartoonish impact. The song then segues into the frenetic single featuring galloping strings, a powerful choir, and a cameo appearance from none other than herself.
"The charm of this album lies in you never exactly understand—or even wish to know—what you will go to next."
Nearly every track finishes in a totally distinct point than where it began. A track examines the transient trappings of celebrity over a featherlight symphony before collapsing into electronic chaos. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls the artist's previous rhythmic work begins off moody and sinister, with prowling vocals, until fluttering traditional rhythms and an angelic choir enter to soften the song's rough edges.
The Balance Between Art and Pop
A key achievement of Lux is navigating the gap of radical innovation and broad appeal. It is no coincidence that the album has achieved the artist's highest-charting work to crack the Top 5 of key markets: at its core a collection of utterly undeniable pop songs. A song performed primarily in English swells around a refrain that seems to gather more and more nagging hooks while it spins upward. This trick gets echoed by a different powerful ballad that expands and contracts, weaving multiple melodies as a complex tapestry.
- A waltz-like song charms via its playful, Disney-adjacent drama and an anthemic hook.
- Lyrically, it aligns with cultural impact of contemporary heartbreak anthems, lambasting a former lover labeled an "emotional terrorist".
- Throughout these tracks, the singing have a sharp edge, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a blade: "Top prize in being a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of letdown."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Ears
This album represents pop on a grand scale, a hungry reach for high Art in an era of looming AI-generated sameness. It eschews solipsism for glorious transcendence, creating an over-the-top drama that masterfully manages its own built-in excess. This is a deep well of buried treasure that takes time to completely mine but doesn't feels like a chore. Where some major releases of 2025 felt like a meager meal, Lux offers a sumptuous feast where the guests around the table, perhaps intoxicated on sacred wine, flit between conversations about historical saints, the profound feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common stories about useless men. In essence, it's a modern-day musical from music's truly endlessly inventive practitioner.
