Initially, this album might appear closer to an arduous scholarly quiz than a new pop album from a musician whose previous single was a collaboration with a global pop icon. Divided into four distinct parts and voiced in thirteen languages, it is a dizzying classical-tinged work exploring feminine mystique, spiritual ascent, and physical transformation, frequently by way of the prism of different women saints. The dissolution of a relationship—a topic handled with grounded openness elsewhere—is launched heavenward on this record, supported by the lush presence of a full symphony orchestra and input from an award-winning composer among a long list of contributors. Its sheer audacity alone makes the efforts of contemporary artists seem quite laughable.
Rising Above Academic Pretense
That this album manages to avoid overly intellectual chin-stroking feels nothing short of a miracle, with complete credit going to the artist. While it's not her first project to alchemize historical sounds and the present, its ambitions feel much greater here, and the tightrope walk more dramatic. The element that really raises this fourth release, outside of its multilayered melodies, dense compositions, and inherent drama, proves to be an essential sense of playfulness. Similar to the iconic Björk at her height, there is a wondrous quality to Rosalía's voice which sweeps the listener into its whirlwind. When she is tearing your heart in two, the listener nevertheless want to be alongside her for the journey.
A Prime Moment of Exuberance
This playful energy shines brightly on a stunning piano-led song about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a sorrowful whirlpool for several minutes. Suddenly, everything drops silent, and we hear a gleeful laugh and a comment prior to a comically exaggerated string crescendo crashes in like comedic force. The song immediately shifts into the frenetic single featuring galloping orchestration, a powerful choral group, and a cameo role from none other than Björk.
"The charm of this album lies in the listener rarely exactly understand—nor want to know—what it will go to next."
Almost every song ends in a completely distinct point than where it started. A track explores the fleeting trappings of fame with a featherlight orchestration before disintegrating into digital chaos. Another, a cut echoing the artist's earlier trap-infused style starts off dark and brooding, with menacing beats, before fluttering flamenco handclaps and a heavenly chorus arrive to soften the song's rough edges.
The Bridge Of Experiment and Accessibility
Another crucial balancing act on the album involves navigating the gap between radical experimentation and broad accessibility. This is no surprise that the album has become the artist's first work to break into the Top 5 of major markets: its heart contains a collection of truly catchy pop songs. One track sung entirely in English builds on a chorus that seems to collect more and more nagging hooks as it spirals skyward. That feat gets echoed on another powerful ballad that expands and contracts, intertwining multiple melodies as a complex weave.
- A waltz-like song charms via its jaunty, theatrical flair and an anthemic chorus.
- Lyrically, it shares with pop culture impact of contemporary breakup anthems, lambasting an ex- lover labeled an "psychological bully".
- Throughout the album, the vocals have a sharp smile, akin to a fairy-tale character hiding a knife: "Top prize in acting like a motherfucker / You've the podium of letdown."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Ears
This album is pop on a maximalist scale, an ambitious grasp for capital-A artistry in an era of looming artificial blankness. It eschews solipsism for sublime elevation, creating an over-the-top spectacle that masterfully controls its own built-in excess. It is a deep source of hidden gems that takes time to completely explore but doesn't seem like hard work. While other major releases of 2025 felt like a meager scraps, Lux is a lavish feast at which the guests around it, some tipsy on holy wine, flit between conversations about historical figures, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common stories about hopeless men. It is a contemporary musical from music's most endlessly inventive practitioner.
