Initially, this album could seem more like a difficult academic challenge rather than a new pop project from a musician whose last hit featured a global K-pop icon. Divided across 4 separate parts and voiced in 13 tongues, this is a head-spinning symphonic opus exploring female mystique, spiritual ascent, and bodily change, often via the perspective of various women saints. The end of a romance—a theme handled with raw honesty elsewhere—is shot upwards here, buoyed by the lush presence of a full symphony orchestra and contributions from an award-winning songwriter among a long roll call of contributors. The pure ambition alone makes the work of contemporary artists seem rather modest.
Rising Above Academic Exercise
The fact that Lux manages to escape dry intellectual posturing is nearly a miracle, with full credit belonging to Rosalía. Although it's not her first album to fuse historical sounds and the present, its stakes feel far greater on Lux, with the balancing act more dramatic. The element that really elevates this fourth album, beyond its multilayered tunes, rich arrangements, and inherent theatricality, proves to be a core spirit of playfulness. Much like the iconic artist during her peak, there is a captivating sense to the vocalist's voice which sweeps you up in its tornado. Even when she is tearing your heart apart, you nevertheless desire to stay right there for the ride.
A Signature Moment of Exuberance
This exuberant spirit comes forth brightly on a stirring piano-led song about a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool over several minutes. Then, everything drops away, and there's a spontaneous giggle followed by a comment before a hilariously over-the-top orchestral surge crashes down like comedic force. The song then segues into the wild single featuring galloping strings, an imposing choral group, and a cameo appearance from the artist Björk.
"The magic of Lux is that you never exactly know—or even want to know—where it is going next."
Almost every song finishes at a completely distinct place than where it started. A track examines the transient nature of fame with a featherlight symphony only to collapsing in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a song that recalls the artist's previous rhythmic style starts off moody and brooding, featuring menacing beats, before fluttering flamenco rhythms and an angelic choir enter to smooth the song's rough corners.
The Bridge Of Experiment & Accessibility
Another crucial balancing act on the album is navigating the line between bold experimentation and broad appeal. This is little surprise that the album has become the artist's first release to crack the upper reaches of major charts: at its core a collection of utterly catchy pop songs. A song performed entirely in English builds on a chorus that seems to collect more and more infectious hooks as it spirals upward. This trick is echoed on another powerful ballad that expands and constricts, intertwining layered melodies as an intricate weave.
- A dance-infused song charms with its playful, theatrical flair and a chant-along hook.
- In its words, it shares with cultural honesty of contemporary heartbreak anthems, lambasting an ex- partner described as an "emotional bully".
- Across these tracks, the singing have a painted-on edge, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a blade: "Top prize in being a scoundrel / You've the podium of disappointment."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Soul
Lux is popular music on a maximalist level, an ambitious grasp for capital-A artistry amid of impending artificial sameness. It eschews self-absorption in favor of glorious transcendence, crafting an over-the-top spectacle that masterfully manages its inherent ridiculousness. It is an abundant source of hidden treasure that requires time to fully explore but doesn't seem like hard work. While some major pop albums of the year seemed like feasting on meal, this record is a sumptuous feast at which the guests at the table, perhaps intoxicated on holy drink, flutter between conversations about ancient saints, the galvanizing sensation of heartbreaking sadness, and shared stories about useless men. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from music's most endlessly inventive practitioner.
