On the surface, this work could seem closer to a challenging university quiz rather than the latest popular music project by a musician who just had a last hit featured an international K-pop icon. Split across four distinct movements and performed in thirteen tongues, it is a head-spinning orchestral-influenced opus investigating female mystery, religious transcendence, and bodily change, often through the lens of different women saints. The end of a romance—a topic handled with raw openness elsewhere—is shot heavenward on this record, carried by the constant presence of a full symphony orchestra and input from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter among a vast list of collaborators. The pure ambition alone renders the efforts of contemporary artists appear rather small.
Transcending Academic Exercise
That this album succeeds in escape overly academic chin-stroking is nearly miraculous, with full credit going to Rosalía. While this is not her first album to blend the past and the present, the scale are much greater on Lux, and the tightrope walk far more pronounced. What really raises this fourth release, outside of its multilayered tunes, rich compositions, and inherent theatricality, proves to be an essential spirit of fun. Similar to the legendary Björk during her peak, there is a wondrous quality to Rosalía's voice which sweeps you up in its whirlwind. When she's tearing your heart in two, the listener still want to stay alongside her for the ride.
A Prime Example of Joy
That exuberant energy shines brightly during the stirring piano-led song inspired by a saint. It bathes in a sorrowful whirlpool for more than four minutes. Suddenly, all the music drops away, to reveal we hear a spontaneous laugh and a comment before a hilariously over-the-top string surge thuds down like comedic force. The song then shifts into the frenetic single featuring galloping orchestration, a powerful choir, and a cameo appearance from none other than herself.
"The charm of Lux lies in you never exactly understand—or even wish to know—where it will go to next."
Nearly each track ends in a totally distinct place from how it began. A track explores the transient trappings of fame with a delicate orchestration before collapsing in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls the artist's previous rhythmic work starts out dark and brooding, featuring menacing beats, until fluttering traditional handclaps and an angelic chorus arrive to soften the song's rough edges.
The Bridge Of Art and Pop
Another crucial achievement of the album is navigating the gap between bold experimentation and broad accessibility. It is no surprise that it has become the artist's first work to break into the upper reaches of key charts: its heart contains a collection of truly undeniable pop songs. One track sung entirely in English builds on a chorus that feels to gather increasingly infectious melodies as it spins upward. This trick is repeated by a different expansive ballad that grows and constricts, weaving layered melodies like an intricate weave.
- A dance-infused song seduces via its jaunty, theatrical flair and an anthemic chorus.
- In its words, it aligns the pop culture honesty of other heartbreak songs, eviscerating an ex- lover labeled an "psychological terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the singing have a painted-on edge, akin to a fairy-tale figure hiding a knife: "Top prize in being a motherfucker / You've won the trophy of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Ears
Lux is pop on a maximalist level, a hungry reach for capital-A Art in an era of looming AI-generated sameness. It eschews self-absorption for glorious elevation, creating a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its own built-in ridiculousness. It is an abundant source of hidden gems that requires patience to fully explore but never seem like hard work. While other major releases of 2025 felt like feasting on scraps, Lux offers a lavish banquet where the characters around it, perhaps intoxicated on holy drink, flutter from conversations about ancient figures, the profound feeling of heartbreaking sadness, and common gossip about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from music's most endlessly inventive visionary.
