At first glance, this album could seem more like an arduous academic quiz rather than the latest popular music project by a musician who just had a last hit featured an international pop icon. Split across 4 different sections and voiced in thirteen tongues, we have a breathtaking symphonic opus investigating female mystery, spiritual ascent, and corporal change, frequently via the lens of various saintly figures. The dissolution of a love affair—a topic handled with raw honesty on another major 2025 album—is shot skyward on this record, carried by the lush sound of a full symphony orchestra and contributions from an award-winning composer among an extensive roll call of collaborators. The pure audacity alone makes the efforts of contemporary artists appear rather small.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
The fact that this album succeeds in avoid overly intellectual posturing feels almost a miracle, and sole praise belonging to Rosalía. While this is not the first time album to fuse historical sounds with modern styles, the ambitions are much greater on Lux, and the tightrope walk far more precarious. The element that truly raises her fourth release, outside of its complex melodies, rich compositions, and engrained drama, proves to be a core sense of fun. Much like the legendary Björk at her peak, there is a wondrous quality to the vocalist's singing which sweeps the listener up in its whirlwind. When she is tearing your heart apart, the listener still want to stay alongside her for the journey.
A Signature Example of Joy
This exuberant spirit comes forth clearly during a stunning Italian ballad inspired by a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool for more than four moments. Then, all the music drops silent, and we hear a gleeful laugh and a comment before a comically over-the-top orchestral crescendo thuds down with comedic impact. The song then shifts to the frenetic track featuring galloping strings, an imposing choir, and a cameo role from the artist Björk.
"The magic of this album is that the listener rarely quite know—or even wish to know—where it will go next."
Nearly every track concludes at a completely different place from how it began. One moment explores the fleeting trappings of fame with a featherlight orchestration before collapsing in digital cacophony. Another, a cut echoing the artist's earlier rhythmic work begins out moody and brooding, featuring prowling vocals, before fluttering flamenco rhythms and a heavenly chorus enter to soften its jagged corners.
The Balance Between Experiment and Pop
A key balancing act of Lux involves straddling the line between bold innovation and mainstream appeal. This is little coincidence that it has become her first release to break into the Top 5 of major markets: at its core a suite of utterly undeniable pop songs. One track performed entirely in English swells around a chorus that feels to gather more and more infectious hooks as it spirals upward. This trick is echoed by a different expansive track that expands and constricts, intertwining multiple tunes as a complex weave.
- A waltz-like number seduces with its playful, Disney-adjacent drama and a chant-along hook.
- Lyrically, it aligns the pop culture honesty of other heartbreak anthems, eviscerating an ex- lover described as an "psychological terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the vocals have a painted-on edge, akin to a fairy-tale character concealing a blade: "Gold medal in being a scoundrel / You've won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Feast for the Soul
Lux is pop on a maximalist level, an ambitious grasp for capital-A artistry in an era of impending AI-generated sameness. It rejects self-absorption for sublime elevation, creating a dramatic spectacle that skillfully controls its inherent excess. This is an abundant well of hidden gems that takes patience to fully mine but never seem like a chore. While other big pop albums of 2025 felt like a meager scraps, this record is a sumptuous feast where the characters around it, some tipsy on holy drink, flit between discussions about historical figures, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common gossip about useless men. It is a modern-day theatrical production from music's most restlessly inventive practitioner.
