At first glance, this album could seem closer to an arduous academic challenge rather than a new popular music album from a musician whose last hit featured a global K-pop icon. Broken into four separate parts and performed in thirteen tongues, we have a breathtaking classical-tinged opus investigating feminine mystique, religious transcendence, and physical transformation, often by way of the prism of various female saints. The dissolution of a romance—a theme handled with raw openness elsewhere—is launched heavenward on this record, carried by the constant sound of a full orchestra and work from a Pulitzer-winning composer among a long list of collaborators. The pure daring alone renders the efforts of other pop stars appear rather laughable.
Transcending Scholarly Pretense
That this album manages to avoid overly academic chin-stroking is nearly a miracle, with sole praise going to the artist. Although it's not her first album to blend the past and modern styles, its scale feel much higher on Lux, and the tightrope walk far more dramatic. The element that really raises her fourth release, outside of its complex melodies, rich arrangements, and engrained drama, proves to be an essential sense of joy. Similar to the iconic Björk during her peak, you find a wondrous sense to Rosalía's voice which sweeps the listener into its tornado. Even when she's tearing your heart apart, you still desire to stay alongside her through the ride.
A Prime Moment of Exuberance
That playful energy comes forth clearly during the stirring Italian ballad inspired by a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool over more than four moments. Suddenly, everything drops silent, to reveal there's a spontaneous laugh and a comment before a comically over-the-top string surge crashes in with cartoonish force. The track immediately shifts into the wild track featuring racing strings, an imposing choir, and a cameo role from the artist Björk.
"The charm of this album lies in you rarely quite know—nor wish to predict—what it is going next."
Almost every song concludes in a totally different place than how it began. A track examines the fleeting nature of fame with a delicate orchestration only to collapsing into electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls the artist's earlier trap-infused work begins out dark and sinister, featuring prowling beats, until fluttering traditional handclaps and an angelic chorus arrive to soften the song's rough corners.
The Balance Of Experiment & Pop
A key achievement of Lux is straddling the line of radical experimentation and mainstream appeal. It is little surprise that the album has become the artist's highest-charting release to crack the upper reaches of major markets: at its core a collection of utterly catchy hits. One track sung entirely in the English language swells on a chorus that seems to gather more and more nagging melodies as it spirals skyward. This feat is echoed on another expansive ballad that grows and constricts, intertwining multiple tunes as an intricate weave.
- A waltz-like song charms via its jaunty, theatrical flair and an anthemic chorus.
- Lyrically, it shares with cultural honesty of other heartbreak anthems, eviscerating a former partner labeled an "psychological bully".
- Across the album, the vocals have a painted-on smile, akin to a fairy-tale figure concealing a knife: "Gold medal in acting like a motherfucker / You've the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Soul
This album represents popular music on a grand scale, an ambitious reach for capital-A artistry amid of impending artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of sublime transcendence, crafting a dramatic spectacle that masterfully controls its own inherent excess. It is a deep source of hidden gems that takes patience to completely explore but never seem like a chore. While other big releases of the year felt like feasting on meal, Lux offers a sumptuous feast where the characters around it, some tipsy on sacred drink, flutter between discussions about ancient figures, the galvanizing sensation of soul-shattering grief, and common gossip about hopeless men. In essence, it's a contemporary theatrical production from pop's most endlessly inventive practitioner.
