On the surface, Lux could seem more like a challenging academic challenge than the latest pop album by an artist whose last hit featured a global pop star. Divided into 4 different movements and voiced in 13 tongues, we have a head-spinning classical-tinged work investigating female mystery, spiritual ascent, and corporal change, frequently through the perspective of various women saints. The end of a romance—a topic handled with grounded honesty elsewhere—is shot skyward on this record, supported by the constant presence of a major symphony orchestra and work from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within a vast list of collaborators. The pure daring by itself makes the efforts of other artists look rather laughable.
Rising Above Academic Pretense
That Lux manages to transcend overly intellectual posturing is nothing short of miraculous, and sole praise going to Rosalía. While it's not the first time album to alchemize historical sounds with modern styles, its ambitions are much greater on Lux, and the balancing act more dramatic. The element that really raises this fourth release, beyond its complex melodies, dense arrangements, and engrained drama, is an essential spirit of joy. Much like the iconic artist during her peak, you find a wondrous sense to Rosalía's singing that pulls you into its tornado. Even when she's tearing hearts apart, the listener still desire to stay alongside her for the journey.
A Signature Example of Joy
That exuberant energy comes forth clearly on the stirring piano-led song inspired by Saint Clare. It bathes in a sorrowful melancholy for more than four moments. Suddenly, everything drops away, and there's a gleeful giggle followed by a declaration before a comically over-the-top string crescendo thuds in with comedic force. The track then segues into the wild track driven by galloping strings, a powerful choral group, and a cameo role from the artist Björk.
"The charm of this album lies in the listener never exactly know—or even wish to predict—what you will go to next."
Almost each track ends at a completely different place from where it started. A track examines the fleeting trappings of fame over a delicate symphony only to disintegrating in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut echoing her previous trap-infused work starts off dark and sinister, featuring menacing beats, until sudden traditional rhythms and an angelic chorus arrive to smooth its jagged corners.
The Bridge Of Art and Pop
A key achievement on Lux is straddling the line of radical experimentation and mainstream appeal. It is no coincidence that it has become the artist's first release to break into the upper reaches of major charts: its heart contains a suite of utterly catchy pop songs. One track sung entirely in the English language swells around a refrain that seems to collect increasingly infectious hooks while it spins skyward. That feat is echoed on another expansive ballad that expands and contracts, weaving layered melodies as a complex weave.
- A waltz-like song charms via its jaunty, theatrical drama and an anthemic chorus.
- Lyrically, it shares with pop culture impact of contemporary heartbreak songs, eviscerating an ex- partner described as an "emotional bully".
- Throughout the album, the singing carry a sharp smile, like a storybook figure concealing a knife: "Top prize in acting like a motherfucker / You have the podium of disappointment."
A Maximalist Feast for the Soul
This album represents pop on a grand scale, an ambitious reach for capital-A Art in an era of looming artificial blankness. It eschews self-absorption in favor of sublime elevation, crafting a dramatic spectacle that skillfully manages its built-in ridiculousness. It is a deep well of buried gems that requires time to fully explore but doesn't seem like a chore. Where other big releases of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, Lux offers a lavish banquet where the guests at it, perhaps intoxicated on holy wine, flit between conversations about historical figures, the profound feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and shared gossip about hopeless partners. It is a contemporary theatrical production from music's most restlessly inventive practitioner.
