At first glance, this album could seem more like a difficult academic quiz than a new popular music project by an artist whose previous single featured an international K-pop star. Divided into 4 separate movements and sung in 13 languages, this is a head-spinning symphonic album exploring female mystery, spiritual ascent, and physical transformation, often by way of the prism of different female saints. The end of a relationship—a topic handled with raw openness on another major 2025 album—is shot skyward here, carried by the lush sound of a full orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter within a vast roll call of collaborators. The pure audacity alone renders the work of other pop stars look rather small.
Transcending Scholarly Exercise
That Lux succeeds in escape overly intellectual chin-stroking feels almost miraculous, with sole credit belonging to Rosalía. While this is not the first time project to fuse the past with modern styles, the ambitions feel far greater on Lux, with the tightrope walk more precarious. What really raises this fourth album, outside of its complex tunes, rich compositions, and inherent theatricality, is a core sense of joy. Much like the legendary artist during her height, you find a captivating quality to the vocalist's singing that pulls you up in its tornado. Even when she's tearing your heart apart, you still desire to stay right there for the ride.
A Prime Example of Joy
That playful spirit shines brightly on the stunning Italian ballad about a saint. It bathes in a sorrowful whirlpool for several moments. Suddenly, all the music falls away, and there's a spontaneous giggle followed by a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top orchestral crescendo thuds in like comedic force. The track then segues to the wild single driven by galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a surprise role from the artist herself.
"The magic of this album is that the listener rarely exactly know—nor want to predict—where it will go next."
Nearly each song ends at a totally different point from where it began. One moment examines the transient trappings of fame over a featherlight orchestration only to collapsing into electronic chaos. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls her earlier rhythmic work starts off dark and sinister, featuring menacing beats, before fluttering traditional handclaps and an angelic chorus enter to soften its rough edges.
The Bridge Of Experiment and Accessibility
A key balancing act of Lux is straddling the gap between bold innovation and broad accessibility. This is little surprise that it has become her first release to break into the upper reaches of key markets: at its core a collection of truly undeniable hits. One track sung primarily in English swells on a chorus that feels to gather increasingly infectious melodies as it spirals skyward. This trick gets echoed by a different powerful track that expands and constricts, intertwining layered tunes like a complex weave.
- A dance-infused song charms with its jaunty, theatrical flair and an anthemic hook.
- Lyrically, it aligns with pop culture impact of contemporary breakup songs, lambasting a former partner described as an "psychological bully".
- Throughout these tracks, the vocals have a sharp edge, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a knife: "Top prize in being a scoundrel / You've won the trophy of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Soul
Lux represents popular music on a grand level, a hungry reach for high Art in an era of looming artificial sameness. It eschews self-absorption for glorious elevation, creating an over-the-top drama that masterfully controls its own built-in ridiculousness. This is an abundant source of hidden gems that requires patience to completely mine but never seem like hard work. While other major pop albums of 2025 felt like feasting on scraps, this record offers a sumptuous banquet at which the guests at it, perhaps tipsy on holy drink, flit between conversations about historical figures, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering grief, and common gossip about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from music's truly endlessly inventive visionary.
