At first glance, this album might appear closer to a challenging university examination rather than the latest pop project by an artist whose last hit was a collaboration with an international pop star. Broken across four distinct sections and voiced in 13 languages, this is a breathtaking orchestral-influenced album exploring female mystique, religious transcendence, and physical change, often by way of the perspective of various women saints. The end of a relationship—a theme handled with grounded honesty elsewhere—is shot upwards here, supported by the lush sound of a full orchestra and work from a Pulitzer-winning composer within an extensive roll call of contributors. The pure audacity by itself renders the efforts of other artists appear quite small.
Transcending Scholarly Pretense
The fact that Lux manages to transcend overly intellectual posturing is nearly a miracle, and full praise going to Rosalía. While it's not the first time album to blend historical sounds and modern styles, the scale are far higher on Lux, with the tightrope walk more dramatic. The element that really elevates her fourth album, beyond its multilayered melodies, rich arrangements, and engrained theatricality, is an essential sense of playfulness. Much like the iconic Björk during her height, there is a wondrous sense to the vocalist's voice that pulls the listener into its whirlwind. When she's breaking hearts apart, the listener still desire to stay alongside her for the ride.
A Signature Example of Joy
This exuberant energy comes forth brightly on a stunning Italian song about a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched melancholy over more than four moments. Suddenly, all the music falls silent, and we hear a gleeful giggle and a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top orchestral surge crashes down with cartoonish impact. The song then segues into the wild single featuring racing strings, an imposing choir, and a cameo role from none other than herself.
"The magic with this album is that you never quite know—or even wish to know—where you is going next."
Nearly every song finishes in a totally distinct point from where it began. A track explores the transient trappings of celebrity with a featherlight orchestration before collapsing into electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a song that recalls her previous rhythmic style begins off dark and sinister, with prowling beats, before fluttering traditional handclaps and a heavenly chorus enter to smooth the song's jagged corners.
The Balance Between Experiment and Pop
A key achievement of Lux involves straddling the gap of bold experimentation and mainstream appeal. It is little surprise that it has become her first release to break into the upper reaches of key charts: at its core a suite of truly catchy pop songs. One track performed primarily in English swells around a refrain that seems to collect increasingly nagging hooks while it spirals upward. That feat is repeated on a different expansive track that expands and constricts, weaving multiple tunes as an intricate tapestry.
- A dance-infused song seduces via its playful, theatrical drama and a chant-along chorus.
- Lyrically, it aligns the pop culture honesty of other heartbreak anthems, lambasting an ex- partner labeled an "emotional terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the vocals carry a painted-on smile, like a fairy-tale figure hiding a blade: "Gold medal in acting like a motherfucker / You've won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Feast for the Soul
Lux is pop on a grand level, an ambitious reach for high Art in an era of looming artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism for glorious transcendence, creating a dramatic spectacle that masterfully manages its built-in excess. It is a deep source of buried gems that requires time to fully explore but doesn't feels like a chore. Where some major releases of the year felt like feasting on scraps, this record offers a lavish feast at which the guests around it, some intoxicated on sacred wine, flutter from discussions about historical saints, the profound feeling of heartbreaking grief, and shared stories about hopeless men. It is a contemporary musical from pop's most restlessly creative practitioner.
