On the surface, Lux may look more like a difficult university challenge than a new popular music album by an artist whose previous hit featured an international K-pop icon. Broken into 4 separate sections and sung in 13 languages, we have a head-spinning symphonic work that delves into female mystery, spiritual ascent, and corporal transformation, frequently through the prism of various saintly figures. The dissolution of a romance—a theme handled with raw honesty on another major 2025 album—is launched heavenward on this record, buoyed by the lush presence of a major symphony orchestra and work from an award-winning composer among a vast list of collaborators. Its sheer audacity alone renders the efforts of other artists look rather small.
Transcending Scholarly Pretense
That this album succeeds in avoid dry academic posturing feels nearly a miracle, with sole credit going to Rosalía. While it's not the first time album to fuse historical sounds and the present, its scale feel far greater on Lux, and the tightrope walk far more precarious. The element that really raises her fourth album, beyond its complex tunes, rich compositions, and engrained theatricality, is a core sense of fun. Similar to the legendary artist during her height, you find a captivating sense to Rosalía's singing which sweeps the listener up in its tornado. Even when she's tearing your heart apart, you still desire to be right there through the ride.
A Prime Example of Exuberance
This playful energy shines clearly on a stirring piano-led song about a saint. It bathes in a string-drenched melancholy for more than four minutes. Suddenly, all the music falls away, and we hear a spontaneous laugh followed by a declaration before a comically exaggerated string surge crashes in with comedic impact. The song immediately segues into the wild track driven by galloping strings, an imposing choral group, and a surprise role from the artist Björk.
"The charm with this album is that the listener never quite know—nor want to predict—what you will go to next."
Nearly every song ends at a completely different place from where it began. A track examines the fleeting trappings of fame over a delicate symphony only to disintegrating in digital cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut that recalls her previous rhythmic style starts out moody and sinister, featuring menacing vocals, before fluttering flamenco rhythms and a heavenly chorus enter to soften the song's jagged edges.
The Balance Of Art & Pop
Another crucial balancing act of the album involves navigating the line of radical experimentation and broad accessibility. This is little surprise that it has achieved her first work to crack the upper reaches of major markets: its heart contains a collection of truly catchy hits. A song performed entirely in English builds on a chorus that seems to collect increasingly infectious melodies while it spirals skyward. This feat is echoed on a different powerful ballad that expands and contracts, weaving layered tunes like a complex tapestry.
- A waltz-like song charms with its jaunty, theatrical drama and an anthemic chorus.
- In its words, it shares with cultural honesty of contemporary breakup songs, lambasting an ex- lover described as an "emotional bully".
- Throughout these tracks, the vocals carry a painted-on smile, akin to a storybook figure hiding a blade: "Gold medal in acting like a motherfucker / You've won the trophy of letdown."
An Opulent Feast for the Soul
Lux represents popular music on a grand scale, a hungry reach for high artistry in an era of looming artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of glorious elevation, crafting an over-the-top spectacle that skillfully manages its built-in excess. It is a deep well of buried gems that requires time to completely mine but never feels like hard work. Where some major releases of the year seemed like feasting on meal, Lux offers a sumptuous feast where the guests at it, some intoxicated on holy drink, flutter from conversations about ancient figures, the profound feeling of heartbreaking grief, and common stories about hopeless men. It is a modern-day theatrical production from music's truly endlessly inventive practitioner.
