At first glance, Lux might appear more like a difficult university challenge than a new pop album from an artist whose previous hit featured a global pop star. Broken into 4 separate sections and voiced in thirteen languages, it is a head-spinning orchestral-influenced opus that delves into female mystique, spiritual transcendence, and bodily change, often via the perspective of various female saints. The end of a relationship—a theme treated with raw openness elsewhere—is launched heavenward here, carried by the constant sound of a full symphony orchestra and work from a Pulitzer-winning songwriter among an extensive list of collaborators. The pure audacity alone renders the work of contemporary pop stars seem quite modest.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
The fact that Lux manages to escape overly intellectual chin-stroking is almost a miracle, with complete credit going to the artist. Although it's not the first time project to fuse the past with the present, its scale are much higher on Lux, with the balancing act more pronounced. What truly raises this fourth release, beyond its multilayered melodies, rich compositions, and inherent theatricality, proves to be an essential spirit of fun. Similar to the iconic Björk at her peak, there is a captivating sense to Rosalía's singing that pulls the listener up in its whirlwind. When she's tearing hearts apart, the listener nevertheless desire to be alongside her through the journey.
A Prime Moment of Joy
That exuberant energy shines brightly during a stunning Italian song about Saint Clare. It bathes in a string-drenched melancholy for several minutes. Then, all the music falls away, and there's a gleeful laugh and a comment prior to a hilariously over-the-top orchestral surge thuds in with comedic impact. The song then shifts into the frenetic single featuring galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a surprise appearance from none other than Björk.
"The magic with Lux lies in the listener rarely quite understand—or even want to know—what you is going next."
Almost each song concludes in a completely distinct point than how it started. A track examines the fleeting nature of celebrity over a featherlight orchestration only to disintegrating into digital cacophony. Elsewhere, a song that recalls her previous trap-infused style starts off dark and sinister, with menacing beats, before sudden traditional handclaps and an angelic chorus arrive to smooth the song's rough corners.
The Bridge Of Experiment & Pop
Another crucial achievement on Lux involves navigating the gap of radical innovation and broad accessibility. It is no surprise that it has achieved her highest-charting work to crack the upper reaches of key charts: at its core a collection of utterly undeniable pop songs. A song sung primarily in English swells on a refrain that seems to collect more and more nagging melodies as it spirals upward. This feat gets echoed by another powerful ballad that grows and constricts, weaving layered melodies as a complex tapestry.
- A waltz-like number seduces via its playful, theatrical drama and an anthemic hook.
- Lyrically, it shares the pop culture honesty of other breakup songs, lambasting a former lover labeled an "emotional terrorist".
- Across the album, the vocals have a painted-on smile, akin to a fairy-tale character hiding a knife: "Gold medal in acting like a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Ears
This album represents pop on a maximalist scale, an ambitious reach for high Art in an era of looming artificial sameness. It eschews solipsism in favor of glorious elevation, creating an over-the-top drama that skillfully controls its own built-in excess. It is a deep well of hidden gems that takes time to fully mine but never feels like hard work. While other big pop albums of 2025 felt like a meager meal, Lux is a lavish banquet where the characters around the table, perhaps tipsy on holy wine, flit between discussions about ancient figures, the galvanizing feeling of heartbreaking sadness, and common gossip about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from pop's most endlessly creative practitioner.
