On the surface, this album might appear more like a challenging academic examination rather than the latest popular music project from a musician whose last hit was a collaboration with an international pop star. Divided into 4 separate movements and performed in 13 tongues, this is a head-spinning symphonic opus exploring female mystique, religious transcendence, and bodily change, often via the perspective of different saintly figures. The end of a love affair—a topic treated with raw openness on another major 2025 album—is launched heavenward here, supported by the lush sound of a full orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning composer within an extensive roll call of collaborators. The pure ambition alone renders the efforts of contemporary pop stars look rather small.
Transcending Academic Exercise
That this album succeeds in escape overly academic chin-stroking is nothing short of a miracle, with full praise belonging to the artist. Although it's not her first album to blend the past and modern styles, the ambitions feel far greater here, with the tightrope walk more pronounced. The element that really raises her fourth album, outside of its multilayered tunes, dense compositions, and inherent drama, proves to be an essential sense of joy. Much like the iconic artist during her height, there is a wondrous sense to Rosalía's singing that pulls the listener into its whirlwind. When she's breaking hearts in two, the listener nevertheless desire to stay right there for the ride.
A Signature Moment of Exuberance
This exuberant spirit comes forth brightly on a stirring piano-led song inspired by a saint. It luxuriates in a sorrowful whirlpool over several moments. Suddenly, all the music drops away, to reveal we hear a spontaneous giggle followed by a declaration before a comically exaggerated orchestral surge crashes down like cartoonish impact. The song immediately segues into the frenetic single driven by galloping orchestration, a powerful choir, and a cameo role from the artist herself.
"The charm of this album lies in you never quite know—nor want to know—where it is going next."
Almost each track concludes in a totally distinct point from where it began. One moment explores the fleeting trappings of celebrity over a delicate orchestration only to disintegrating into digital cacophony. Another, a song echoing her earlier trap-infused style starts out moody and brooding, with menacing vocals, before fluttering traditional rhythms and a heavenly choir arrive to soften the song's rough corners.
The Balance Between Art & Accessibility
A key balancing act on Lux is navigating the gap between bold experimentation and mainstream appeal. It is no surprise that it has become her first work to crack the upper reaches of major markets: at its core a collection of truly catchy hits. A song performed primarily in the English language builds on a chorus that feels to collect increasingly nagging melodies as it spirals upward. That trick is repeated on another expansive track that grows and contracts, weaving multiple tunes like an intricate tapestry.
- A dance-infused song charms via its playful, Disney-adjacent drama and an anthemic hook.
- Lyrically, it shares the pop culture honesty of other heartbreak songs, eviscerating a former partner described as an "psychological terrorist".
- Across these tracks, the singing carry a painted-on edge, akin to a fairy-tale character hiding a blade: "Gold medal in acting like a motherfucker / You have the podium of disappointment."
An Opulent Banquet for the Soul
Lux is popular music on a maximalist level, a hungry reach for high artistry in an era of looming artificial sameness. It rejects self-absorption for sublime transcendence, creating an over-the-top drama that masterfully controls its built-in excess. This is an abundant well of buried gems that takes time to fully mine but doesn't feels like a chore. While other big releases of 2025 seemed like a meager meal, this record is a sumptuous banquet at which the characters around the table, perhaps intoxicated on sacred wine, flutter from discussions about historical saints, the profound feeling of heartbreaking sadness, and common stories about hopeless partners. It is a contemporary theatrical production from pop's truly restlessly creative practitioner.
