At first glance, this album could seem closer to a difficult academic examination rather than the latest popular music album from a musician who just had a previous hit was a collaboration with an international pop icon. Split into 4 distinct movements and performed in thirteen tongues, this is a dizzying orchestral-influenced opus that delves into female mystique, spiritual transcendence, and bodily transformation, often through the lens of various women saints. The end of a relationship—a topic handled with raw honesty elsewhere—soars upwards on this record, buoyed by the lush sound of a full symphony orchestra and contributions from a Pulitzer-winning composer within a long list of collaborators. Its sheer audacity by itself renders the efforts of contemporary artists look quite modest.
Transcending Academic Pretense
The fact that Lux succeeds in avoid overly academic chin-stroking feels nearly a miracle, and sole praise going to Rosalía. While this is not the first time project to blend historical sounds and the present, the ambitions are much greater on Lux, with the tightrope walk more dramatic. The element that really elevates this fourth album, outside of its multilayered tunes, dense compositions, and engrained drama, is a core spirit of playfulness. Much like the legendary Björk during her peak, there is a captivating sense to the vocalist's voice that pulls the listener up in its whirlwind. When she's breaking hearts apart, the listener nevertheless desire to stay alongside her for the journey.
A Signature Moment of Exuberance
This playful spirit comes forth clearly on the stirring Italian song about a saint. It bathes in a sorrowful whirlpool over more than four moments. Then, everything falls silent, to reveal there's a gleeful laugh and a comment before a hilariously exaggerated string crescendo thuds down with cartoonish force. The song then segues into the wild single driven by racing strings, an imposing choral group, and a cameo role from the artist Björk.
"The charm with Lux is that you never exactly know—or even want to know—what it is going next."
Almost each song ends at a completely different point from where it started. One moment examines the transient trappings of fame with a delicate orchestration only to collapsing into electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a cut echoing her previous trap-infused work begins out dark and brooding, featuring prowling vocals, until fluttering traditional rhythms and an angelic chorus enter to soften its jagged edges.
The Balance Of Experiment and Accessibility
A key balancing act on the album is navigating the line of bold experimentation and mainstream appeal. This is no surprise that it has become the artist's highest-charting work to crack the Top 5 of major charts: its heart contains a suite of truly catchy hits. One track sung primarily in English builds on a chorus that seems to collect more and more nagging melodies as it spirals upward. That feat is repeated on another powerful ballad that grows and contracts, intertwining layered melodies like a complex tapestry.
- A dance-infused song seduces with its jaunty, theatrical drama and a chant-along chorus.
- Lyrically, it aligns the cultural honesty of contemporary breakup anthems, eviscerating an ex- partner described as an "emotional terrorist".
- Throughout the album, the vocals have a painted-on edge, akin to a fairy-tale figure concealing a blade: "Top prize in being a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of letdown."
An Opulent Feast for the Ears
Lux is pop on a grand scale, an ambitious reach for capital-A artistry amid of looming artificial blankness. It rejects solipsism for glorious transcendence, crafting an over-the-top spectacle that masterfully controls its inherent ridiculousness. It is a deep well of hidden treasure that takes patience to completely mine but doesn't seem like hard work. Where some major releases of the year felt like a meager meal, this record offers a sumptuous feast at which the guests around it, perhaps tipsy on holy wine, flutter between conversations about historical saints, the galvanizing sensation of heartbreaking sadness, and common stories about hopeless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary musical from pop's most restlessly creative visionary.
