Initially, this album might appear more like a challenging academic quiz than the latest popular music project by a musician whose previous hit was a collaboration with an international pop star. Divided across 4 different parts and sung in thirteen tongues, we have a dizzying symphonic work that delves into feminine mystery, spiritual transcendence, and corporal change, frequently via the lens of various saintly figures. The dissolution of a romance—a topic treated with raw honesty elsewhere—soars upwards on this record, supported by the constant presence of a major orchestra and work from an award-winning composer within an extensive list of contributors. Its sheer daring by itself makes the efforts of contemporary artists appear rather laughable.
Rising Above Academic Exercise
The fact that Lux succeeds in avoid dry academic chin-stroking is nearly miraculous, with sole credit going to Rosalía. Although it's not her first project to fuse historical sounds with modern styles, its ambitions feel much greater here, and the tightrope walk more dramatic. What really raises her fourth album, beyond its complex tunes, rich compositions, and engrained drama, is a core sense of joy. Similar to the iconic Björk during her height, you find a captivating sense to the vocalist's singing that pulls you into its tornado. When she is tearing hearts in two, you nevertheless want to be alongside her through the ride.
A Prime Moment of Exuberance
That exuberant spirit comes forth clearly on the stirring Italian ballad about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool for more than four minutes. Then, everything drops silent, to reveal there's a gleeful laugh and a declaration before a comically exaggerated string surge crashes down with comedic impact. The track then segues into the wild single featuring racing strings, a powerful choir, and a surprise role from the artist herself.
"The magic with Lux lies in the listener rarely exactly understand—nor wish to know—where you is going to next."
Almost every track concludes in a totally distinct place from where it started. A track explores the transient nature of celebrity over a featherlight orchestration before collapsing in electronic cacophony. Elsewhere, a song that recalls the artist's earlier trap-infused work starts off moody and sinister, featuring menacing beats, until fluttering flamenco rhythms and an angelic choir arrive to soften its jagged corners.
The Balance Between Experiment & Accessibility
Another crucial achievement of the album is straddling the gap of bold innovation and broad accessibility. This is little surprise that it has achieved the artist's highest-charting work to crack the Top 5 of major markets: at its core a collection of truly undeniable pop songs. One track sung primarily in the English language swells on a refrain that seems to collect increasingly nagging melodies while it spins skyward. That trick is repeated on a different expansive ballad that grows and contracts, intertwining multiple tunes as an intricate weave.
- A dance-infused number seduces via its jaunty, theatrical flair and a chant-along hook.
- In its words, it shares the pop culture honesty of contemporary heartbreak songs, lambasting a former lover labeled an "psychological terrorist".
- Across the album, the vocals carry a painted-on smile, akin to a storybook figure concealing a knife: "Top prize in acting like a scoundrel / You've won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Ears
This album is pop on a maximalist scale, an ambitious grasp for capital-A artistry in an era of looming artificial blankness. It rejects self-absorption in favor of sublime elevation, creating a dramatic drama that masterfully manages its own built-in ridiculousness. This is an abundant source of buried treasure that takes patience to completely explore but never feels like hard work. While other big releases of the year seemed like a meager meal, this record is a sumptuous feast where the guests around the table, perhaps tipsy on holy wine, flutter from discussions about ancient figures, the galvanizing feeling of soul-shattering sadness, and common gossip about useless men. It is a modern-day musical from music's truly endlessly inventive practitioner.
