At first glance, Lux may look closer to a challenging academic challenge rather than the latest pop album from a musician who just had a last single was a collaboration with an international K-pop icon. Split into 4 distinct sections and sung in 13 tongues, this is a head-spinning symphonic opus investigating feminine mystique, religious ascent, and corporal transformation, frequently through the perspective of various female saints. The dissolution of a relationship—a topic handled with raw openness elsewhere—soars upwards on this record, carried by the constant presence of a major symphony orchestra and work from an award-winning songwriter within an extensive roll call of contributors. The pure daring by itself makes the work of other artists appear rather small.
Transcending Academic Pretense
The fact that this album manages to escape dry intellectual chin-stroking is nothing short of miraculous, with sole praise going to the artist. Although this is not the first time album to fuse historical sounds with the present, the ambitions are much greater on Lux, with the balancing act more pronounced. What really raises this fourth release, outside of its multilayered melodies, rich compositions, and engrained drama, is an essential sense of joy. Much like the iconic artist during her height, there is a captivating sense to the vocalist's voice that pulls the listener into its tornado. When she's tearing your heart in two, the listener still want to stay alongside her for the ride.
A Prime Example of Joy
That playful energy shines clearly during the stirring Italian ballad inspired by a saint. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool for several minutes. Then, everything falls away, to reveal there's a gleeful laugh and a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top string crescendo crashes in with cartoonish impact. The track then segues into the wild single featuring galloping orchestration, an imposing choir, and a surprise appearance from the artist herself.
"The magic of this album is that you never quite understand—or even wish to predict—what you is going to next."
Nearly every song finishes in a completely different point from how it began. One moment examines the transient nature of celebrity over a delicate symphony before disintegrating into electronic cacophony. Another, a cut that recalls the artist's previous trap-infused style begins off moody and sinister, with menacing beats, before fluttering flamenco handclaps and an angelic chorus enter to smooth its jagged edges.
The Balance Between Experiment & Accessibility
A key balancing act of the album involves navigating the gap of radical experimentation and broad appeal. This is no coincidence that the album has become the artist's first release to break into the upper reaches of key charts: its heart contains a suite of truly catchy pop songs. One track performed entirely in English builds around a chorus that seems to gather increasingly nagging hooks while it spirals upward. This feat gets echoed by a different powerful ballad that expands and contracts, intertwining layered tunes like an intricate tapestry.
- A waltz-like number seduces via its jaunty, Disney-adjacent drama and a chant-along chorus.
- In its words, it aligns the cultural impact of contemporary heartbreak songs, eviscerating an ex- lover described as an "psychological bully".
- Throughout these tracks, the singing have a painted-on edge, akin to a storybook character concealing a blade: "Gold medal in being a scoundrel / You have the podium of letdown."
A Maximalist Feast for the Soul
Lux represents pop on a grand level, a hungry grasp for capital-A Art in an era of looming artificial blankness. It rejects solipsism in favor of glorious elevation, crafting a dramatic drama that masterfully manages its own inherent excess. It is an abundant well of buried gems that requires time to completely mine but never feels like a chore. While some major releases of the year felt like a meager scraps, Lux offers a lavish feast where the guests around it, perhaps tipsy on holy wine, flutter between conversations about ancient saints, the galvanizing sensation of heartbreaking grief, and common stories about useless men. In essence, it's a modern-day musical from music's truly endlessly inventive visionary.
