LUX: Rosalía’s Celestial Evolution from Motomami to Maximalist
It’s been three years since Motomami: helmets off and motos packed away we step into the light of LUX, the new album by Rosalia.
I’m no expert in music theory or production intricacies but as a self-proclaimed Rosalia fangirl it would be rude not to put my two pence in to talk about LUX. Released on the 7th of November, this album feels like a bold departure from the punchy minimalist production of Motomami, where reggaeton inspired beats gave us dancey, club destined lead singles Saoko and Bizcochito. LUX is, in contrast, a maximalist album in every sense. Unapologetically grand with a bigger and brighter soundscape, it features a spectrum of different languages and genres. Rosalia, however, is no stranger to experimentation and breaking artistic moulds with El Mal Querer in 2018, rewriting fusions of flamenco with pop and trap.
Nobody was expecting the grandeur of the lead single, Berghain. Named not after Berlin’s infamous techno cathedral, but instead its literal translation ‘mountain grove’ the track pulses with industrial beats overlaid with operatic vocals that feel both divine and at first quite disorienting. It’s Rosalia at her most theatrical: blending Gregorian-style chanting with a club rhythm and a vocal tribute to Mike Tyson via artist Yves Tumor that builds into a euphoric, near-spiritual climax. The production is dense yet deliberate, as if Motomami’s raw minimalism has evolved into something celestial and unrestrained, a declaration that Rosalia has moved beyond experimentation into full artistic transcendence. Even the press interviews and the whole build up of the album oozed divine. With a dyed halo into her hair and a wardrobe to reflect, it was quite clear that this era for the artist would represent something wholly different and exciting.
‘Pero mi corazón nunca ha sido mío, yo siempre lo doy’ (Reliquia)
My first full listen of the new album wasn’t nearly as glamorous as the listening party held in Barcelona hours before its global release. No stage ordained in white. No celestial lights. Just me on a Flixbus watching the countryside blur past on my way to Somerset. Still, it felt transcendent and genuinely stirred my emotions. It’s now just over a week since the album's release and many plays over, I can firmly say that it only gets better with each listen. From the opening notes of Sexo, Violencia y Llantas each of the four sections intertwine divinity and femininity with a strong throughline of feminine mysticism that ties every song together. There are, however, undertones of an elevated classical break up album with lyrics of heartbreak and emotional toil that reflect the artist’s last three years since we all got together for a musical catch up.
‘La decepción local, rompecorazones nacional, un terrorista emocional, el mayor desastre mundial.
Es una perla, nadie se fia. Es una perla, una de mucho cuida’o’
(La Perla)
The album leans into ancient and current themes through effortlessly executed devotional pop and cites the lives of rebellious and inspirational female saints. Rosi is much more interested in saints over celebrities, she tells the Guardian’s Laura Snape in her ‘Ascension Day’ G2 article last Friday. Lyrics throughout make reference to her namesake Saint Rosalia de Palermo, Santa Olga de Kyiv and many more who lived centuries before you and I, but whose stories remain as pertinent through the music today.
What stands out even further is the use of thirteen languages from Catalan, Rosalia’s mother tongue, to Japanese, German and Ukrainian. Fuelled by a curiosity to understand languages and other cultures herself and with an aim to make the album as intelligible to as many listeners as possible, and expanding the possibilities of pop music beyond borders.
‘Ego sum lux mundi’ - (Porcelana)
Clearly the world is listening. LUX has debuted on Spotify as the biggest new Spanish-language album surpassing the likes of Bad Bunny and Karol G. LUX cements Rosalia not only as one of Spain’s greatest, but also arguably one of this generation’s most visionary global artists.