Initially, this album might appear more like an arduous scholarly challenge rather than the latest pop album by an artist who just had a previous single was a collaboration with a global K-pop star. Split into 4 separate sections and performed in 13 languages, we have a dizzying orchestral-influenced work investigating feminine mystique, spiritual transcendence, and physical transformation, often through the perspective of various female saints. The end of a romance—a topic treated with grounded openness on another major 2025 album—is launched upwards here, supported by the constant sound of a full orchestra and contributions from an award-winning composer among a vast roll call of contributors. The pure daring by itself renders the work of other artists seem rather laughable.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
That this album succeeds in transcend overly academic chin-stroking feels almost miraculous, and full praise going to Rosalía. While it's not her first album to alchemize the past with the present, its stakes feel far greater here, with the tightrope walk more dramatic. The element that really raises this fourth album, outside of its complex melodies, rich arrangements, and engrained drama, proves to be an essential spirit of fun. Similar to the legendary Björk at her peak, there is a wondrous quality to the vocalist's singing that pulls you up in its tornado. Even when she's tearing hearts in two, you nevertheless desire to stay right there for the journey.
A Prime Example of Exuberance
This playful energy comes forth clearly during a stirring piano-led ballad about Saint Clare. It luxuriates in a string-drenched whirlpool for several moments. Suddenly, everything falls silent, and there's a gleeful giggle and a declaration before a comically exaggerated string surge crashes in like comedic force. The song then segues to the wild single driven by racing orchestration, an imposing choral group, and a cameo appearance from none other than herself.
"The magic of this album lies in you never quite know—or even wish to know—what you is going to next."
Almost every song finishes in a completely different place than where it began. One moment explores the fleeting trappings of fame with a delicate symphony before disintegrating into digital chaos. Elsewhere, a song that recalls the artist's earlier rhythmic style begins off moody and brooding, featuring menacing vocals, before sudden traditional handclaps and a heavenly chorus enter to soften its jagged corners.
The Balance Of Art and Pop
A key achievement of the album involves straddling the line of bold innovation and mainstream appeal. This is little coincidence that the album has achieved the artist's highest-charting release to break into the upper reaches of major markets: its heart contains a suite of utterly catchy hits. A song sung entirely in the English language swells on a refrain that seems to collect increasingly infectious hooks as it spins upward. That feat gets echoed on another powerful track that expands and constricts, intertwining multiple tunes as a complex weave.
- A dance-infused number charms with its jaunty, theatrical flair and an anthemic chorus.
- Lyrically, it aligns the cultural impact of other breakup songs, lambasting a former lover described as an "emotional bully".
- Throughout these tracks, the vocals have a painted-on edge, like a storybook figure concealing a knife: "Top prize in being a motherfucker / You have won the trophy of disappointment."
A Maximalist Banquet for the Ears
This album represents pop on a maximalist level, a hungry reach for high artistry amid of looming artificial blankness. It rejects solipsism in favor of sublime elevation, creating a dramatic drama that masterfully manages its inherent ridiculousness. This is an abundant well of buried treasure that requires time to completely mine but never feels like a chore. While other big pop albums of the year seemed like feasting on scraps, this record offers a lavish banquet at which the characters around it, perhaps tipsy on holy wine, flutter between conversations about historical saints, the profound sensation of soul-shattering sadness, and shared stories about hopeless men. In essence, it's a modern-day musical from pop's most restlessly creative practitioner.
