World pop star Rosalía is again with a brand new album Friday. That includes songs in 13 languages, it is the Spanish star’s most spectacular undertaking but.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
World star Rosalia is again this week with a brand new album. It is referred to as “Lux.”
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “PORCELANA”)
ROSALIA: (Singing in non-English language).
SUMMERS: The Spanish artist is a two-time Grammy and 11-time Latin Grammy Award winner recognized for her potential to fuse musical kinds. Right here to interrupt down “Lux” with me for our New Music Friday section is NPR Music’s Stephen Thompson. Hello.
STEPHEN THOMPSON, BYLINE: Hey, Juana.
SUMMERS: All proper, Stephen, I am enthusiastic about this one. And I perceive that that is Rosalia’s most bold album but, which says fairly a bit…
THOMPSON: (Laughter).
SUMMERS: …Given every thing that she’s accomplished. Are you able to simply begin by serving to us contextualize this album for individuals who could not know her music?
THOMPSON: Nicely, that is Rosalia’s fourth album. Her roots are type of in flamenco music, however with every report she’s put out, she retains upping the ante on her sound. She’s mixing in increasingly more genres, extra languages, extra ambitions. She’s proven a exceptional knack for mixing, you understand, pop, hip-hop, Latin music in ways in which simply preserve getting grander and increasingly more bold.
However with “Lux,” even for Rosalia, that is a completely gigantic swing. It is catchy and genre-bending, however on a large degree. She’s working with the London Symphony Orchestra. It is classical music. It is opera. It is pop. It is so many issues directly. And at occasions, it’s nearly breathtakingly lovely. And I have never even talked about, she sings in 13 languages on this report. I can barely muster one.
SUMMERS: Proper. Identical.
THOMPSON: (Laughter).
SUMMERS: That sounds actually, actually onerous. Does she make it work?
THOMPSON: She actually, actually, actually does. And a part of what jumps out in regards to the languages and the deployment of all these languages is how seamless it sounds and the way acceptable it feels to any given second. This isn’t a report that you’re – that you just’re simply going to need to hearken to as soon as. It simply retains revealing increasingly more because it goes alongside.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “BERGHAIN”)
ROSALIA: (Singing in Spanish).
THOMPSON: On the identical time, all this artwork we’re speaking about right here – this report by no means looks like a museum piece. It is vibrant and present. And on the identical time, you understand, it is not simply her classical report, both. It is obtained songs like “Divinize,” which is that this large, catchy earworm. It is swimming throughout genres fluently, however it’s nonetheless a pop report in lots of, some ways.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “DIVINIZE”)
ROSALIA: (Singing) By my physique, you may see the sunshine. Bruise me up, I will eat all of my pleasure.
SUMMERS: Stephen, earlier you talked about the orchestra, and the opposite factor that caught my ear was her opera singing. Inform me about her classical background.
THOMPSON: Yeah, she is the actual deal. She has studied this music. , you’re taking a tune on this report like “Mio Cristo.”
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “MIO CRISTO”)
ROSALIA: (Singing in Italian).
THOMPSON: She has mentioned she needed to practice for a 12 months to make that tune. She has consulted and is collaborating with so many sensible musicians and composers right here. The technical chops on show all through this report and the best way that numerous these classical preparations are deployed and intermixed with different genres, the technical chops are unimaginable.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “MIO CRISTO”)
ROSALIA: (Singing in Italian).
SUMMERS: I imply, Stephen, this album already sounds superb, however I do must say, I believe you may need one of many coolest jobs at NPR…
THOMPSON: (Laughter).
SUMMERS: …Since you get to hearken to a lot music all 12 months spherical since you host New Music Friday. And we’re nearly on the finish of the 12 months. The place do you assume that this album, “Lux,” will fall into your rating?
THOMPSON: Nicely, to begin with, Juana, I all the time say about my job, it beats working within the mines…
(LAUGHTER)
THOMPSON: …? I imply, Juana, I’ve liked a ton of information this 12 months. It should be an enormous problem to place collectively a high 10 checklist, simply ‘trigger I get to hearken to a lot music. However proper now, at this exact second, as I am speaking to you, that is my album of the 12 months.
SUMMERS: OK.
THOMPSON: And I think I am not going to be alone in that evaluation if my colleagues at NPR Music are any indication.
SUMMERS: That’s NPR Music’s Stephen Thompson. Thanks.
THOMPSON: Thanks, Juana.
SUMMERS: And you’ll hear extra of Stephen’s ideas on the brand new Rosalia album on the New Music Friday podcast from NPR Music.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “LA RUMBA DEL PERDON”)
ROSALIA: (Singing in Spanish).
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