Critics Question Rosalía's Multilingual Lyrics on New Album LUX
Rosalía's new album LUX, performed in 14 languages, has received rave reviews from English-language publications like Rolling Stone, but Spanish-speaking critics have panned the lyrics as nonsensical. The album features songs dedicated to female mystics and saints, with lyrics translated via Google Translate and proper translators. Spanish outlets like Rolling Stone en Español and Mondo Sonoro criticized the polyglot approach as 'linguistic tourism' and gimmicky. Examples of awkward translations include 'a flame penetrates my brain, like a lead teddybear' in German and 'an army fits in a golf ball' in Spanish. The article argues that Rosalía's exoticism and vocal talent may mask mediocre songwriting.
Key facts
- Rosalía's album LUX is performed in 14 languages.
- The album was released on two 'crystal clear' 12-inch records.
- Rosalía spent a year working on the lyrics.
- Rolling Stone gave LUX two rave reviews, calling it 'stunning' and 'transcendent'.
- Spanish-speaking critics on Twitter/X called the lyrics 'gilipolleces' and 'una mierda'.
- Ayelén Cisneros of Rolling Stone en Español questioned if the gimmicks undermined the album.
- Mondo Sonoro called the multilingual approach 'turismo lingüístico'.
- The article is an opinion piece by Michelle Santiago Cortés for ArtReview.
Entities
Artists
- Rosalía
- Hildegard von Bingen
- Björk
- J Balvin
- Simone Weil
- Saint Rosa of Lima
- Ryōnen Gensō
- Rabia al-Adawiyya
- Jeanne d'Arc
- Santa Teresa de Ávila
- Michelle Santiago Cortés
Institutions
- The New York Times
- Rolling Stone
- Rolling Stone en Español
- Mondo Sonoro
- ArtReview
- London Symphony Orchestra
- Spotify
Locations
- Berghain
- New York
- Barcelona
- Spain