5. Kanye West – SWISH

Release date: TBA via Def Jam



Kanye West’s next album might be called SWISH. I’m not sure exactly why that is, but I’m going to guess it’s of the basketball type, considering West grew up in Chicago during the Bulls’ dominance of the ’90s and that he’s basically the rap world’s Michael Jordan. Whatever the reason, the album has been in the works for a couple years now, rumored to be at various degrees of completion. There are reports of listening parties, of DJ sets testing out up to 20 tracks, of Yeezy himself rapping the whole thing at Seth Rogen in a limo. Everyone from Ty Dolla $ign to Madonna are reported to have worked on the album. It might include tracks like “Wolves” and “All Day”, or it could all get scrapped entirely. It could drop tomorrow, or we might be re-posting this very same write-up for next year’s list. Regardless, this album will be one of our most anticipated until it’s released. –Adam Kivel

Listen: “Wolves” feat. Sia and Vic Mensa

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4. Adele – 25

Release date: November via XL Recordings

Adele’s 21 was an undeniable mile-marker of 21st century pop music. Arriving when speculation over the significance of album sales reached peak free-for-all, its universal singles “Someone Like You”, “Rolling in the Deep”, “Rumour Has It”, and “Set Fire to the Rain” incited such strong reactions that at the end of 2012, it emerged as the best-selling album of the year — despite being released in January of 2011 and claiming that year’s top seller as well. Placing those types of expectations on 25, due in November and featuring contributions from Danger Mouse and Tobias Jesso, Jr., would be uncalled for, but there’s no reason to assume its best songs won’t hit as hard or stretch as far — especially considering the weighty experiences she’s endured in the interim years, childbirth and a major vocal-cord surgery among them. –Steven Arroyo

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3. Radiohead – TBA

Release date: TBD via Ticker Tape/XL

How would you like a new Radiohead album by Halloween? Maybe Thanksgiving? Christmas? That could be the case if all goes well in the next month. As drummer Phil Selway recently told UK’s Press Association, “We’ve got quite a busy autumn coming up. We want to finish a record and that’s where we’re at. We’re just launching ourselves into it.” Of course, this is all pennies in a well. Things could stretch out to January or February or beyond, and their blackboard could crack from all their erasing and scribbling. Who knows.

What better way to describe all things related to Radiohead: “Who knows.” They could bring in outside collaborators. They could keep it internal. They could draw from their past and rework a song like “Lift”. They could craft entirely new songs that nobody’s heard because they haven’t been written yet. But they’re currently working on something, which means that anything can happen in the next few months. It’s exciting, it’s bewildering, and it’s fucking awful for our sleep schedules. –Michael Roffman

Listen: “Lift”

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2. Grimes – TBA

Release date: TBA via 4AD

In the time since Grimes’ last album, 2012’s Visions, various stories and rumors have circulated about what’s going on with the Canadian pop songstress’ new one. For example, Grimes scrapped the album because people didn’t like “Go”. And (more recently) Grimes hates all her singles. After revealing in a since-deleted tweet that her new LP will drop without warning in October, most intel comes from a Fader cover story. In it, Grimes details that she went back to the drawing board for the album because the songs she had previously written while secluding herself in Canada were too dark for her current headspace. She’s since moved to L.A., where she continues to work and is recording all the instruments. If the feature is any indication of what’s to come, the new music may be unlike anything we’ve ever heard from Grimes before: a pastiche of alternative rock, metal, hip-hop, and the dark synthpop sound she’s traditionally associated with. –Killian Young

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1. Frank Ocean – Boys Don’t Cry

Release date: TBA via Def Jam



Frank Ocean fans have had a tough time of late. The complete lack of information coming from the Ocean camp is a source of extreme duress for an internet age fan base. Thus far fans have been “Rick rolled” by his younger brother and stood up at this year’s FYF in Los Angeles. In fact, the only news coming from Ocean himself was a cryptic Tumblr post that hinted at the title, Boys Don’t Cry. Per the post, a July release date was expected, but July came and went without a peep.

What we do know is at least part of the album was recorded at the famous Abby Road studios. French pianist Christophe Chassol was sought out as a collaborator and revealed that Rick Rubin had a hand in those Abby Road sessions as well. In November 2014, Ocean released a snippet of a track called “Memrise” rumored to be on the new album. The track’s dreary phaser shrouded intro gives way to some seriously beautiful textures and lyrics. From “Memrise”, it would seem the nuanced R&B that Ocean rode to popularity is ever intact. If only indefinite waits weren’t so stressful. –Kevin McMahon

Listen: New Song?