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The Canadian Press looks at 15 of the most anticipated albums expected in 2015

Original Publication Date January 09, 2015 - 11:05 AM

TORONTO - If 2014 felt light on compelling albums it's likely because several of music's marquee artists took a 12-month sabbatical with an eye on 2015. Thus, there's plenty to be excited about over the next year. Here are 15 of the most anticipated albums expected in 2015, ranked in alphabetical order by artist:

Belle & Sebastian

The Glaswegian melodic artisans have yet to place a wrong foot in their nearly 20-year career, with 2010's lived-in "Write About Love" standing as another winsome triumph. Elastic-limbed new single "The Party Line" certainly augurs well for "Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance," their first new full-length in nearly five years. Release date: Jan. 20

Bjork

The Icelandic iconoclast has been collaborating with Venezuelan producer Arca (who contributed to Kanye West's brilliant "Yeezus," as well as his own well-regarded debut "Xen") for her followup to 2011's "Biophilia." That album was actually an ambitious multi-pronged multimedia suite, and while it earned the 49-year-old typically enthusiastic critical praise, her forthcoming ninth album would benefit from a renewed focus on songwriting. Release date: unknown

Drake

The Toronto rapper took 2014 off — if you can call it a year off after contributing some top songs ("Trophies" and "0 to 100"), features (on iLoveMakonnen's irrefutable "Tuesday") and memes (rolling lint at a Raptors game). A savvy pop prognosticator, Drake's new record might be called "Views From the 6" and seems likely to influence more than just his hometown's nickname du jour. Release date: unknown

Grimes

The Montreal composer, born Claire Boucher, casually tossed off one of 2014's most indelible bangers in "Go." She had also been working on the followup to 2012's "Visions," but she told the New York Times she threw that album away and started again, raising expectations that were already high after her last standard-setting collection of idiosyncratic electronic pop. Release date: unknown

Tobias Jesso Jr.

The Vancouver native flamed out as a hired-gun L.A. songwriter. But he's found his own voice with a series of heart-busting piano breakup ballads that have won him some famous fans. His debut "Goon" features production from the Black Keys' Patrick Carney, Girls' Chet (JR) White and Grammy winner Ariel Rechtshaid (who has produced for Usher, Vampire Weekend, Haim and Justin Bieber). He has our attention now. Release date: March 17

Kendrick Lamar

So high are our collective expectations for the dexterous Compton rapper's followup to insta-pillar "Good Kid, M.A.A.D City" that his recent comeback single "i" was initially deemed a defanged disappointment. Well, the earthy Isley Brothers-derived tune has given Lamar his fourth Top 40 hit Stateside (and his highest-charting track in Canada) and most likely pulled even more people into the waiting room for his next appointment. Release date: unknown

Miguel

A new album from the spry, restlessly talented R&B songwriter was once due for last fall, two years after the release of his splendid second LP "Kaleidoscope Dream." Instead, we got only a three-song set from the 29-year-old, headlined by the sticky thump of "nwa." That December mini-release only whet appetites for the Grammy winner's worried-over third episode. Release date: unknown

Frank Ocean

Wishful thinking, perhaps, but Ocean must be due. The New Orleans-reared singer's official debut "Channel Orange" turns three in July, and — in his rare resurfacings — he's reported progress on a followup. Given Ocean's exacting standards, it's easy to imagine that he could stay still for another year — but let's think positive. Release date: unknown

Radiohead

Given the unloved fate of 2011's dour "The King of Limbs," it feels like more than four years since the Oxford dreamers put out anything new. Guitarist Jonny Greenwood reported that the band went back into the studio in the fall, though predicting a 2015 release might be optimistic: the three-time Grammy winners seem impossible to rush. Release date: unknown

Rae Sremmurd

January is usually a cultural void, when Hollywood dribbles out its most humbling disappointments with a sleeve-cough and record labels cautiously avoid trying to pry from still-smarting wallets. So "SremmLife," a pop-rap debut from the fresh-faced Mississippi brothers, feels like a gift: sonically adventurous, giddy-goofy and packing hooks as strong as Joe Frazier's. Mostly it's a lot of fun, something in desperately short supply during the cracked-skin months. Release date: available now

Rihanna

The typically punctual RiRi has been silent since 2012's "Unapologetic," which completed a run of four albums in less than four years (they all went platinum). A new record feels inevitable, in more ways than one: her 13 career No. 1 singles tie her with Michael Jackson for third place all-time. Release date: unknownRun the Jewels

No record better captured the calamity of 2014 better than Run the Jewels' sterling sequel, a seething, taunting, head-cracking monument to truth-telling and chest-puffing. Finally finding a breakthrough as they both turn 40, El-P and Killer Mike are reportedly back in the studio already for "Run the Jewels 3," and if they work quickly they'll be the top tag team for a third summer. Release date: unknown

Sleater-Kinney

A decade ago, rock pillar Sleater-Kinney dropped the towering noise sculpture "The Woods" then dropped away for a break that stretched on and on. Though singer-guitarist Carrie Brownstein has since achieved more widespread fame for indie-culture spoof "Portlandia," the return of her sinewy power-punk trio with "No Cities To Love" is welcome news for desperately underserved rock fans. Release date: Jan. 20

Tame Impala

Springing from the mind of Australian Kevin Parker, 2012's "Lonerism" stands among the decade's most engaging rock-ish records. The album was even kind of a hit — at least as far as wallflower psychedelia goes — earning gold certification in Australia, making the U.S. Top 40 and earning critical adulation (and a Kendrick Lamar collaboration!) with its stained-glass pretty hangdog tunes. Blissfully welcome, then, was the recent news of an imminent followup. Release date: unknown

Kanye West

After his sonically groundbreaking pre-fatherhood meltdown "Yeezus," West might be expected to veer back toward pop on his followup — a theory boosted by his recent Paul McCartney collaboration. On the other hand, it's only been 18 months since West rapped "I've been a menace for the longest — but I ain't finished, I'm devoted." Here's hoping; West is at his most compelling when combining agitation and mischief. Release date: unknown

— Follow @CP_Patch on Twitter.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2015
The Canadian Press

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