This is part four of four. If you haven’t read part two yet, check it out here.
Yes this is late, but better late than never.
While 2020 was shit, the albums we got that year were pretty tight. But some records were delayed for the sole purpose of releasing them when touring was given the “OK” to. As of now, touring is still off limits, but that won’t stop some bands from dropping new music this year.
In 2021, we’re getting several great albums some several great bands and artists, but out of all the albums that are coming out this year, these are the ones you need to keep your eyes on. Here are the most anticipated albums of 2021, in no particular order.
The Seafloor Cinema
Album: In Cinemascope With Stereophonic Sound (Pure Noise)
Release Date: 11/12
At long last, we’ll finally be getting The Seafloor Cinema’s long-awaited sophomore album In Cinemascope With Stereophonic Sound this fall. After signing with Pure Noise Records (Counterparts, Left Behind, Red City Radio) last month, the Sacramento emo/math rock troupe are gearing to melt your minds with their tasty licks and their hilarious sense of humor. “We wanted to push ourselves in a new direction by collaborating on an album that quintessentially merged the ‘Seafloor’ sound with the accessible pop sensibilities our producer Courtney Ballard (Grayscale, I The Mighty, Stand Atlantic) is known for. We had a lot of fun, and that’s what we feel the album offers sonically – pure fun,” the band said in a press release. It’s gonna be one hell of a fun time.
This Wild Life
Album: Ever Blossom (Self-Released)
Release Date: 10/15
No longer with Epitaph Records (DRAIN, The Ghost Inside, Rosie Tucker), Californian acoustic duo This Wild Life are once again independent. And to celebrate their newfound freedom, Kevin Jordan and Anthony Del Grosso are releasing their fourth album Ever Blossom this October. The album contains some of their longest song titles to date (“When We Leave This Place We Leave Alone”, “If It’s Cool With You I’m Cool With Being Through”, ” Still Wondering Why You Left Me Behind”). Watch these two make beauty with their falsetto sounds this fall.
They Might Be Giants
Album: BOOK (Idlewild)
Release Date: 10/29
BOOK has been in the making since 2019 when one half of TMBG John Flansburgh began teasing that their 23rd album was being made. Fast forward to 2020. COVID and New York City’s PAUSE order caused the record to go on pause for a period of time. Using the new free time, the band began restructuring the album, creating a “half dozen” new songs during the pandemic. You can expect BOOK to come out shortly before Halloween.
Album: The Rain Just Follows Me (Pure Noise)
Release Date: 9/10
It’s been a busy year for Hawthorne Heights. The group celebrated the 15th anniversary of their sophomore effort If Only You Were Lonely by playing it in full on a livestream. Currently they’re on the road with Bayside and Senses Fail. And after all of that, they’ll be unleashing their eighth studio album The Rain Just Follows Me tomorrow. What a year indeed.
Kendrick Lamar
Album: TBA (Aftermath/Interscope/Top Dawg)
Release Date: TBA
Kendrick Lamar hasn’t dropped an album since DAMN. in 2017, and fans are growing restless for a new album. However, since last year, rumors of a new Kendrick record started being spread. But as of April 2021, news about LP5 dropped when Kendrick’s long-serving engineer Derek “MixedByAli” Ali hinted that it might come out this year. Even more news was revealed when rapper The Game said that while chatting with Top Dawg Entertainment CEO Anthony Tiffith, Kendrick would have new material out “real soon.” “I talked to Top Dawg. You know, he told me Kendrick ’bout to hit niggas with some shit real soon and shit. So, you know, who knows how real soon that it but if Kendrick is working, that shit is always major,” the rapper said to his fans on Instagram Live back in June. But then shit got real when in August he noted that this record would be his last with Top Dawg. Oh, and he’s registered some new songs with ASCAP earlier this week. New album this year? Maybe.
Lil Nas X
Album: Montero (Columbia)
Release Date: 9/17
He’s here, he’s queer, and he’s one of the biggest stars in the modern rap game. Montero Hill — aka Lil Nas X — turned the rap game on its head with his hit “Old Town Road.” Three years later, the Georgian rapper is ready to release his debut album, which takes its name from Lil Nas X’s real name. Originally slated for a summer release date, it is now being scheduled to drop September 17.
Big D And The Kids Table
Album: DO YOUR ART (SideOneDummy)
Release Date: 10/22
The underrated heroes of ska-punk are back! Bostonian ska-punk outfit Big D And The Kids Table haven’t released a brand new album of original material since 2013 with the double release Stomp and Stroll. But now we won’t have to wait long for the Matt Appleton (Goldfinger, The Inevitables, Reel Big Fish) produced 20-track(!) record, which drops shortly before Halloween. And from what’s been unleashed so far, it’s gonna be a blast.
Ice Nine Kills
Album: The Silver Scream 2: Welcome To Horrorwood (Fearless)
Release Date: 10/15
Boston’s Ice Nine Kills have been going on strong following the release of their last album The Silver Scream in 2018, a record packed with references to classic and modern horror films. The horrors commence with The Silver Scream 2: Welcome To Horrorwood, featuring tracks based on Child’s Play (“Assault & Batteries), Resident Evil (“Rainy Day”), and American Psycho (“Hip To Be Scared”). Just like the last album, the record is packed with guest vocalists like Papa Roach’s Jacoby Shaddix, Senses Fail’s Buddy Nielsen, and Cannibal Corpse’s Corpsegrinder.
Album: Horizons/East (Epitaph)
Release Date: 9/17
Coming out next week (well, the digital version only) is the newest album from beloved post-hardcore-turned-alt-rock legends Thrice, Horizons/East. The album is their eleventh record and marks their second release with Epitaph. According to Guitar World, “guitarists Dustin Kensrue and Teppei Teranishi looked to new sources of inspiration for their guitar parts on the record, building songs using jazz-inspired quartal chords and even turning the Fibonacci sequence into a guitar riff.” Get ready for one of the most interesting sounding Thrice albums when it drops next Friday. Physical copies come out October 8.
Spiritbox
Album: Eternal Blue (Rise)
Release Date: 9/17
In 2020, I welcomed you all to the ghost zone that was Spiritbox in my Prenatt’s Picks series. Who would’ve guessed that in the span of a year that they would be one of the biggest names in hard rock? And they haven’t even dropped a full-length album yet! Well, until now. Coming out next Friday, Canadian heavyweights Spiritbox will unveil their long-awaited debut Eternal Blue to the masses via Rise Records (AFI, The Distillers, Memphis May Fire). Vocalist Courtney LaPlante told Kerrang!, “We are very anxious to release our album, it is a body of work we have been accumulating for over two years. Having the recording process put on hold for so long due to the pandemic has made me see that I can never take the experience of tracking an album for granted ever again.” Get stoked for probably one of the best rock records this fall.
Punk Goes Prenatt 