The end of any calendar year is, of course, exciting thanks to the holiday hiatus and handful of festive events that get us feeling warm and giddy inside. Aside from feasts, sale racks and popped champagne, however, there are a few other reasons for music-loving ears to perk up around the last week of December.
Not only are publications and blogs bursting with those juicy “best of” lists as the year closes, making it simple for fans to sample the sounds of months missed, but as those lists wind down – new album chatter ramps up. With the first of the year, distant “TBA” release dates become firmly fixed and as soon as the Times Square ball drops, so do countless anticipated albums.
Although we aren’t bidding farewell to 2012 and all of its melodies, it’s time to tuck away some of those celebrated tunes to make room for the new hype. If the next 12 months are anything like the last, we’ll be swaying and toe-tapping happily into 2014. Here are a handful of January 2013 album releases to keep your ear on:
*Warning: Some explicit lyrics
1. A$AP Rocky – Long.Live.A$AP: You may have not guessed Kendrick Lamar and Drake’s firecracker tour buddy actually hasn’t released his debut studio album yet, based on the fact that his grills and explicit rhymes have thumped across rap airwaves for over a year now. But the time has come to stop sifting through album leaks; next Tuesday, Rocky will (officially) be spitting his early-90s-influenced grind over rad beats on the year’s first highly-anticipated album drop. (On shelves January 15th)
2. Ra Ra Riot – Beta Love: Creative indie rockers Ra Ra Riot take a swift synth-pop turn on their first release since 2010, which is expected to hit the shelves on January 21st. On the title track and first single, sugary falsetto vocals combined with feel-good synth and zapping beats are proof that the band may have gotten rid of their baroque edge, but they’ve more than made up with buoyant beats that will cure any seasonal moodiness lingering into the New Year. (On shelves January 21st)
3. J. Cole – Born Sinner: Although expected to drop at the end of January, young gun rapper J. Cole has recently admitted to needing “a little more time than that to get things done” before unveiling his latest release. You take all the time you need, J – if it means another batch of catchy and surprisingly compelling commentaries like those released on your star-studded mixtapes and debut album, we’ll allow it. (On shelves in early 2013)
4. Tegan and Sara – Heartthrob: Montreal’s famed indie twinettes have had a busy few years, despite cooling their heels on releasing more likeable indie-pop ditties in the form of an actual album. Aside from paving the mainstream road for other quirky female rockers, they’ve partnered with international DJ sensation Tiesto, recently covered The Rolling Stones for the soundtrack of HBO’s Girls and are now ready to get back in the game with their seventh studio release (!). The Quin sisters’ first single “Closer” confirms that, like most other contemporary indie bands, they’ve also mixed in heavy synth-pop elements to their upbeat pop-rock repertoire – making it unclear how a live show will sound, but crystal clear how fun the dance floors will be. (On shelves January 29th)
5. Local Natives – Hummingbird: The first thing I pre-ordered on January 1st was the highly-anticipated sophomore album from these praised L.A. alt-rockers; a release which, based on the soaring leaked tracks “Breakers” and “Heavy Feet,” will undoubtedly be a mesmerizing and full-bodied graduated leap from their already memorable debut Gorilla Manor. Front man Kelcey Ayer’s effortlessly soft croon over The National (Aaron Dessner co-produced the album) and Arcade Fire-reminiscent artsy rock melodies is even more sublime than ever; the layers of sparkling instruments behind him are nothing less than captivating, dreamy and, in a nutshell, exactly the note we all want the music year to start off on. (On shelves January 29th)
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