Twenty albums to look out for in 2015

PANDA BEAR – PANDA BEAR MEETS THE GRIM REAPER

Release date: January 12

Baltimore experimentalist and founding member of Animal Collective Noah Lennox has been pretty busy of late, teasing his new album with the release of warped, electronic EP Mr Noah and two equally trippy music videos. Details are scarce regarding his fifth studio effort, but he has revealed this Halloween-ish promo teaser for the record, which aptly features a creepy grim reaper clutching a stuffed panda.

PETITE NOIR – THE KING OF ANXIETY

Release date: January 19

South African Petite Noir’s dreamy textures took on an almost psychedelic quality in “Chess”, the lead track from his forthcoming EP. With his tender touch, the vocalist mixes new wave flavours with the energies of post punk and the rhythms of his nation – we're ready for all the feelings.

MARILYN MANSON – THE PALE EMPEROR

Release date: January 19

Marilyn Manson's first album in three years looks set to have a twisted Lynchian sensibility – the goth-metal overlord was inspired by a scene from Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992) for his ninth album, as he recently explained. "It’s the overall vibe of the scene… when they're in the Pink Room and Laura Palmer and her friend are getting oral sex from someone and there's a band playing in the background that's sort of like The Cramps."

JOEY BADA$$ - B4.DA.$$

Release date: January 19

Pro Era co-founder Joey Bada$$'s releases to date have stitched a brash, boyish energy over organic, old skool beats. Following the momentum of two mixtapes, the Brooklynite's forthcoming debut B4.DA.$$ has the potential to be the debut rap record of 2015.

DENGUE FEVER – THE DEEPEST LAKE

Release date: February 2

The LA-based six-piece have been breathing life into Cambodian psych-pop since 2003 and now they’ve confirmed a sparkling new musical creation in the shape of The Deepest Lake, their seventh full-length. Bass player Senon Williams said, “We are entering our second decade together as a band and wanted to explore some ideas we’d experimented with in the past to try and capture a more expressive sound. Musically we went with a more raw approach, while vocally Chhom Nimol came through with her signature power, intimacy and passion.”

VISION FORTUNE – COUNTRY MUSIC

Release date: February 9

In an immersive blend of sparse, circular guitar riffs and reverb-soaked keyboard lines, the debut album from London experimental trio Vision Fortune was an atmospheric, sonically engrossing affair. Their second album, the ironically-titled Country Music, is set for release this February – and if it’s anything like their leading single “Dry Mouth”, it’ll be unsettling, strangely cathartic and hook-free (in a good way).

FUTURE BROWN – FUTURE BROWN

Release date: February 23

The globally-minded four-piece of Fatima Al Qadiri, Asma Maroof and Daniel Pineda (Nguzunguzu) and J-Cush (Lit City Trax) are perhaps the collaborative project in the US right now. Following the Tink-featuring “Wanna Party” and new one “Talkin Bandz”, featuring Shawnna, get ready for a multi-layered craft of grime, futuristic R&B and dance floor-ready bangers.

ROMARE – PROJECTIONS

Release date: February 23

UK electronic artist Romare’s debut is set to revel in its influences. The intricate dance music of the record pays homage to the great American work song tradition, gay rights and 70’s disco, the shuffling swings of jazz, the throaty vocals of Nina Simone, all glued together with the cut-n-paste sensibility of Romare Bearden, the African-American collagist from whom the artist takes his name.

GANG OF FOUR – WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

Release date: February 23

Leeds’ legendary post-punk quartet will be releasing their ninth studio album this February and it’s going to be brimming with guest stars including Alison Mosshart, Robbie Furze and Herbert Gronemeyer. Get an early preview with the album’s spiky lead single “Broken Talk,” featuring Mosshart, below.

CLARENCE CLARITY – NO NOW

Release date: March 2

So far, the enigmatic UK-based producer’s tracks have shown a unique approach to rhythm, combining squelchy, funk-dipped synths with crashing electronic beats and breathless, yearning vocals. His upcoming debut promises to be just as intense. “The No Now is my bubble of clarity,” he has said. “The ongoing wow hovering in stasis, with the blinds down and the world a forgotten dream.”

TWIN SHADOW – ECLIPSE

Release date: March 17

Twin Shadow has remained tight-lipped about Eclipse, the follow-up to his 2012 album Confess. "I think it’s important to let people take what they need from songs instead of explaining too much about what they mean for me personally," he commented. But if it’s anything like the skeletal, darkly sensual leading single “Turn Me Up”, his third album will be an illicitly alluring affair, shrouded in lust and toying with vulnerability.

A$AP Rocky – TBC

Release date: TBC

When our favourite A$AP dropped the rigorous, shade-throwing “Multiply” in October, the rumour mill went into overdrove that his long anticipated album was round the corner, but now it looks like Rocky's aiming for a spring release. “We’re really tryin’ to smash y’all muthafuckas in 2015, man,” Rocky has said. “I ain’t been having this much fun in a while. With this type of energy being invested into my music, the possibilities are endless. It’s like old times…I feel reckless again. Be ready.” We are.

KELELA – TBC

Release date: TBC

From her accomplished, dark-toned, future-R&B mixtape Cut 4 Me to the smooth-as-Brandy guest vocals on Kindness’ debut Otherness, Kelela has been the name dancing on everyone’s lips. When Dazed asked the singer what to expect from her in 2015 she said, “My idea of a good song x my idea of cool production x my vocals = KELELA ALBUM.” Touché!

FRANK OCEAN – TBC

Release date: TBC

Frank Ocean’s languid, seductive tones and seamless merging of soulful storytelling, R&B melodies and hip hop beats has earned him a reputation as a pop pioneer. It’s been almost three years since his acclaimed debut album Channel Orange and frankly, we’re ready for another one. “I might skip on Coachella to stay in the groove and finish this bitch,” he announced on Tumblr last spring in a now-deleted post. And if his recently-debuted demo “Memrise” is any indication, hopefully it won't be too long now.

TINK – TBC

Release date: TBC

Chicago’s silken-voiced singer – and take-no-prisoners rapper – is getting a leg-up from Timbaland, who's executive producing her spring-due debut LP. The multi-talented aritst has past form, too, with her previous four mixtapes showcasing a versatile fusion of speedy, real-talk rapping and soulful, R&B-infused vocals. Expect Tink to take 2015 by the horns – and in the meantime, check her post-Ferguson rap “Tell The Children”, produced by Timba himself.

CHROMATICS – DEAR TOMMY

Release date: TBC

What do we know about the Portland synth-pop quartet’s follow-up to their exceptional Italio-disco epic Kill For Love? We know it’ll be released in time for Valentines Day, we know it’s comprised of 17 songs and we know it’s called Dear Tommy. Also, there’s a track “Cherry” that is “similar” to the one that appeared on Italians Do It Better compilation After Dark 2 (see below).

DRAKE – VIEWS FROM THE 6

Release date: TBC

Drake announced the name of his upcoming album Views from the 6 before he’d stepped foot in the studio, but hopefully 2015 will see the music to match. The heart-talking Canadian released three songs this year – “How Bout Now”, “Heat of the Moment” and “6 God” – after getting his iCloud raided. “That wasn't an EP,” Drake tweeted. “Just 3 songs that I knew some hackers had. But enjoy!” Either way, the trio make for a strong first look at his fourth official studio record.

BJÖRK – TBC

Release date: TBC

With a MoMA retrospective scheduled for spring, the Icelandic artist may well be on the verge of dominating both the art and music worlds this year. And in what is 2015’s most anticipated musical collaboration, our favourite bleeding-edge electronic producer Arca has been working on her ninth studio album. “Rather than “sole producing,” @bjork and I are coproducing music together!” he clarified on Twitter, amidst a fast-moving rumour mill. As leftfield pop's queen of reinvention, it's difficult to predict what the release will sound, look or feel like – but rest assured it'll be like nothing else this year.

CL – TBC

Release date: TBC

As the leader of K-pop girl group 2NE1, CL is the self-declared ‘baddest female’ of the country's music scene, and this year she'll make a play for the Western music market. And she's not playing around, having enlisted mega-manager Scooter Braun to help launch her solo debut. “I want to have something personal for me,' she told Billboard. "With 2NE1... it's about all the members. But I have so many things I want to say. I have this other side of me.” With her fierce stage presence and eye-popping visuals, expect an electrifying debut.

KENDRICK LAMAR – TBC

Release date: TBC

"I’m hoping to push (my album) out before 2015," Kendrick Lamar told MTV news in September. Seeing as he didn't pull a Beyoncé-style surprise on us last month, all signs point to it coming soon – very soon. Trailing the release, the Compton-raised rapper released “i” last autumn, an upbeat, funk-swathed party track that samples the Isley Brothers, marking his first solo single since 2012’s Good Kid m.A.A.d City. This was followed by an untitled experimental jazz-riddled number, which he premiered on the Colbert Report last month.