Carnival of Soul

There was some controversy when Billboard announced the songs, albums and artists that performed the best on the rock charts in 2019 (and throughout the past decade), as some of them didn’t fit squarely into what many people call “rock.” While that’s a debate for another time, many of the most exciting titles that should blast through speakers for the first time in 2020 couldn’t be described any other way.

Here’s a look at eight of the most anticipated rock albums coming in 2020.

Breaking Benjamin – Aurora

Breaking Benjamin typically spaces their albums out by several years, but fans won’t have to wait quite as long to receive new music from the hard rock outfit. The group is planning on releasing the long-teased Aurora on January 24, which sees the act partnering with well-known figures in the field (such as Cold front man Scooter Ward, Saint Asonia vocalist Adam Gontier, and Underoath’s Spencer Chamberlain) to reimagine some of their biggest hits.

Green Day – Father of All Motherfuckers

Four years ago, Green Day returned to the top of the Billboard 200 with their most recent release Revolution Radio, and now the pop-punk legends are hoping to do so once again with their new project, the obscenely-titled Father of all Motherfuckers (which will probably not be known by its full name on charts and in a number of news reports). Lead single “Father of All…” (you can guess what comes next) has already become a rock and alternative hit.

Father of All Motherfuckers arrives on February 7.

Ozzy Osbourne – Ordinary Man

The former front man of Black Sabbath hasn’t released a solo album in a decade, but he found new energy and inspiration recently, and it led to a number of studio sessions that quickly turned into a full-length. After recording the track “Take What You Want” for Post Malone’s Hollywood’s Bleeding, Osbourne felt the need to make more, and for some time now, he’s been sharing tunes from Ordinary Man, which will probably arrive in the first few months of 2020.

Evanescence

It’s now been nine years since Evanescence released an album of original material, and fans have waited long enough to hear what perhaps the most successful hard rock band of the past two decades has been working on…but it’s not entirely clear if anything will materialize in 2020. Lead singer Amy Lee, who has been busy with her own personal projects, admitted in an interview that the group wants to share a new album this year, but suggestions have been made before, and until there’s a proper announcement, perhaps it’s best not to get too excited.

The 1975 – Notes on a Conditional Form

After the incredible success of U.K.-based alternative pop-rock group The 1975’s 2016 release I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware of It, they wasted no time getting back into the studio. The outfit created so much music, they announced not one, but two new albums, to be shared only months apart. First came 2019’s A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships, and fans already knew to expect Notes on a Conditional Form by the time that debuted.

Notes on a Conditional Form should be streamable on February 21. 

Pearl Jam

Before they toured the world in 2018, Pearl Jam released a new single titled “Can’t Deny Me,” which arrived in March of that year…and since then, things have been fairly quiet. It was made clear at the time that the song was to be featured on what will be the rock outfit’s eleventh full-length, though since then, the details many have been waiting for never emerged. Hopefully more tunes will hit before the group tours again in 2020, and that might be the perfect time for their long-awaited album.

The Killers – Imploding The Mirage

No single has been shared and a street date hasn’t been made clear yet, but The Killers have revealed that yes, a new album is scheduled for 2020, and it sounds like it will be available before summer. The Las Vegas-based band’s sixth full-length comes three years after Wonderful Wonderful, which became their first to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

Tame Impala – The Slow Rush

Already scheduled for a Valentine’s Day release, The Slow Rush might end up being one of the most exciting and innovative rock records of 2020, since that’s what Tame Impala has gotten used to producing by this point. The set has already spawned two singles, both of which have performed well on the rock-specific charts in the U.S. It’s been five years since the band’s last studio effort, and fans aren’t accustomed to waiting that long between projects, so this new LP is sure to be welcomed warmly.

Keep An Eye Out For

HAIM, A Day To Remember, Weezer and Bombay Bicycle Club have all been delivering singles for months now, and they have revealed that full-lengths will be available in 2020, with some arriving earlier, others not coming until about mid-year, while the rest don’t have a date yet.

Both Fiona Apple and Liz Phair, two of the most innovative and influential women in the rock sphere, have promised albums for 2020, though no new music has appeared just yet. The latter revealed years ago she had been working on a double album, but that never materialized, so hopefully the same thing doesn’t happen again.

There are rumors that acts like The War On Drugs, Kasabian, St. Vincent, Phoenix and even The Strokes have all been working on new albums, but nothing has been announced, and it could be another year (or perhaps years) before previously-unreleased tunes are played.