A new season is upon us, and that means a whole lot of new albums we can’t wait to hear. We’re still waiting on a handful of the 100 albums we said we were anticipating this year back in January, and a whole bunch of new ones since then were announced for this summer too. We’ve picked 42, and we stuck to albums with definite release dates, but our fingers are still crossed that maybe Joanna Newsom, Sampha, The Cure, Rihanna, Frank Ocean, My Bloody Valentine, Cardi B, Danny Brown, Sky Ferreira, blink-182, The Gaslight Anthem, Michael Stipe, or others with long-teased albums might surprise us this season.

Meanwhile, there are also so many albums already out this year worth catching up on. Browse our Notable Releases and Indie Basement archives for all of our recent album reviews, and stay tuned for our Best of 2023 So Far list coming very soon.

Read on for the list (in alphabetical order) and let us know what albums you’re looking forward to this summer…

due 7/21 via Double Double Whammy

New York singer/songwriter Allegra Krieger makes gorgeous, thoughtful ’70s-style folk, and her new album, her second in two years, is shaping up to be a good one. She produced it with Luke Temple and Jeremy Harris, and its sound is augmented with brass parts and pedal steel (including her own playing on one song) in addition to guitar, piano, and vocals.

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due 9/8 via 4AD

The singles we’ve heard from Anjimile’s sophomore album and first for 4AD run the gamut from the intense, towering title track to the contemplative, string-seasoned folk of “Father.” They give you a good sense of his range and have us looking forward to The King, which he describes as “an album of curses.”

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due 7/7 via Secretly Canadian/Rough Trade

Following her great 2016 solo album Hopelessness and the Paradise EP from the following year, ANOHNI is now releasing her first album also credited to the Johnsons–including longtime members Rob Moose and Doug Wieselman–in 13 years. ANOHNI cites Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On as an inspiration for the album, and says, “I want the record to be useful… [I want] to help others move with dignity and resilience through these conversations we are now facing.”

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due 7/28 via Warp

Richard D James is back with his first record in six years. If the EP’s title track is any indication this is about as friendly as Aphex Twin gets, still glitchy but with lots of melody, not a bad thing at all.

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due 8/25 via Sargent House

Tony Wolski, vocalist of the unpigeonholable, unparalleled Detroit collective The Armed, calls Perfect Saviors the band’s “completely unironic, sincere effort to create the biggest, greatest rock album of the 21st century.” When it comes to this band, a promise like that carries a lot of weight.

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due 9/15 via Abraxan Hymns

Speaking about Baroness’ first album to not be named after a color, bandleader John Baizley says, “STONE is a lot more alive, more direct.” You can definitely hear that coming through in lead single “Last Word,” which does indeed sound like Baroness at their most alive and direct, with a great concoction of big hooks, beefy riffs, and psych/prog passages.

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due 8/25 via Third Man

All grown up, Nashville garage punks Be Your Own Pet are ready to give it another try after 15 years and they sound more than ready to go this time, with a little help from Jack White.

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due 7/21 via Parlophone

When Blur announced UK and EU festival and headline shows, most thought it was just good bit of summer fun, but it turned out they’d made a new album in secret with producer James Ford (Arctic Monkeys, Depeche Mode) behind the boards. “This is an aftershock record, reflection and comment on where we find ourselves now,” says Damon Albarn.

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due 8/25 via 4AD

Even before Big Thief formed, Buck Meek played both as a duo with future bandmate Adrianne Lenker and as a solo artist, and as Big Thief have become a generation-defining indie rock band, Buck has continued to put out great solo records. Now he’s signed to Big Thief’s label home 4AD as a solo artist, and judging by the two lead singles, his 4AD debut is shaping up to be a lovely folk rock record.

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due 7/28 via Wharf Cat

They Live in My Head is NYC no wave/post punk greats Bush Tetras’ first album in 11 years and first since the death of original drummer Dee Pop. While no one can replace him, Steve Shelley is hard to argue with as an addition, as is new bassist Cait O’Riordan (The Pogues). “We thought a lot about memories from 1979 in New York City,” says singer Cynthia Sley of the album. “It’s a reflection of growing up together, what we were eating, what we were doing, weird little things people probably won’t get. But that’s cool.”

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due 9/22 via Sub Pop

CHAI’s fourth album is a bit of a return to their debut, with themes touching on their Japanese heritage and the group’s neo-Kawaii aesthetic. “This is CHAI! With our self-titled album CHAI, CHAI declare that we live proudly as Japanese women♡ We hope this album gives everyone a little more confidence in living how they want to live,” the band’s Mana says.

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due 7/28 via Merge

For their first album in six years, The Clientele are expanding their sound to include elements of electronic music, post-bop jazz and classical. What brought this on? “We bought a computer.”

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due 7/21 via Jagjaguwar

After his great, sprawling 2020 double album No One Live Here Anymore, Cut Worms’ Max Clarke aimed to pair down his songs to the bare essentials, asking “How much can I say and give in a limited amount of time?” Helping him on this album are Brian & Michael DʼAddario of The Lemon Twigs and Rick Spataro of Florist.

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due 9/22 via Mexican Summer

This is not the folky weirdo you remember. Having teamed with Cate Le Bon for his first album for Mexican Summer, Devendra Banhart enters the rain-soaked, neon-lit territory that is also soaked in synthesizers and fretless bass. Think Bowie’s Berlin period, or Japan or Bill Nelson, and Banhart’s still gossamer falsetto fits naturally into this world.

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due 4/28 via Cooking Vinyl

Don Letts is a living legend: as DJ at London’s The Roxy he introduced punks to dub reggae, and as a filmmaker he documented that scene in The Punk Rock Movie, which led to a successful career as a music video director. He was also a founding member of Big Audio Dynamite alongside The Clash’s Mick Jones, and has continued to make films, DJ, and this year released his memoir, There and Black Again, and a documentary on his life, Rebel Dread. But he’s only just now getting around to making a solo album, which was produced by Killing Joke’s Youth and includes collaborations with the late Terry Hall, Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne, Hollie Cook and more.

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due 8/18 via Run For Cover

What once seemed like a Have Heart/Basement side project has turned into one of the most beloved post-hardcore/melodic hardcore bands around, and Fiddlehead’s third album Death Is Nothing To Us just might be their best yet. On lead single “Sullenboy,” Pat Flynn is as impassioned and emotive as ever, and this song has not one but two of the catchiest refrains this band has ever written.

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due 8/18 via OURNESS/AWA

There’s no way to easily describe Ghanaian-Australian artist Genesis Owusu, whose highly energetic music builds a seamless bridge between hip hop and post-punk and more, and the lead single off his highly-anticipated sophomore album is one of his most instantly-satisfying songs yet.

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due 8/4 via Moshi Moshi

Girl Ray’s transformation from winsome, folkie indiepop into something closer to Bananarama has been a joy to behold. Their 2019 album Girl was a bit of a stepping stone but these three seem to have it all figured out now, with an instantly charming mix of new wave and disco.

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due 7/21 via GBV Inc

While many artists spent the pandemic reflecting on who they were and what they were doing, Robert Pollard released eight Guided by Voices albums, all part of a current hot streak that’s had them firing on all cylinders. Welshpool Frillies is GBV’s second album of this year and their creativity doesn’t seem to be flagging at all.

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due 8/11 via FUGA

The Death Of Randy Fitzsimmons is The Hives’ first album in 11 years but don’t worry, they haven’t grown up. “There’s no maturity or anything like that bullshit, because who the fuck wants mature rock’n’roll? That’s always where people go wrong, I feel,” says frontman Pelle Almqvist. “Rock’n’roll can’t grow up, it is a perpetual teenager and this album feels exactly like that, which it’s all down to our excitement – and you can’t fake that shit.”

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due 8/18 via Season of Mist

Move over Old School Death Metal Revival, Horrendous are back to give us some of the most mind-bending, genre-defying death metal around.

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due 8/15 via International Anthem

Before the boundary-pushing trumpeter and composer jaimie branch shockingly died at age 39 in 2022, she had completed work on the third album with her band Fly Or Die. Her band says, “This album is big. Far bigger and more demanding — for us, and for you — than any other Fly or Die record. For this, jaimie wanted to play with longer forms, more modulations, more noise, more singing, and as always, grooves and melodies.”

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due 7/14 via Black Butter

UK rapper and Afroswing pioneer J Hus is finally ready to follow his excellent 2020 album Big Conspiracy with a new album and both singles–“It’s Crazy” and “Who Told You” (ft. Drake)–are great. Other guests on the album include Jorja Smith, Popcaan, Burna Boy, Naira Marley, and more.

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due 9/29 via FAMM

Since releasing her great 2018 debut album Lost & Found, soulful UK singer Jorja Smith has put out an EP and done tons of cool collaborations (with FKA twigs, Ibeyi, Calvin Harris, Protoje, Ezra Collective, and more), and now she’s finally ready to release a new full-length. Lead singles “Try Me” and “Little Things” find her in great form.

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due 7/7 via Ghostly International

Since releasing her fantastic 2017 album Not Even Happiness, Julie Byrne has expanded her sound outside of the folk realm and the singles from The Greater Wings show off some exciting newfound range.

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due 9/29 via Pure Noise

Koyo’s music does a ton of justice to the sound of the late ’90s/early 2000s Long Island emo scene that they grew up listening to, and two of the architects of that scene–Vinnie Caruana of The Movielife and Daryl Palumbo of Glassjaw–appear on their upcoming debut album. As you can hear on songs like lead single “You’re On The List (Minus One),” Koyo have really figured out how to make that classic sound their own.

Pick up our exclusive tri-color vinyl variant of the Koyo LP.

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due 8/25 via Ladylike Records/Sony

Morgan Wade has one foot in country music and another in alternative pop like Lana Del Rey and Halsey, and her remarkable songs should appeal to fans of either or both. Like her great breakthrough album Reckless, her upcoming Psychopath was made with producer Sadler Vaden of Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit.

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due 9/8 via Geffen

Olivia Rodrigo will follow her instantly-and-widely-loved SOUR with her sophomore album this September, and lead single “vampire” finds her expanding her sound in new directions. It starts out in piano ballad territory, before thumping kickdrums come in and eventually lead to an explosive coda.

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due 8/11 via In the Red

After excursions in prog, metal and blistering punk, OSEES are entering proto-new-wave / synth-punk territory on their 27th album. Frontman John Dwyer calls it “A pop record for tired times, sugared with bits of shatterproof glass to put more crack in your strap.”

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due 7/14 via Polyvinyl

Following their great 2021 collaboration with Jay Som’s Melina Duterte, Bachelor, El Kempner is back with their strongest Palehound material yet on Eye On The Bat. Advance singles “The Clutch,” “My Evil,” and “Independence Day” have an immediate, vital appear with their off-kilter indie rock and El’s introspective lyrics.

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due 7/7 via Partisan

PJ Harvey has continued to innovate and evolve for three decades straight, and judging by the lead singles from her upcoming 10th album, that has not changed one bit.

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due 8/25 via Topshelf

Ratboys’ upcoming fourth album is the first that founding members Julia Steiner and Dave Sagan wrote collaboratively with the rhythm section they’ve solidified over the past few years, and it was made with producer and former Death Cab For Cutie member Chris Walla. The first single is the warm, ragged, Americana-tinged indie rock of “It’s Alive!,” which is fueled by a refrain you can sing along to after just one listen.

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due 9/8 via Ninja Tune

For her new album, Róisín Murphy teamed up with old friend and collaborator DJ Koze, working remotely which she says was actually a good thing. “For me that brought out a more intimate approach to the songwriting, I told this album my secret,” Murphy says.” For Koze it meant total freedom and absolute focus without the distraction of my presence. He too took a deep dive into himself and I believe that’s why the music is so vibrant and alive. It is just exploding with colour!”

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due 9/8 via Young

It’s been six years since we’ve had a full-length album from The xx, but Jamie xx and Oliver Sim both have solo careers, and now Romy is releasing a solo album as well, a dancefloor-ready collection of songs she calls “a love letter to the queer clubs I first went to when I was growing up and people I met there and the music I heard that has made me feel more alive and less alone.” She worked on the material with such titans of the genre as Stuart Price and Fred again.., as well as her The xx-bandmate Jamie, and the first few singles are very promising.

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due 9/1 via Dead Oceans

When Slowdive reunited to play it was enough just to have them back, playing old favorites, but it was actually the start of a surprising, extremely rewarding second act. Written and recorded during the pandemic, what was originally envisioned as an electronic record soon became more guitar-y. “Slowdive is very much the sum of its parts,” says singer-guitarist Rachel Goswell. “Something unquantifiable happens when the five of us come together in a room.”

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due 7/14 via Third Man

Formed during the pandemic by Connor Cummins (Spodee Boy), and visual/video artist Blair Tramel, Nashville’s Snooper are an adrenalized, DIY mix of mutant punk and garage rock, with a little twee and art rock in there as well, all thrown in a blender and set to “puree.” Following a few digital releases and a whole bunch of wild shows, they’re set to drop their debut album on hometown label Third Man.

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due 8/25 via Pure Noise

If you’re tired of choosing between The Wonder Years’ emotive pop punk and The War On Drugs’ propulsive heartland rock, Spanish Love Songs’ new LP has you covered.

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due 9/1 via Wax Nine

Speedy Ortiz are about to return with their first album in five years, their first with touring members Audrey Zee Whitesides (bass) and Joey Doubek (drums), and first co-produced and mixed by Sarah Tudzin of Illuminati Hotties. The band may have gone half a decade without new music, but their meaningful, off-kilter indie rock sounds as great as ever.

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due 9/22 via Merge

Change is tough, but the new lineup of Teenage Fanclub seems to really be gelling on their 12th album and second since the departure of bassist/singer Gerard Love. As the title suggests, mortality has been on their minds. “When we write, it’s a reflection of our lives, which are pretty ordinary,” says Norman Blake. “We’re not extraordinary people, and normal people get older. There’s a lot to write about in the mundane.”

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due 8/25 via Bossier City Records/Thirty Tigers

Alt-country greats Turnpike Troubadours are back from hiatus and ready to release their first album in six years, and first since singer/songwriter Evan Felker divorced and remarried his wife Staci and got sober. There’s a lot of emotional weight there, and you can hear it in songs like lead single “Mean Old Sun.”

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due 9/15 via Nonesuch

Vagabon produced her first album since 2019 with the great Rostam Batmanglij, and its lead single and first track, “Can I Talk My Shit?,” is a total jam, a smooth electro-pop gem that’s a total change of pace from her previous material. “I didn’t feel like being introspective,” Lætitia Tamko says of the new album. “I just wanted to have fun.”

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due 9/15 via Woodsist

It’s wild to think that Woods are coming up on their 20th anniversary as a band and while they no longer all live in Brooklyn, they have a sound that ages especially well. Perennial is the band’s 12 album and explores the idea of decay and regrowth through their usual nuanced folk-rock style.

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Browse the Notable Releases and Indie Basement archives for many more albums that already came out this year.