Photo credit: Lara Clifford
Happy New Year from Alternative Nation! If everything goes to plan, 2018 could be an exciting year of new releases from some of your favorite legendary alternative rock bands. Below are 10 highly anticipated releases.
A Perfect Circle
A Perfect Circle released “The Doomed” in late 2017, and debuted a few other new songs live. The band are expected to release their new album in the spring to coincide with new tour dates. The band last released the covers album Emotive in 2004.
Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots debuted their new singer Jeff Gutt in November, with the release of the single “Meadow.” STP will release their new album in March 2018, the band’s first full length album since 2010’s Stone Temple Pilots, and their first new music since 2013’s High Rise EP.
Pearl Jam
While we don’t have any concrete information on Pearl Jam recording a new album, in 2018 it will have been 5 years since Lightning Bolt, and it’s hard to believe the band would go 6 years in between albums. The band also have touring plans that would seem to coincide with a new album release.
Alice In Chains
Alice In Chains were hard at work on a new album in 2017, and will release their new album in 2018 to coincide with their new tour dates.
Smashing Pumpkins
A fan claimed he heard Jimmy Chamberlin state that the original Smashing Pumpkins lineup would reunite in 2018 to record a new album. If that is true and the band manage to release a new album in 2018, it would be the first album to feature the original lineup since 2000’s MACHINA/The Machines of God, which features D’arcy Wretzky on select tracks that she recorded before exiting the band in fall 1999. Even if a new Pumpkins album doesn’t come to fruition, Billy Corgan is close to completing a new solo double album to follow up Ogilala.
Tool
We’ll believe it when we see it, but drummer Danny Carey claimed the new album will finally come in 2018, and Tom Morello actually heard the instrumentals to the album, so we now know for sure they are actually working on it! When it comes out, it will be the band’s first album since 2006’s 10,000 Days.
Carey said a couple of months ago, “Yes. I’m saying definitely. We’ll probably have it done in the first half of the year if things go as planned. There’s setup times and manufacturing – I can never predict all that, it seems like it’s constantly evolving. What time of year will it be out? I can’t tell you.”
Nine Inch Nails
NIN are expected to release the third EP in their trilogy that started with 2016’s Not The Actual Events and was followed up with 2017’s Add Violence.
Weezer
Rivers Cuomo has claimed that he has narrowed down The Black Album to 15 songs, so fans should expected another new album from Weezer in 2018. The band have released new albums in quick succession since returning in 2014 after a 4 year break from recording, with Pacific Daydream coming out just a couple of months ago in 2017.
Muse
Muse may release a new album by the end of 2018, following the release of new singles. They last released Drones in 2015.
“We’re mixing a new track right now,” Bellamy said during an interview at the KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas show. “It’s called ‘Thought Contagion’ and it’s gonna come out in the new year. We’re going to give it to you like in January or something, or February. It’s a great track – rocking, heavy.”
Asked about album plans, he said, “I think next year we’ll do like two or three more songs like this, and then the album might be like later next year or early ’19, something like that.”
The Offspring
Dexter Holland proclaimed in 2017 that we would see a new Offspring album in ‘2018, for sure.’ Their last album Days Go By was released in 2012.
