This has been a pretty exciting couple of days for fans of both Modest Mouse and D'Angelo, with both artists announcing their first new albums in quite some time (Modest Mouse's last album came out in 2007, while D'Angelo's was 2000). Now that these two artists have finally decided to release some new music, here are eight more artists that have been taking far too long to put out new albums.
1. Neutral Milk Hotel
The vanishing act that Jeff Mangum pulled following the release of Neutral Milk Hotel's classic 1998 album In the Aeroplane Over the Sea was probably the best thing he could have done to cement his legacy, but now that Mangum has returned to the public eye with solo performances and a NMH reunion to assure us all that he's still alive, it's about time that he released a new album. The last original song he released was "Little Birds" from the 2011 Neutral Milk Hotel box set, though it was recorded back in 1999.
2. Blur
Since their reunion in 2008, Blur have been trying to record a new album, which would be their first since 2003's Think Tank, but as recently as July, frontman Damon Albarn admitted that the new album "may just be one of those records that never comes out," citing a lack of inspiration and, of all things, the commute to the studio and the hot weather in Hong Kong, where the album was being recorded. If Hong Kong's too hot for you, Damon, then stay in London and finish the album already.
3. Dr. Dre
It's pretty ironic that Dr. Dre was recently named the top earning musician of 2014, seeing as how he hasn't released a new album in 16 years, or even a new single in three years. Dre began production of his long-awaited third album Detox (which apparently isn't even named Detox anymore) back in 2001, and originally planned on a 2005 release, but his various business ventures and production for other artists has indefinitely delayed the album's release.
4. Lauryn Hill
As bad as Dr. Dre has been with delaying his new album, Lauryn Hill has arguably been even worse, releasing her sole studio album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill back in 1998, with just a live album MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 released since then in 2002. However, Hill's recent Live at the Brooklyn Bowl concert special possibly suggests that new music is finally on the way.
5. Madvillain
Madvillain's 2004 debut Madvillainy is among the most exciting and original hip-hop albums of the 21st century, and though a sequel Madvillainy 2 was released in 2008, it was simply a remix of the first album by producer Madlib, with no involvement from rapper MF Doom. A proper follow-up album is reportedly in the works, though in an interview back in January, Madlib claimed that it's "not close to finished."
6. Loretta Lynn
While most musicians her age aren't exactly at the top of their games, Loretta Lynn's most recent album, 2004's Jack White-produced Van Lear Rose, was a highlight of her long and storied career, though she hasn't released any new music since. However, Lynn recently revealed that she has signed a multi-album deal with Legacy Recordings, which means that we could have new music from her pretty soon.
7. Peter Gabriel
It really hasn't been that long since we've gotten a studio album from legendary singer-songwriter Peter Gabriel, with his most recent album New Blood being released in 2011. However, that album simply featured orchestral re-workings of his old songs, while his album before that, 2010's Scratch My Back, was a somber covers album. The last album of original music that Gabriel released was 2002's Up, so it's about time he put out something new.
8. Slint
Slint is just one of the countless '90s indie rock acts to have done reunion tours over the last ten years, though unfortunately, none of these reunions have resulted in new music or a new album, which would be the band's first since their 1991 masterpiece Spiderland. The closest we've gotten to new music from Slint was the recent Spiderland reissue, which features previously unreleased outtakes and demos, but nothing recorded this century.
What other artists are taking too long to release their next album? Let us know down in the comments section below!
