We're halfway through the year and – from David Bowie to Justin Timberlake – the music world has already thrown a few gems our way. But some of the most anticipated releases of the year should be coming our way in the next six months
Kings of Leon
Expected: September 24
What they say: "I thought we were going to make a really mature album but I'm amazed how youthful it sounds," the bassist Jared Followill told NME.
What we know: There was a while when we thought the band would implode after European tour cancellations and reports of infighting, but thankfully they are still around. After 2010's lacklustre Come Around Sundown, the new album apparently recalls the sound of their exuberant 2003 debut Youth and Young Manhood.
Beyoncé
Expected: November
What they say: "Beyoncé's the kind of artist where you're not gonna see it till it's right," the singer-songwriter and Beyoncé collaborator NeYo told Billboard. "And her fans – they love her, so they'll be patient."
What we know: Recording began last year with Beyoncé calling in an all-star cast of vocal collaborators and beat-makers. Artists and producers going through the recording studios in The Hamptons of New York include Timbaland, The Dream, Pharell and Justin Timberlake.
U2
Expected: November-December
What they say: "U2 are mad for it and we want to make a really good album," the singer Bono told The Sun.
What we know: The Irish supergroup always work best when they have something to prove. After the cool reception to their moody 2009 release No Line on the -Horizon, the quartet ditched their exotic Moroccan recording location and are currently holed up in a New York studio with the producer Danger Mouse.
Lady Gaga
Expected: late 2013
What she says: "I'm fascinated with the decay of the blonde pop icon and how culture loves to build and give birth to fantasies and then destroy them and what that means," Gaga told Access -Hollywood.
What we know: The working title is Artpop and Gaga is going all experimental. The German producer Zedd recently shed light on Gaga's sometimes abstract songwriting method to Rolling Stone magazine: "There was one song that started from her just giving me, like, 10 words to describe an emotion, and then I had to make this into music. It's been a very experimental way of approaching music."
Tool
Expected: late 2013
What they say: "The guys are scheduled to resume with the writing/arranging process of material for their next record," said an official band statement.
What we know: Nothing, basically. This is the way the painfully media-shy band like to keep it. The fact they shared the news they were working on new songs again salivated the faithful who have been waiting seven long years for some new tunes.
Mohammed Assaf
Expected: late 2013
What he says: "I have to feel every lyric and note of the song," he said. "I am also thinking about the audience and how they would react to such a song."
What we know: Assaf's Arab Idol victory may have inspired the region, but soon he will face his first real challenge as a professionally signed artist. While details of his album have yet to be revealed, one can look at past experiences of Arab Idol winners to conclude it will be released towards the end of the year with top producers and lyricists enlisted for the project.
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