The 39 albums we're most excited about this fall

Yes, he’s still got it. Following a few one-off collaborations with contemporary artists and a career-spanning compilation, Macca returns with an album’s worth of brand-new material, his first since the bright sounds of his 2013 release, New. This time he’s brought along producer Greg Kurstin, best known for his work with Sia, Adele, Foo Fighters, and Kelly Clarkson, among others. Per its title, McCartney envisioned the record as a long journey, with each song a stop at its own unique train station. The result: keyboards, choice electric guitar riffs, looping choral vamps, orchestral thrums, and a mix of the sincere with the tongue-in-cheek. —Katie Hasty

With his 11th studio album, Kravitz chose 12 anthemic rock tracks — including the funky, drum-heavy single “Low” — that explore everything from the effects of war to the killing of unarmed citizens to finding hope in a broken world. —Alex Suskind

In Young Sick Bacchus by Caravaggio, the artist used his canvas to look inward, crafting a raw moment of self-reflection. On their third LP, Alabama eight-piece St. Paul & the Broken Bones go big and bombastic while taking a deeper look within. After their first two LPs cemented St. Paul as one of the most thrilling torchbearers of modern big-brass soul, Janeway took a left turn and enlisted hip-hip/R&B producer Jack Splash, emerging with songs like the Bee Gees-esque “GotItBad” and the deep bass-like groove of “Mr. Invisible.” —Marissa Moss

Jason Pierce’s latest effort as Spiritualized was just that — an effort. Pierce (a.k.a. J. Spaceman) spent six years, mostly solo, to craft this cohesive nine-track set, replete with the isms that have made listeners feel like they’re floating in space since 1990: whirring keyboards, choice electric guitar riffs, looping choral vamps, orchestral thrums, and a mix of the sincere with the tongue-in-cheek. —Katie Hasty

Amid a globe-trotting farewell tour, Paul Simon found time to release a new album, which features 10 of his favorite selections from his own catalog — ranging from 1973 to 2011 — with fresh perspectives. Fans can expect Simon’s signature tune-smithing with an eclectic mix of instrumentation and wry lyricism. —Maureen Lee Lenker

A sense of unguardedness informs the essence of the new record, her most emotionally accessible work to date. From “Cry Pretty” to the naked vocal on the bluesy, acoustic “Low” to the optimism of “Love Wins” and “Kingdom,” it feels like Underwood is embracing herself in a new way. —Sarah Rodman

Willie Nelson’s friendships have long informed his musical output, but it’s a relationship with someone a little left of country center (Frank Sinatra) that shapes his new tribute LP. He errs on the side of timelessness, adding a bit of Western swing to classics like “Fly Me to the Moon.” But prepare to be hit hardest by the album’s closer, “My Way,” where the 85-year-old loads those bittersweet lyrics with a potent, personal urgency. —Marissa R. Moss

Dropping 35 years after it was first recorded, this nine-track studio session is, as promised, the Purple One at his most intimate: just the man, a piano and a mic, singing a collection of unreleased tracks (“Cold Coffee & Cocaine”), early demos (“Purple Rain”), and covers (“Joni Mitchell’s “A Case of You”). —Alex Suskind

The diva’s turn as the chic-est grandmother of all time in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again inspired this album full of ABBA covers — otherwise known as exactly the album we didn’t know we needed. She’s released the track list, which is fully of heavy-hitters like “SOS,” “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!” and, of course, “Dancing Queen.” —Seija Rankin

The spiky-haired Brit — that’s Sir Brit to you — will release this, his 30th studio album, nearly 50 years to the date of the signing of his first solo record contract. After chronicling his decades-spanning career in his autobiography in 2012, Stewart says he felt his creative juices flowing again, and this 13-track collection finds him digging back into his songwriting roots. It will hit on all of the touchstones that have worked so well with his signature rasp, including Motown-inspired stompers, scrappy rockers, romantic balladry, and even his spin on the blues classic “Rollin’ & Tumblin.” —Sarah Rodman

About six months after Tom Petty died, members of the rocker’s inner circle began compiling this box set of unreleased, alternate-version, live, rare, and deep cuts. —Katie Hasty

The 65-year-old guitarist and superproducer, known for working with names including Madonna, David Bowie, and Duran Duran, is out with his band’s first new album in a quarter-century. This time they enlisted the star power of Elton John and Emeli Sandé (who teamed up for “Queen”) and Lady Gaga (“I Want Your Love”). —Seija Rankin

From complex, ominous videos to recurring colors — yellow, specifically — Twenty One Pilots have been building the narrative for their forthcoming fifth LP, Trench, with maximum impact in mind. Expect them to continue being masters of vacillating between complex synths and threadbare melodies full of intoxicating space, doubling down on a palpable sense of unease with the world around them. —Marissa R. Moss

The North Carolina native’s 2015 release Mr. Misunderstood was understandably showered with critical praise and industry accolades, including a CMA award for Album of the Year, and spawned three top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. Based on what we’ve heard of Desperate Man thus far, the odds are good it will follow the same trajectory. Helmed once again by Church’s longtime producer Jay Joyce, expect the Chief to inject his tunes with disparate sounds. —Sarah Rodman

The latest Coheed LP, the first in a five-part series, Vaxis, details an epic escape from a prison planet, and is as majestic as its narrative suggests: Pummeling intros, arena-rock riffs, and celestial synths make for one of the year’s most intricate, head-spinning listens. —Dan Hyman

After a six-year hiatus, Chan Marshall is back with her long-awaited 10th studio album. The record is a homecoming of sorts for hardcore Cat Power fans, with Marshall returning to the vulnerable folk roots that made her a household name on the late ’90s/early ’00s indie-rock circuit. Marshall’s ultimate goal with Wanderer is encouraging listeners to stay grounded in their everyday lives. —Ilana Kaplan

Tom Morello and his Marshall-stack riffs have recently been pummeling audiences via Prophets of Rage, the rap-rock super-group he formed with his Rage Against the Machine bandmates (sans Zach de la Rocha), Public Enemy’s Chuck D. Bass and Cypress Hill’s B-Real. The guitarist’s not done throwing curveballs, however: On The Atlas Underground, his latest solo effort, Morello shepherds DJs, rappers, and rockers on a gnarly sonic adventure. —Dan Hyman

For his first album with the Imposters since 2008, Elvis Costello has lined up some impressive collaborators, including legendary songwriters Burt Bacharach and Carole King. Of course, Costello and his impeccable band of musicians are no slouches themselves. Judging by the high caliber of songs that have preceded the album, fans have plenty to look forward to from the always sharp Rock & Roll Hall of Famer. —Sarah Rodman

The 1975’s sophomore album, the critically acclaimed — and outrageously titled — I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it, gave the Manchester alt-pop band something they’d never acheived in America: A No. 1 album. Two years later, the group is set to release its much-anticipated follw-up. The new record will touch on darker themes, as lead singer Matty Healy recently revealed he spent time in rehab in late 2017 for heroin addiction — a battle that will surface on the yet-to-be-released track “It’s Not Living If It’s Not With You.” If the first three singles are any indication, though, A Brief Inquiry will also push the band into new sonic territory, as they experiment with everything from trop-house to throbbing, classic guitar-inspired riffs, all while maintaining their signature sound. —Ilana Kaplan

Vile’s new LP is a decidedly unfussy product of several brief studio sessions, with stop-offs in destinations like Bridgeport, Conn., L.A., and Brooklyn. The location and personnel changes were woven in with the rocker’s outlaw-country influences, plus special guests, including Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon. —Katie Hasty

Wielding massive choruses, a cheeky attitude, and brawny power chords, this British quartet is like the dream offspring of Queen, T. Rex, Oasis, and Def Leppard, making fans of artists like the Rolling Stones and Foo Fighters. On their yet-to-be-titled sophomore album, the Struts continue those winning ways — and go in new directions — to help keep the torch lit for a classic stadium-rock sound. —Sarah Rodman

Ann Wilson, Immortal (Sept. 14)
Good Charlotte, Generation RX (Sept. 14)
Christine and the Queens, Chris (Sept. 21)
Josh Groban, Bridges (Sept. 21)
Macy Gray, Ruby (Sept. 21)
Metric, Art of Doubt (Sept. 21
Logic, Young Sinatra (Sept. 28)
Jon Batiste, Hollywood Africans (Sept. 28)
Brockhampton, Iridescence (Sept. TBD)
F*cked Up, Dose Your Dreams (Oct. 5)
Ghostface Killah, The Lost Tapes (Oct. 5)
Steve Perry, Traces (Oct. 5)
Peter Bjorn and John, Darker Days (Oct. 19)
Empress Of, Us (Oct. 19)
Chris Tomlin, Holy Roar (Oct. 26)
Andrea Bocelli, Si (Oct. 26)
Boy George & Culture Club, Life (Oct. 26)
Rosanne Cash, She Remembers Everything (Nov. 2)