With the coming of Diddy's Labor Day White Party, the ancient druidic event that marks the end of the summer season, so too comes another ancient tradition: The Fall Music Preview. What delightful sounds can we expect to be emanating from stereos over the next few months?

This preview is an odd one, we admit; most of the stuff we're looking forward to listening to this fall has either already come out—Active Child's You Are All I See and When Saints Go Machine's Konkylie—or doesn't have a release date (see below for The-Dream and Estelle). Or, worse, we half suspect that it's never going to come out at all (see: Young Jeezy's Thug Motivation 103, which we included on last year's fall preview. The guy's gonna be Old Jeezy by the time that thing drops! Am I right?). But that doesn't mean there aren't a lot of albums coming out that might be interesting. Or, at least, good to make fun of!

September

Hurricane by Grace Jones

September 6
 What It Is: Dolph Lundgren's ex returns from two decades of being a full-time legend to make music. (Then, three years later, it gets a U.S. release.)
What It Sounds Like: Seven foot-tall assassin robot sets down in 1990s Bristol, England; proceeds to murder the British version of John Connor by dancing at him.
What It's Perfect For: Walking through a foggy club in slow motion, wearing, like, a veil or something. Or, like, a stole, made of a bird.

In the Grace Of Your Love by The Rapture

September 6
 What It Is: Every couple years these guys release a new album, and you're like, "Jeez, those guys are still together?" And then it's always really good!
What It Sounds Like: Dance-punks get a little richer, get on SSRIs, can't go out on Friday night because they heard this estate sale in New Jersey has tons of great Danish Modern stuff and they need to get up early.
What It's Perfect For: Dance parties for people who use phrases like "real instruments."

Strange Mercy by St. Vincent

September 13
 What It Is: Possible deer Annie Clark releases her third album of gorgeous proggy weirdness.
What It Sounds Like: Your college roommate who always had panic attacks wrote a musical! And she kidnapped you because she thought you'd really like to hear it! On the piano in her basement!
What It's Perfect For: Soundtracking the little stop-motion Lego movie you made about Henry Darger.

Era Extraña by Neon Indian

September 13
 What It Is: The follow-up to Alan Palomo's first album, recorded in Helsinki. Talk about chillwave, am I right? Chilling! Heh!
What It Sounds Like: Have you ever been stoned and been like, What if I were just a photocopy, but, like, of... myself? That feeling.
What It's Perfect For: Looking at Hipstamatic photos from three days ago and feeling nostalgic.

Neighborhoods by Blink-182

September 27
 What It Is: Two of the great pop songwriters of the 1990s and 2000s re-unite, hopefully without all that aliens bullshit from Angels & Airwaves. That was a bad look.
What It Sounds Like: Like Blink-182 always sounds: Sweet.
What It's Perfect For: Bringing your discman on a bus trip in the seventh grade.

Biophilia by Björk

September 27
 What It Is: Ten different iPad apps, each representing one song. Really! This is an iPad app album. I know! Björk, man!
What It Sounds Like: Time is circular, and the distant future and distant past are the same point, but with drum machines, and Björk.
What It's Perfect For: Dinner parties with those things from the end of A.I.

Other September Releases

September 6: George Strait - Here For A Good Time, Lindsey Buckingham - Seeds We Sow; September 13: Alice Cooper - Welcome 2 My Nightmare, Anthrax -Worship Music, Black Francis - Paley & Francis, Blitzen Trapper - American Goldwing, Blondie - Panic Of Girls, Bush - The Sea Of Memories, CANT - Dreams Come True, Das Racist - Relax, Lady Antebellum - Own The Night, Ladytron - Gravity The Seducer, Mates Of State - Mountaintops, Saves The Day - Daybreak, Wild Flag - Wild Flag, Wooden Shjips - West; September 20: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Hysterical, Demi Lovato - Unbroken, Gavin DeGraw - Sweeter, Kasabian - Velociraptor, Opeth - Heritage, SuperHeavy - SuperHeavy, Tony Bennett - Tony Bennett: Duets II, Tori Amos - Night Of Hunters, Young Jeezy - Thug Motivation 103: Hustlerz Ambition; September 27: Apparat - The Devil's Walk, DJ Shadow - The Less You Know, The Better, Gloria Estefan - Miss Little Havana, J. Cole - Cole World: The Sideline Story, Jane's Addiction - The Great Escape Artist, LeAnne Rimes - Lady & Gentlemen, Mekons - Ancient & Modern, Twin Sister - In Heaven, VHS Or Beta - Diamonds & Death, Wilco - The Whole Love

October

Trust Now by Prince Rama

October 4
 What It Is: Serious hippie Hare Krishna Brooklyn-Boston trio drop their fifth full-length of psychedelic jamz. (Ed. note: That is the correct spelling. There are no "jams" on this album.)
What It Sounds Like: Being just on the edge of uncomfortably high.
What It's Perfect For: Improvisational masked dancing, alone or with a partner.

Evanescence by Evanescence

October 11
 What It Is: Arkansas goth Amy Lee and company return with their first collection of tattoo-ready lyrics since 2006.
What It Sounds Like: What the cover of Twilight looks like.
What It's Perfect For: Well, it's certainly not perfect for snobby twenty-something Brookly-based bloggers to listen to, alone, late at night. That would be really embarrassing, if someone did that. No one does, though! Not me, at least, definitely not. No sir.

Hurry Up, We're Dreaming by M83

October 18
 What It Is: A double-album of dreamy semi-ambient synth-rock from a bunch of French guys.
What It Sounds Like: A picnic in the countryside on a gorgeous early-fall evening, but EPIC, somehow.
What It's Perfect For: If you are granted the powers of flight.

Take Care by Drake

October 24
 What It Is: Canadian television star fools millions into believing he is competent rapper, interesting person.
What It Sounds Like: You are drinking at a bar when this guy in an ugly sweater starts talking in a really uncomfortably intense way about some woman who you are pretty sure doesn't exist. Later, he tries to fight you; before you leave you see him passed out in a urinal.
What It's Perfect For: Proving to your parents that rap is exactly as horrible and boring as every other genre out there.

Other October Releases: October 4: Feist - Metals, Loney Dear - Hall Music, Mary J. Blige - My Life II...The Journey Continues, Modeselektor - Monkeytown, New Found Glory - Radiosurgery, Scott McCreery - Clear As Day, Zola Jesus - Conatus; October 11 Ben Lee - Deeper Into Dreams, Joe Jonas - Fast Life, Marketa Irglova - Anar, Matthew Herbert - One Pig, Ryan Adams - Ashes & Fire; October 18: Noel Gallagher - High Flying Birds, Class Actress - Rapprocher, Monica - New Life, My Brightest Diamond - All Things Will Unwind; October 25: Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto, Deer Tick - Divine Providence, Justice - Audio, Video, Disco, Kelly Clarkson - Stronger, Surfer Blood - Tarot Classics, The Field - Looping State Of Mind, Tom Waits - Bad As Me, Vince Gill - Guitar Slinger, Yelawolf - Radioactive

November

Lulu by Lou Reed and Metallica

November 1
 What It Is: Metallica and Lou Reed.
What It Sounds Like: Metallica... and Lou Reed.
What It's Perfect For: What won't this album be perfect for? Well, basically any human activity, or any situation where enough air molecules exist to transmit sound. But besides that—everything!

Four the Record by Miranda Lambert

November 1
 What It Is: The fourth album from country singer/reality-show-winner-made-good Miranda Lambert.
What It Sounds Like: The real America, so, you know, uhm, cows, or whatever. Wheat? Does the real America grow wheat?
What It's Perfect For: Divorcing someone and taking a road trip. With any luck the courthouse will play this album over its stereo system.

Other November Releases: November 1: Carole King: A Holiday Carole; November 8: Atlas Sound - Parallax, David Lynch - Crazy Clown Time, Me'shell Ndegeocello - Weather; November 15: Los Campesinos! - Hello Sadness

TBD

The Love IV: Diary of a Mad Man by The-Dream

What It Is: Prince's biggest, nerdiest fan releases his fourth album of songs about how he's had sex, he swears, tons of sex, all over, all kinds.
What It Sounds Like: Like if someone listened to Prince and Timbaland's entire catalogues said, "the problem with these guys is that they're too subtle."
What It's Perfect For: Going back to a girl's apartment and then freaking out over her vintage synths while she passes out on the couch.

All of Me by Estelle

What It Is: English singer Estelle has an album, we are told. The single—with Rick Ross—is fantastic. Perhaps someday we might hear the whole thing! Probably not, though.
What It Sounds Like: Who knows! One imagines there is singing on the album, though.
What It's Perfect For: Driving through the city in an expensive car, going to a movie premiere, but you are sort of sad, because isn't being famous, and also rich and pretty, hard?