By Jett Wells
Chances are, if your favorite band is AWOL because of hiatus, retirement, boredom, or buzzkill bickering, you don't care about them resolving their issues as much as you just want more music. Let’s be honest; we don’t have to be reasonable when it comes to this subject. Recently, news broke that Swedish duo noir the Knife were in the studio working on their new album, an announcement that had to give fans of the group reason to rejoice. So why stop there? There are plenty of acts that need to put down the tequila smoothies, make a cup of coffee and hit the studio again, because they’ve all been gone too long. Here's a look at some of them. And as for you, James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem, we'll talk about this so-called "retirement" another time.
Passion Pit
Sure, they’re still considered a "new" band, but in the two years since their breakout Manners LP, 2009's "It band" has done zilch. And while we'll admit they've earned the right to sit around some more, there's no time like the present to form a legacy. That is unless they suffer from the recurrent sophomore slump.
Rage Against the Machine
Arguably one of the most innovative and exciting bands to come out of 1990s, Rage Against the Machine ended at the top of their game a decade ago. Of course, even their most fervent of fans will have to admit everything that happened in the 2000s — Zack de la Rocha's departure, Audioslave, etc — has been a bit of a bummer. Recently, there have been rumblings of a new album, which is definitely a good thing ... because these days, we need Rage's, well, rage more than ever.
Modest Mouse
It’s been four years since Modest Mouse released their last full-length We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank and in the time since, we've gotten just a spotty EP and a whole lot of nothing. Word is, they're working on new music right now (with, of all people, Big Boi), which is good news for anyone who, uh, loves bad news.
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
One of the most underrated bands of the past 10 years, CYHSY not only had an awesome band name but a incredibly weird discography (2007's Some Loud Thunder being the real doozy). They've been largely off the grid since then, and never really truly broke through mainstream membrane, but with a talent like lead singer Alec Ounsworth’s bizarre voice, you can't help but hope they've got something big in the works.
Sigur Rós
There’s nothing music fans hate more than a band member going solo, but then again Sigur Rós fans really love Sigur Rós. So, when frontman Jónsi did some solo work after Iceland's pride and joy (y'know aside from Björk) took a break and went on hiatus, the fanbase was forgiving. Fortunately as of February, Jónsi leaked rumors that the band is back to work, but no one knows for sure and how long it will take for the next great ambient album to release.