Green Day and U2 drop new LPs this year, along with promising young guns like Paramore, Tokio Hotel and more.

By Gil Kaufman, with additional reporting by James Montgomery

2008 was a huge year for rock ... and 2009 looks like it could be even bigger. So all this week, we're taking stock of the things guaranteed to rock this year. From the triumphant returns of some of the biggest bands on the planet to a handful of up-and-coming acts that we're expecting big things from in '09, we've got it all covered. This is Rock Week, on MTVNews.com

It will be pretty difficult to top a year that saw new albums from both Metallica and Guns N' Roses, but 2009's roster of rock includes just as much firepower — including LPs from colossal acts like Green Day, U2 and the Boss, not to mention potential new sounds from young guns like Paramore, My Chemical Romance and Tokio Hotel.

And that's just the headliners. On the undercard, we've got the triumphant return of British songstress Lily Allen, radio-ready rock from the Fray and bludgeoning prog-metal from Mastodon. Plus, there are new albums from critical faves like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Decemberists and Black Lips. And let's not forget sonically adventurous indie hipsters like Animal Collective (who, depending on what you read, may have already released the best rock album of the year), or the gloriously maudlin new album from Antony and the Johnsons. Oh, and Prince is releasing three records this year.