Bruno Mars Album Coming 'Sometime This Year,' Says Bassist

With two performances at the Super Bowl, GRAMMYs appearances and a little unrelenting smash called "Uptown Funk!," it hasn't felt like Bruno Mars has been gone for too long. But it's been nearly four years since the release of his sophomore album Unorthodox Jukebox, which brought us No. 1 hits like "Locked Out of Heaven" and "When I Was Your Man." According to a close Bruno associate, the wait may almost be over.

During an interview with BassPlayer.com, bassist Jamareo Artis (Bruno's longtime collaborator who played bass on "Uptown Funk!") spoke about his recently released solo album The Red BoomBox and gave with an update on Mars' upcoming project. "We've been working on it for about a year, trying different ideas and experimenting," he said. "I don't know what's going to be included in the final version, but it's going to have a new sound, and so far the material is very groove-oriented. It'll be out sometime this year, and then we'll hit the road again."