We’re just a little more than halfway through 2017, and the year has already yielded some fascinating music. Much attention has been paid to superlative records by household names like Kendrick Lamar and Jason Isbell, blockbusters by newly minted superstars such as Lorde, and the forthcoming efforts of indie stalwarts Grizzly Bear, LCD Soundsystem, and Arcade Fire. But amid the waves of artists you love — and artists you love having back — it could be easy to lose sight of some terrific debut albums that have made their mark on the first half of 2017.
Some of the following artists had already made their presence felt with singles, EPs or previous projects, but in early 2017 they put out fully-formed statements that made listeners feel like they were getting acquainted with tomorrow’s stars today.
Hit play on our playlist and scroll down to check out our list of the best debut albums of 2017 (so far):
Bedouine - Bedouine
(Spacebomb Records, June 23)
It feels silly and obvious to talk about how melodic the first Bedouine record is, but this collection from Azniv Korkejian is just so lovely and tuneful. The songs glide along with tasteful instrumentals only accenting, never interrupting or overpowering Korkejian’s singing. There is an effortlessness, an unforced quality, to her sound yet with it comes with a definite sense of sophistication.
Diet Cig - Swear I’m Good at This
(Frenchkiss Records, April 7)
Alex Luciano and Noah Bowman had already created serious buzz with EP Over Easy and 7” Sleeptalk / Dinner Date that overflowed with personality. The duo amplified and sustained that buzz on a dozen tunes that only further establish Diet Cig as the new standard-bearers for pop punk. Kudos to the band for delivering perhaps the most staggering opening statement of the year with first track “Sixteen,” the awkward, ultimately empowered tale of Luciano trying to make it with a guy who shared her first name.
Nick Hakim - Green Twins
(ATO Records, May 1)
The Washington D.C. native builds a bridge between groove-oriented R&B and a more ethereal, shapeless sort of electro-pop. Hakim’s full-length debut has all the killer rhythms and slow-burning, stirring vocals once could want, but the record also bobs and weaves in artsier directions with slightly detuned pianos, echoing drums and fine layers of modern musical dust.
Priests - Nothing Feels Natural
(Sister Polygon Records, January 27)
There’s nothing casual about this fearsome foursome from Washington D.C. Both those who think of punk as a genre, and those who see it as a state of mind, will be challenged and heartened by Priests’ debut. There is righteous anger here, expressed by pounding drums, the occasional squall of saxophones and Katie Alice Greer’s darkly compelling vocals.
Sheer Mag - Need To Feel Your Love
(Self-Released, July 14)
Buoyed by the powerhouse vocals of Tina Halladay, this Philadelphia unit makes music perfect for rawk-fist pumping and scream-till-you’re-hoarse sing-alongs. There is definitely a ‘70s aesthetic at work here with the band playing massive riffs and pursuing slinky grooves, but Sheer Mag is so good at what it does, it almost doesn’t matter when it is doing it — the band would have found an audience at any point in rock history.
Sarah Shook and the Disarmers - Sidelong
(Bloodshot Records, April 28)
The first thing you notice about Sidelong is Sarah Shook’s voice. And like her last name, that voice will leave you rattled in the best sort of ways. The North Carolina outfit writes and plays first-rate juke-joint, somebody-done-me-wrong songs. But the strength of the material reaches a new level in Shook’s distinctive timbre; she has all the confidence of a honkytonk heartbreaker, yet possesses the quaver of an alt-rock icon.
Peter Silberman - Impermanence
(Transgressive Records, February 24)
The solo debut from The Antlers frontman is only six songs long but, at around 35 minutes of music, it qualifies as a full musical expression. Silberman melds cinematic and, at times, neoclassical colors into a quietly exquisite vision. At the risk of hyperbole, his wispy, floating vocals approach Jeff Buckley territory at more than a couple moments. This work is atmospheric, but is far from background music.
Vagabon - Infinite Worlds
(Father/Daughter Records, February 24)
Laetitia Tamko’s voice is a rich, expressive instrument that embeds itself immediately in a listener’s sensory memories. The Cameroon-born, New York-based artist freshens the stylistic tropes of 1990s Alternative Nation, fearlessly going hard after whatever she wants to do or sound like — whether that’s playing loud and fast, establishing a more esoteric sense of space and place, or calling out people who prowl like sharks, as she does on A-plus opening track “The Embers.”
