Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview On Phenomenal Nature (Ba Da Bing, 2021) A Top 25 album for me. “Jenkins has a dusky, intimate voice and seems to be singing to one person at a time on this gorgeous and, at 31 minutes, too-brief album.” #5DebutAlbumsSF3

Here for it. (@) Garden Party NYC promoted by Third Space at the 6B Community Garden, an East Village gem complete with turtles 🐢! Leya will open the show. #livemusic #freeconcert

The Beatles - Please Please Me (Parlophone, 1963/76) Bolting a jet engine to the Buddy Holly template and injecting a big dose of Black pop and R&B, the four became fab straight out of the gate. What a rush! #5debutalbumssf3

Here for it. Or Best Offer, Raybody, and Calder The Destroyer at Union Pool. Boundaries will be pushed, rocks will be rolled. And I first met Calder over 15 years ago, so this is special indeed! #livemusic

Steely Dan - Can’t Buy A Thrill (ABC, 1972/74) Before hearing a note, hipsters would have tracked the Burroughs & Dylan references. But as a Rikki-loving kid I heard the same enigmatic lyrics, indelible melodies, and killer guitars. A fully-formed debut! #5debutalbumssf2

Here for it. Summer by Shea curated by @hellgatenyc.com at Rippers on Rockaway Beach. And we’re gonna rock to Foyer Red, Discovery Zone, Quemarlo Todo Por Error, and Pets! #hotlivesummer #freeconcert #livemusic

The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced (Reprise, 1967/74) How could this be a debut album? Hendrix was already the full package, and he’s been expanding my mind since I was a child, especially since my teenage years. He never ceases to thrill me! #5debutalbumssf1

The Beatles - Live! At The Star Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962 (Lingasong, 1977) Happy #globalbeatlesday, everyone!

Here for it. Maisy Owen at Music Inn performing songs from her tremendous @tompkinssquare.bsky.social debut, Dark On A Sunny Day. Excited to hear these songs in concert! #livemusic

Boygenius - The Record (Interscope, 2023) While I like material by Baker, Bridgers, and Dacus, I LOVE this album, which plays to all their strengths and manages to perfectly ride the line between indie and pop. Three heads ARE better than one! #5debutalbums2026

Summer Like The Season - Hum (Young Heavy Souls, 2022) This is a deeply weird and seriously fun record anchored by Summer Krinsky’s drumming, which is always in the pocket and super creative. Love art, let’s dance! #5debutalbums2026

Here for it. Talea Ensemble playing the New York premiere of Felipe Lara’s Mazes And Portals with Conrad Tao, guest pianist, at National Sawdust. Brilliance will be on display! #livemusic

Aoife Nessa Frances - Land Of No Junction (Basin Rock, 2020) A dream of an album, with Frances’ beguiling songs perfectly realized by her and her main collaborator, Cian Nugent. I also remember her atmospheric livestream, one of the best of that year! #5debutalbums2026

Yaeji - What We Drew (XL, 2020) Juicy beats and sunny melodies assembled with a Notes-app spontaneity put this on my turntable with an alarming frequency when it came out. Still my favorite release from her, but I keep checking! #5debutalbums2026

Bonny Light Horseman - s/t (37d03d, 2020) Having seen an early version of BLH at Pioneer Works, I preordered this in 2019. It was even better than I expected, just the most gorgeous folk music, and I leaned on it like a crutch through that COVID year. Still love it! #5debutalbums2026

7ebra - Bird Hour (PNK SLM, 2023) Combining guitar, synth, organ, Mellotron, and drum samples, twin sisters Inez and Ella’ music is as evocative and bittersweet as the cover photo. New single out next week! #5debutalbums2026

Honey Cutt - Coasting (Kanine , 2020) What a delight to revisit this pandemic-era gem! As I said in my review, “Led by Kaley Honeycutt, this trio sails in as a lighter-than-air confection of indie jangle with a little bit of quirk to add to the fun.” #5debutalbums2026

Here for it. Mike D. 5D & Very Nice Person at Xanadu Roller Arts. Ready for the Switch Up! #livemusic

Kostars - Klassics With A “K” (Grand Royal, 1996) In which Luscious Jackson’s Viv Trimble (RIP😢) & Jill Cunniff lean away from their band’s urban mashup into a sun-drenched, 60s-infused place of breezy strumming and bittersweet melodies. Pure charm! #5debutalbums9599

Here for it. At Roulette to celebrate the release of Matt Evans’ Daydream Observatory, out today on AKP! Psyched to hear some of these tracks live, especially as performed by Evans with Gushes, Laura Cocks, Ben Seretan, and Chris Ryan Williams - the Aquatic House band. A supergroup!

Cibo Matto - Viva! La Woman (Warner Bros., 1996) A smart, danceable delight and probably the hippest thing Mitchell Froom and Tchad Blake were ever involved in. But it’s really the Miho Hatori and Yuka Honda show, and what a show it is. Viva! #5debutalbums9599

Money Mark - Mark’s Keyboard Repair (Mo Wax, 1995) Scrappy, low-fi fun for Beastie friends and anyone who likes a good little groove. He’s got 30 of’em on here. Well, 29 if you don’t count the fake ad that ends the album! #5debutalbums9599

Cast - All Change (Polydor, 1995) From the stasis of The La’s and the ashes of Shack came the mighty (for one album, anyway) Cast. If only all Britpop had sounded as good as their glammy Beatlemania. No wonder it was the fastest selling debut in Polydor history! #5debutalbums9599

Here for it. Hiss Golden Messenger I’m People record release event at Skinny Dennis. Apparently I’m not the only “people who need people” tonight! #livemusic

Black Grape - It’s Great When You’re Straight…Yeah (Radioactive, 1996) Before asking how these reprobates made one of the funkiest albums of all time, ask: who the heck is Danny Saber?? Guitar, bass, keyboards, programming, he can do it all!#5debutalbums9599

Ben Lee - Grandpaw Would (Grand Royal, 1995) Give me the child at 17 and I’ll give you the man? Not quite, as the charms of this album led not to the next Paul Westerberg (as I had hoped), but something far more anodyne. No matter - this is a joy. #5debutalbums9599

Tricky - Maxinquaye (Island, 1995) The marvelous tension this astonishing album creates is due to the ear-candy of all the juicy sounds contrasting with the unsettling material. His brain def thinks bomb-like - and Martina sings like a fallen angel. #5debutalbums9599

Dubstar - Disgraceful (Food/EMI, 1995) A delightful blend of folk-pop songs dressed up with shiny synths and rhythms from dance and (yes) dub. Sarah Blackwell’s gleaming soprano soars above it all with effortless cool. Nothing disgraceful about it! #5debutalbums9599

Here for it. Robin Pecknold performing the music of Judee Sill featuring The Westerlies as part of the 92nd Street Y’s Lyrics & Lyricists series. The flowers on stage suggest it will be a beautiful night! #livemusic

And based on the live tracks on this EP, recorded at Leicester De Montfort Hall in March 1979, they could’ve become a formidable touring act!