So many punk albums, so little time. But here are the debut albums that caught my attention this year and refused to let me go. These bands have emerged with unique, genre-blending, and sometimes inexplicable offerings that have set them up as must-watch artists. ‘Worldwide’ by SnooperTechnically, Snooper first emerged in 2023, which would usually disqualify them for a Debut Albums list. However, Super Snooper featured re-recordings of old tracks. Now, the band considers Worldwide, released on October 3, their real, official debut. Snooper was formed by Blair Tramel and Connor Cummins, later adding Happy Haugen, Brad Barteau, and Conner Sullivan to the lineup. They began as an underground Nashville DIY staple, but took off like a rocket after signing to Third Man Records.Worldwide features tight, explosive egg punk without the blown-out fuzz that often comes from home recordings. Snooper got their start this way, but for this album, they worked with a producer for the first time. The result might be clean and polished, but there’s no hiding Snooper’s overall attitude. Professional production does nothing to diminish their punk spirit, which bursts forth in Tramel’s spritely, almost condescending vocals.‘The EP’ by The PillI’ve been a fan of The Pill since the U.K. duo released “Bale of Hay” in 2024. Finally, they’ve dropped their debut EP, cleverly titled The EP. Six tracks and 13 minutes of sharply sardonic lyrics, liltingly brutal and feminine vocals, and the kind of subject matter that no one really talks about enough. Or, as they’ve described, “lots of subjects that you wouldn’t share with your dad.”Lily Hutchings and Lottie Massey (with Rufus Reader on drums) give us iconic tracks like the stuttering “Bale of Hay”. This includes the lines, “I’m a pink-faced secret ginger / Noodles on my head like a wet rag / Burn in the sun I’m an Ibiza dad.” There’s also a love song for the “Scaffolding Man” who accidentally peeps through the window while you’re in the bath. Meanwhile, there’s the warning to “Never trust a man with a mullet / Unless you wanna get in his wallet.” Additionally, a sharp look at the “Women Driver” stereotype ends with, “Oopsie, teehee / I didn’t mean it.”‘Anything Can Be A Hammer’ by BloodsportsBloodsports has been an emerging voice in the Brooklyn DIY scene for a few years now. Sam Murphy, Jeremy Mock, Liv Eriksen, and Scott Hale initially came together in 2023. Fast-forward, and their debut, Anything Can Be A Hammer, dropped on October 17. With a thrown-in-the-deep-end approach to jangly slowcore punk, the album grabs on immediately and doesn’t let go until the end. It opens with a burst of controlled noise, as if it’s struggling to be contained. Throughout the album, there are moments of deceptive reprieve. But don’t be fooled, Bloodsports is always a moment away from containment breach.Anything Can Be A Hammer is made of ebbs and flows, of builds and collapses and explosions. It moves through labyrinths of tightly held vulnerabilities. Listeners circle closer and closer to the center, where there can only be long-awaited catharsis.‘Something To Consume’ by Die SpitzAnother Third Man offering, Die Spitz, released their debut Something To Consume on September 12. Quickly, this became the album everyone was recommending to everyone in their lives. The Austin-based four-piece consists of Ava Schrobilgen, Chloe De St. Aubin, Ellie Livingston, and Kate Halter. Something To Consume expertly jumps from pop-punk chord progressions to wailing classic guitar solos to the kind of guttural vocal noises that only come from the depths of female rage.Something To Consume goes beyond genre-blending and straight into genre-obliterating. Subtly political yet ambitiously personal lyrics are bolstered by the fact that you will never know Die Spitz’s next move. Is it punk? Thrash? Metalcore? Grunge? The answer is simply: Yes. This is an album that feels like having a thousand cathedral bells rung in your chest. It reverberates long after it ends, zipping through the body like electricity searching for an exit. ‘Who Let the Dogs Out’ by Lambrini GirlsU.K. duo Lambrini Girls released their debut LP, Who Let The Dogs Out, on January 10. After gaining attention in 2024 with a few singles, Phoebe Lunny and Lilly Macieira-Bosgelmez have been on a quickly ascending trajectory since then. Their raunchy, abrasive, feminine-aggressive approach to a punk album immediately delighted me. It’s fast and gritty, with Lunny spitting effortlessly nasty lead vocals with her whole chest.Lambrini Girls take subjects like police incompetence, workplace harassment, and eating disorders and serve them up against a backdrop of barely repressed rage. They’re snarky and unsatisfied with the status quo. And why shouldn’t they be? What better way to give up that shaky control and let everything explode than on a deliciously angry punk album? Lambrini Girls are like The Pill but for serious venting. It’s not about the scaffolding man or the guy with the mullet anymore. We’ve graduated to police brutality and a sleazy boss who needs to take a sexual harassment course.‘Gully Boys’ by Gully BoysGully Boys’ debut self-titled album immediately became my top album of the entire year. Kathy Callahan, Mariah Mercedes, Nadirah McGill, and Natalie Klemond have made something that utterly bewitched me. I had a passing idea of Gully Boys in the song “Neopet Graveyard” from their 2018 demos album. But hearing Gully Boys for the first time is as close as I’ll ever come to a religious experience.Standout tracks include “Break”, “Mother”, “Spit”, and the litany against being anxious at the club, “Big Boobs (ft. Zora)”. But really, this is a no-skip album top to bottom. There’s a great amount of fuzz on it that softens its jangliness, which runs counterpoint to the fully expressive vocals. Tracks like “Me & You” are built with a backdrop of discordant guitar and pervasive percussion. Meanwhile, “TTML” alternates between calm reprieves and eruptions of derisive, snarling vocals.“Mother” is a star on this unique punk album, a shouty reprimand that pulls no punches. The album often delves into dark, grungy pits and thrashy depths, only to emerge into the light of alt-club bangers. It’s an interesting blend that goes beyond genre, extending into culture, gender, and sexual expression. Gully Boys nailed it, and I’ll be waiting patiently to see what they tackle next.Photo by Juliet FarmerThe post The Debut Punk Albums I Was Obsessed With in 2025 appeared first on VICE.