Metal band Slipknot scores first chart-topper
NEW YORK (Billboard) - Masked metal band Slipknot narrowly beat rapper the Game to claim top honors on the U.S. pop album chart Wednesday.
Slipknot's "All Hope Is Gone" sold 239,516 copies during the week ended August 31, according to Nielsen SoundScan, only 1,134 more than the Game's "LAX" at 238,382.
This marks the first No. 1 for the colorful Iowa rockers, who scored a No. 2 with 2004's "Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses" and a No. 3 with 2001's "Iowa." The Game's last two efforts, 2006's "Doctor's Advocate" and 2005's "The Documentary," both debuted at No. 1.
Kid Rock's "Rock N Roll Jesus" fell one place to No. 3 with 89,000 copies. After two weeks at No. 1, the Jonas' Brothers' "A Little Bit Longer" dropped to No. 4 with 80,000. The "Mamma Mia!" soundtrack slipped one to No. 5 with 78,000.
Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter III" rose one to No. 6 with 54,000. The multi-artist compilation "Now That's What I Call Country," the latest version of the successful "Now" series, debuted at No. 7 with 50,000.
Sugarland's "Love on the Inside" held at No. 8 for a second week with 47,000. Solange Knowles, younger sister of Beyonce, debuted at No. 9 with 46,000 copies for her second album "Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams." Her first album, 2003's "Solo Star," peaked in its debut week at No. 49 with 19,000.
Capping off the top tier, Coldplay's "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends" rose one to No. 10 with 44,000.
Other debuts included Puerto Rico-born singer Luis Fonsi's "Palabras Del Silencio" at No. 15; British metal act Dragonforce's "Ultra Beatdown" at No. 18; reunited English rock band the Verve's first album in 11 years, "Forth," at No. 23; and blues legend B.B. King's "One Kind Favor" at No. 37.
At 7.15 million units, total sales were up 2.3% from the previous week, but down 6.5% from the same week last year.
Reuters/Billboard
