Metal By Numbers is a weekly column in which we look at the top metal sellers and debuts of the week.
This week sees two non-traditional metal/hard rock acts debuting in the top ten. First we see rapcore pioneers (?) Hollywood Undead ranking in at #4, while metalcore princes Asking Alexandria come in at #9. Both bands experience their highest debuts ever, which shouldn’t come as too surprising when you consider how their previous records did a damn good job hanging around the charts for most of last year.
Both bands also have probably just as many haters as they do followers. But if their impressive first weeks prove anything, it’s that their followers make up a majority of today’s young hard rock audience…or they at least have enough followers who still buy music (considering the two bands, probably in Hot Topic).
Notable Debuts:
Hollywood Undead, American Tragedy (A&M/Octone) #4, 66,000 sold
Were the new masks really that necessary? Seeing how well their first week sales are, maybe they were.
Asking Alexandria, Reckless and Relentless (Sumerian) #9, 31,240 sold
We’d say that a top ten debut is good news for anyone, especially for a band whose last week was pretty miserable (especially for singer Danny Worsnop).
Burzum, Fallen (Candlelight) 550 sold
Former Mayhem singer Varg Vikernes’ latest work has an ok first week, especially considering that his first post-incarceration album didn’t win over a ton of fans.
Notable Sales:
Kid Rock, Born Free (Atlantic) #48, 11,270 sold
Another 9% decrease shows signs of the American badass finally losing some steam.
Amon Amarth, Surtur Rising (Metal Blade) #99, 4,970 sold
The Viking Metal Gods experience a 66% decrease and fall 65 spots down the charts in their second week.
Linkin Park, A Thousand Suns (Warner Bros.) #100, 4,900 sold
A 12% decrease sees LP crawling to stay in the top 100.
Whitesnake, Forevermore (Frontiers) #115, 4,380 sold
Also experiencing a big dip in their second week are these 80’s hair metal legends, falling down 67 spots down the charts and experiencing a 64% decrease.
Five Finger Death Punch, War is the Answer (Prospect Park) #120, 4,220 sold
Despite experiencing a 10% decrease, FFDP find themselves climbing up the charts by eights spots.
Within Temptation, The Unforgiving (Roadrunner) #142, 3,590 sold
The new mother and company drop a whopping 93 spots down the charts with a 69% decrease.
Avenged Sevenfold, Nightmare (Warner Bros.) #160, 3,300 sold
You can bet that A7X is hoping that their Welcome To The Family tour will help prevent them from slipping down the charts further.
A Day To Remember, What Separates Me from You (Victory) #170, 3,210 sold
21 weeks on the charts, and the band is still hanging around in roughly the same chart position as last week.
Disturbed, Asylum (Reprise) #172, 3,200 sold
Another seven spots down the charts for the band.
Red, Until We Have Faces (Essential) #186, 2,840 sold
With a 30% decrease in sales, along with dropping 40 spots down the charts, these Christian rockers will need a prayer to stick around in the top 200.
We Came As Romans, To Plant A Seed (Equal Vision) 1,270 sold
Roughly around the same amount sold as last week…damn how do these guys constantly sell week after week?
Art Of Dying, Vices And Virtures (Reprise/Intoxication) 990 sold
A 41% decrease was enough to kick the Canadian hard rockers out of the top 200 in their third week.
Volbeat, Beyond Hell/Above Heaven (Universal) 860 sold
A 15% decrease isn’t too shaky considering how the album’s sales have slowly been increasing over the past few weeks, but makes their upcoming Revolver Golden Gods Award Show performance even more important for help in sales. Want an autographed copy of the album? Enter to in it right here!
Becoming the Archetype, Celestial Completion (Solid State) 810 sold
A 62% decrease sees the Christian death metal group fall off the top 200 in their second week.
I See Stars, The End Of The World Party (Sumerian) 660 sold
Sorry for this awful pun again, but the band does see a nice 12% increase in their seventh week. (editors note: that’s a pun? try harder)
As Blood Runs Black, Instinct (Mediaskare) 670 sold
Another 24% decrease isn’t a great sign the SoCal death metal band’s longevity on the charts.
Obscura, Omnivium (Relapse) 580 sold
A 71% gives the German death metal group a pretty low second week on the charts. On the plus side, Metal Insider will be picking the winners of our Omnivium CD giveaway soon (so now more people can stop relying on us for a free copy and will have to buy it for themselves).
The Damned Things, Ironiclast (Island) 500 sold
A 26% decrease is not a good sign for the supergroup’s debut album, but it’s still sold upwards of 25,000. Not great, but not bad in this new reality of decreasing sales.
Pierce the Veil, Selfish Machines (Equal Vision) 490 sold
Name one song that you like by this group. Anyone?
Straight Line Stitch, The Fight of Our Lives (eOne) 480 sold
Seeing that they’ve experienced a 41% decrease in their third week, these guys (and gal) need their stints on Mayhem Fest and the Revolver Hottest Chicks in Hard Rock tour to help sales.
Woe, Is Me, Number[s] (Velocity/Rise) 440 sold
After being absent from the charts for over a month, these guys were able to sell enough to slide back into the charts.
OFF!, The First Four EPs (Vice) 430 sold
A similar situation as this hardcore punk super group, though it’s only been two weeks since we last saw them on the charts.
The Haunted, Unseen (Century Media) 400 sold
With a 67% decrease in their second week, maybe it’s safe to say that fans aren’t as pleased with the Swedish metal group’s hard rock direction.
