Thrice’s new Beggars was released this past Tuesday as an iTunes exclusive after the album leaked extremely in advance of its original October release date. This was part of Vagrant’s plan to counteract the leak, rather than continue as planned and releasing a stillborn 3 month-old album. Beggars will see a physical release with 5 bonus tracks on September 15.
So how is the Beggars digital-only experiment going? Depends on who you ask. Hits Daily Double is projecting 12,000 – 14,000 sales, which is a bit low for the band. Label sources tell Metal Insider first-day sales on Beggars were over 6,000, which should put it a few ticks over Hits’ estimate. And of course, there’s too many variables to really call this one a win or failure; it’s digital-only and saw no promotion or lead-up time. We think 14k is pretty damn good for a rushed, reactionary release only a few weeks after the leak.
Kudos to Thrice and Vagrant for taking control of the situation, and putting out a great album! Seriously, go out and pick it up.
