Welcome to Metal Power Rankings: Our weekly rankings take a number of factors into account: newsworthiness, record sales, internet buzz, word of mouth and overall importance in the genre. Ultimately, it’s subjective, but if a band generates enough buzz, they’ll wind up on the list. This week, Faith No More take the top, as we’re sure they’re going to have an amazing first week of sales that’s almost worth the wait it took for them to come out with the follow-up to Album of the Year.
1) Faith No More (from 3)
The Newbury Comics first day sales report is one of the great record industry acid tests for how well an album will do nationwide. On release day Tuesday, Sol Invictus topped Newbury’s charts with 661 copies sold…that’s 531 more than Coal Chamber’s Rivals, the #2 album on Day 1. Look for this comeback to be a truly monstrous one.
2) iOTA (Coma the Doof Warrior) (debut)
If this guy was your favorite part of Mad Max: Fury Road, you’re hardly alone. Australian entertainer by day, flame-throwing guitarist in control of the “last Marshall stack at the end of the universe” by night. Not mentioned in our write-up about him was the subsequent Noisey interview, where iOTA told Dan Ozzi that the flame-thrower was real and controlled by the whammy bar. The only reason the Doof Warrior isn’t at #1 this week is because Mike Patton didn’t play him.
3) Lamb of God (from 1)
In case you’ve been living under a rock, “Still Echoes” is just utterly, stupidly good.
4) Mastodon & Clutch (from 11)
The secret Clutch set we caught on Monday certainly excited our appetites for Psychic Warfare, but watching them crush a crowd of thousands with Mastodon in NYC’s Central Park the next night felt like something of a watershed moment. Rarely does metal grace Central Park’s SummerStage, and these longtime compatriots made the most of the opportunity.
6) Arch Enemy (re-entry)
The headlining slot on Summer Slaughter is arguably Arch Enemy’s highest-profile tour ever Stateside. You’d have to go back a decade to Ozzfest 2005 to find a comparable national touring run, and they have Jeff Loomis helping this time too. Expect them to rise a little bit here as summer goes on.
7) Metallica (from 3)
They didn’t do anything of note this week, nor did they really have to. Meanwhile,Master of Puppets and Metallica continue crowding Billboard.
8) Veil of Maya (re-entry)
Matriarch nearly hit the top 20 at Billboard this week, which is good for, oh, about a 40-spot jump over the previous record. Can the mainstream handle this kind of shredding long-term? The band has no issue with touring constantly, which will help throughout the year too – and supporting Arch Enemy on Summer Slaughter won’t hurt one bit.
9) Slayer (re-entry)
They’re co-headlining Mayhem Fest and the new album comes out in September, but…it’s called Repentless. Really, guys? Whatever, we’ll still crank it up when it releases, and everyone knows it. In the meantime, they’ll have plenty of haters to prove wrong.
10) Slipknot (from 4)
That Lamb of God tour is going to destroy faces all summer long.
11) King Diamond (re-entry)
The new cover of Revolver somehow renders King Diamond as a Celtic Frost album cover and a comic book all at once, highlighting just how badass it’s going to be to see him touring nationally with Slayer on Mayhem Fest.
12) Coal Chamber (no change)
That Fear Factory tour is actually a pretty cool move for a band that’s still got a major uphill battle to fight with the metal public. Meanwhile, Rivals looks poised to be a solid comeback for them at retail.
13) Lucifer (debut)
The new video for “Izrael” and the cover of the newest issue of Decibel are both completely awesome. The buzz around this band is palpable right now.
14) Mutoid Man (debut)
Every time a new song gets out there, we get more and more impatient for Bleeder to hit on June 30th.
15) Cattle Decapitation (debut)
The new album is probably going to sound exactly like its predecessors when it releases in August, but that won’t stop people from getting it, especially with them hitting the road on Summer Slaughter again.
