Metal By Numbers is a weekly column in which we look at the top metal sellers and debuts of the week.
I’ve seen some talk regarding artists delaying releases due to the current pandemic vs. releasing music anyway. Perhaps the most notable delay in the world of metal is Lamb of God’s self-titled album, which was originally slated for May 8th and will now be out on June 19th. It’s not a massive delay, a little over one month, but it got me thinking about bands delaying releases because of the pandemic, and I can’t say I blame them. Lamb of God cited the difficulty in shipping physical copies of the album, but there’s also the reality that record sales are not exactly booming right now, so waiting to release an album until a time of relative normalcy when more people have money to spend is understandable. Plus, so many bands have continued to put out music anyway, so it’s not like we’re in short supply of new albums.
Notable Debuts:
The Black Dahlia Murder, Verminous (Metal Blade)Debut #4
7,850 sold
The Black Dahlia Murder’s ninth album didn’t sell as much as its predecessor, but it did crack the top 5.
Incubus, Trust Fall (Side B) (Incubus)Debut #11
4,325 sold
This EP is a follow-up to the aptly titled EP Trust Fall (Side A).
Oranssi Pazuzu, This is the Finnish band’s fifth studio album and highest charting yet in the US.
Khemmis, Doomed Heavy Metal (Nuclear Blast/20 Buck Spin)Debut #85
870 sold
This new EP features a bitchin’ cover of Dio’s “Rainbow in the Dark”.
Abysmal Dawn, Phylogenesis (Season of Mist)Debut #118
540 sold
This is the band’s fifth album.
Enter Shikari, Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible (SO)Debut #139
440 sold
The band’s sixth album doesn’t match the debut of its previous album.
Ripped To Shreds, Luan (Nameless Grave)250 sold
This is the band’s second album.
Notable Sales:
Pearl Jam, 
Five Finger Death Punch, A 5% boost with just under 70,000 sold.
Ozzy Osbourne, 
Nightwish, 
Tool, 
Joe Satriani, 
Breaking Benjamin, 
Testament, 
Various Artists, The Many Faces of Metallica(Music Brokers Arg)#113 (from 167)
580 sold
A big 56% boost up.
Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, 
Slipknot, 
RED, 
Skid Row, 
The Hu, 
Godsmack, When Legends Rise (BMG)
#185 (from 160)
340 sold
A 12% drop.
Skillet, 
KoRn, 
Mötley Crüe, This got boosted up by 7% with just under 69,000 sold.
Def Leppard, The Story So Far: The Best of Def Leppard (UMC)#200 (re-entry)
310 sold
A 6% boost back up with just under 60,000 sold.
Rotting Out, Ronin (Pure Noise)240 sold
A 81% drop in week two.
Kingsmen, 
Heilung, Futha (Season Of Mist)160 sold
This got a whopping 180% boost. It’s sold over 9,000 copies.
Igorrr, 
Fire From The Gods, American Sun (E7)80 sold
A 15% boost.
Ad Infinitum, 
A 21% drop.
Tags: Abysmal Dawn, Ad Infinitum, August Burns Red, Breaking Benjamin, Def Leppard, Delain, Enter Shikari, Fire From the Gods, Five Finger Death Punch, Godsmack, Heilung, Igorrr, In This Moment, Incubus, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Joe Satriani, Khemmis, Kingsmen, Korn, Metallica, Motley Crue, Nightwish, Oranssi Pazuzu, Ozzy Ozbourne, Pearl Jam, RED, Ripped To Shreds, Rotting Out, Skid Row, Skillet, Slipknot, Testament, The Black Dahila Murder, The Hu, Tool
Categorised in: Metal By Numbers
