Metal By Numbers is a weekly column in which we look at the top metal sellers and debuts of the week as well as what’s getting played at Metal radio courtesy of radio trade magazine FMQB, whose metal panel consists of about 80 college and commercial stations that have metal shows, as well as SiriusXM, Music Choice, and more.
Following last week’s metal-heavy debut week, things slow down this week significantly enough that ’80s Christian metallers Stryper have the biggest metallic debut of the week, with nearly 6,000 followers picking up their first album in years. He Is Legend and Memphis May Fire are the only other debuts worth mentioning. He Is Legend is the most added band at metal radio this week, while Shadows Fall surges into the top ten via a four way tie at FMQB.
Notable Debuts:
Stryper, Murder by Pride (Big 3) #73, 5,900 sold
I’m not going to call myself a fan of the band, but I was pictured with a Stryper bible talking about “Honestly” on VH1’s “The 40 Most Awesomely Bad Metal Songs Ever” a few years back.
He Is Legend, It Hates You (Tragic Hero) 3,800 sold
Pretty solid debut for this underrated band’s third album.
Memphis May Fire, Sleepwalking (Trustkill) 750 sold
The second album from the southern hardcore hybrid.
Notable Sales:
Chickenfoot, Chickenfoot (Redline/Fontana) #40, 11,000 sold
Sammy Hagar claims that Chickenfoot isn’t a supergroup. OK genius, I’ll bite – what are you?
Killswitch Engage, Killswitch Engage (Roadrunner) #47, 9,200 sold
Wonder if the beef with Slayer will translate into more album sales. The seem to be having no problems regardless of controversy.
August Burns Red, Constellations (Solid State) #50, 8,500 sold
While the album suffered a predictable second week drop (59%), it’s still doing great, having sold over 28,000.
Kid Rock, Rock N’ Roll Jesus (Atlantic) #77, 5,500 sold
Kid’s in good company – #78 and #79 are debuts from Cheap Trick and Sugar Ray. This is like a bad radio station – the best of the ’70s, 90s and today!
Clutch, Strange Cousins From the West (Weathermaker Music) #83, 5,300 sold
They suffer the same percentage drop as August Burns Red, but sold more second week than Devildriver, another band that had an awesome week last week.
DevilDriver, Pray For Villians (Roadrunner) #87 , 5,100 sold
But given their first week, Devildriver have sold about 1,000 more.
Job For a Cowboy, Ruination (Metal Blade) #93, 4,600 sold
Holding steady at about the same sold as last week – well done!
Dream Theater, Black Clouds and Silver Linings (Roadrunner) #137, 3,500 sold
Another decent week for Dream Theater,with almost 65,000 sold in five weeks.
Suicide Silence, No Time To Bleed (Century Media) #141, 3,500 sold
Another consistent week, selling almost the same amount as last week.
Disturbed, Indestructable (Reprise) #147, 3,300 sold
This album’s been out for 60 weeks. Yeah. Uh huh.
Metallica, Death Magnetic (Warner Bros.) #159, 3,100 sold
At 1.8 million. Which is like getting a 5x platinum album 10 years ago.
The Devil Wears Prada, With Roots Above and Branches Below (Ferret) #167, 3,000 sold
I don’t really remember the devil wearing much of anything. He wields a mean pitchfork though.
Marilyn Manson, The High End of Low (Interscope) #174, 2.800 sold
Apparently, Marilyn Manson only knows one Led Zeppelin song.
Slipknot, All Hope is Gone (Roadrunner), #177, 2,800 sold
Mark 9/9/09 on your calendar – that’s when Slipknot officially turns 10. They’ve been acting ten for about a decade now.
Attack Attack!, Someday Came Suddenly (Rise) 1,200 sold
Yeah crab core! Nice to see these guys will forever be remembered for something more than bad music.
Bring Me The Horizon, Suicide Season (Epitaph) 975 sold
Eight months in, and this might be the first time the album’s dipped below 1,000.
Suffocation, Blood Oath (Nuclear Blast) 900 sold
The band’s first album for Nuclear Blast is doing pretty well.
Darkest Hour, Eternal Return (Victory) 850 sold
The band’s last album for Victory (or at least until their deal is renegotiated) has sold over 10,000 so far.
Arsonists Get All the Girls, Portals (Century Media) 700 sold
A modest 33% drop in the band’s second week isn’t all that bad.
Iwrestledabearonce, It’s All Happening(Century Media) 650 sold
This will cross the 12,000 sold barrier next week. Not sure what kind of barrier that is.
Eyes Set To Kill, World Outside (Suburban Noize) 600 sold
You know you’re getting near the end of a column when you run out of things to say about a band.
Bury Your Dead, It’s Nothing Personal (Victory) 550 sold
10,000 sold.
Impending Doom, Serpent Servant (Facedown) 500 sold
This one keeps rebounding onto the chart.
FMQB Most Added
1. He Is Legend, It Hates You (Tragic Hero)
2. Angerpath, Forgotten World (Epitomite Productions)
3. Anaal Nathrakh, In The Constellation of the Black Widow (Candlelight)
4. Machines of Grace, Machines of Grace (Winterfall Music)
5. Valkyrja, The Invocation of Demise (Metal Blade)
FMQB Top Ten Albums
1. DevilDriver, Pray For Villians (Roadrunner)
2. Killswitch Engage, Killswitch Engage (Roadrunner)
3. Clutch, Strange Cousins From the West (Weathermaker Music)
4. Dream Theater, Black Clouds and Silver Linings (Roadrunner)
5. Job For a Cowboy, Ruination (Metal Blade)
6. Arkaea, Years in the Darkness (E1 Entertainment)
7. Poison the Well, The Tropic Rot (Ferret)
8t Bury Your Dead, It’s Nothing Personal (Victory)
8t. Darkest Hour, Eternal Return (Victory)
8t. Heaven & Hell, The Devil You Know (Rhino)
8t. Shadows Fall “King of Nothing” single (Everblack Industries/Ferret)
