There have been some strange happenings on the campus chart over the past three months. Never have so few albums dominated the top 50 chart for so long a time. It used to be quite the ‘Wild West shootout’ with new artists entering and battling for the top positions. But over the past few months albums have spent longer on the charts than any previous year. Seven of the ten entries at the top of this week’s Top 50 have been on the charts for 8 or more weeks. In fact there are only three new albums at the top of the chart with three or less weeks’ service on the chart. Look any chart from before September 2010 and there’s a wider array of number of weeks on the chart.
In fact there is a total of 15 albums with 10 or more weeks on the chart. There’s never been another week with that many albums having survived on the chart for that long!
Also, we have yet another different #1 album this week as Sufjan Stevens‘ The Age Of Adz slides up to grab top spot. That makes four straight weeks with four different #1 albums. This accomplishment has never happened on the top 50 chart since it went weekly in April 1996.
The Age Of Adz arrives at #1 in its 8th week on the chart. This is not the first Sufjan Stevens’ album to top the chart. Illinois sat at #1 several weeks in August 2005.
Black Mountain’s Wilderness Heart rises two places to #2, the highest point it has been since occupying the #1 slot during the week of Oct. 26, 2010.
Deerhunter’s Halcyon Digest drops two spots to #3 followed by one of the three newer albums in the top ten, Russian Futurists’ The Weight’s On The Wheel, which jumps 25 places to #4. This move forces Diamond Rings’ Special Affections down to #5.
Giant Sand’s Blurry Blue Mountain rises ten places to sit at #6, the highest position any of the many Giant Sand records have held. PS I Love You’s Meet Me At The Muster Station drops a place to #7 followed by Autumn Defense’s Once Around rising four spots to #8.
Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs falls four s spots to #9 while Olenka And The Autumn’s And Now We Sing rises a spot to hold the #10 position
This week, The Suburbs entered the select group of albums the reach the 20 week plateau. Its the sixth album released in 2010 to reach 20 weeks. The previous fiver are Caribou’s Swim, The New Pornographers’ Together, The Black Keys’ Brothers, The Sadies’ Darker Circles and Tokyo Police Club’s Champ. Four album in 2009 eventually reached this prestigious spot. Only 23 albums reached toe 20 week level in the first 13 years on the chart. So the length of time the most popular albums on the charts seems to be increasing in recent years.
The Chart Sizzler Award for the highest new entry goes to Eux Autres’ Broken Bow, which debuts at #26. Cee-Lo Green’s The Lady Killer arrives in the runner-up position at #32. There were wholesale changes at the bottom of the chart with the last eight position occupied by new entries led by Clothes Make The Man’s Control EP debuting at #43.
On the specialty charts, there are only two repeating #1 albums, the slef-titled Afrocubism disc on the World/Folk top ten and Kylesa’s Spiral Shadow on the Metal/Punk chart.
The other three charts feature new #1s. Matt Haimovitz’ Meeting Of The Spirits rises four places to take over the top spot on the Jazz/Blues chart.
Gangrene’s Gutter Water jumps two places in only its second week the grab the #1 position on the Hip-Hop chart.
Finally, Royksopp’s Senior slides up a position to become the #1 album on the Electronic top ten.
- Tokyo Police Club Are Chart Champs With A Bold Rise To #1
- Caribou’s Swim Grabs The #1 Spot
- Sunset Rubdown Chart Champs Again For Third Week
- Stately Sufjan Stevens Is Back At #1
- Charty Chart Chat: Stevens Has The Right Sufjan
