The Rural Alberta Advantage Grab #1 in a Weak Week

What a messed up week this is for the top 50 chart, statistically speaking. I looked at the total compiled points for the top ten and this is the lowest numbers ever posted for the 35 stations that contributed charts this week. These lower numbers among the highest ranking albums this week is due to the divergent nature of the playlists of the dozen larger campus radio station across this nation. Of the top ten only two of the entries are at #1 on more than two stations and the majority of the Big 12 feature some local indie action. Let's have a look at the results.

There is yet another change at #1 as The Rural Alberta Advantage's Hometowns rises up two places from last week's top debut to take over the #1 spot. This CD becomes the third independently released album to reach the top spot following Ox's Dust Bowl Revival in 2003 and and the debut Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! in early 2006. It has been picked up by Fontana North for distribution. Another odd thing is that Hometowns only appears at #1 on one of the 35 contributing playlists this week, CILU (Lakehead).

Rising back up the charts three places and landing at #2 is Wilco's Wilco (The Album). Wilco and Rural Alberta forced last week's #1,  Ohbijou's Beacons down two spots to #3. Surprisingly, Sunset Rubdown's Dragonslayer continues to hold on at #4 for a third week.  Sonic Youth's The Eternal experienced a resurgence, rising back up four position to sit at #5.

Following the action of Hometowns last week, the Chart Sizzler award goes to another top ten album this week. Entering the charts at #6 as the highest debut  is the electronic side project by Calgary's Chad VanGaalen. Black Mold's Snow Blindness Is Crystal Antz debuts at #6, pushing last week's #6 album, Dinosaur Jr.'s Farm down a slot to #7. Phoenix's Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix continues to yo-yo in and out of the top ten. This week it's back up six spots at #8. Dirty Projectors' Bitte Orca rises up 12 places to #9 while the self-titled CD from Reverie Sound Revue falls two places to #10.

The second-highest debut this week is the #1 album on CJSR (Alberta). The Famines' Free Love Is A Sales Technique 7" single enters the chart at #12. YACHT's See Mystery Lights arrives at #24, Gertrudes' Hard Water debuts at #29. Other notable new entries include Mando Diao's Give Me Fire! at #37, Chali 2na's Fish Outta Water at #46 and Hotcha!'s Dust Bowl Roots: Songs For The New Depression at #49.

While the top 50 chart is a bit topsy-turvy, things are fairly static on the five specialty charts. Tiga's Ciao! on the Electronic chart, Novalima's Coba Coba Remixed on the World/Folk chart and Sunn O)))'s Monoliths & Dimensions on the Metal/Punk chart hold onto their #1 spot again this week. The Jazz/Blues chart has a former #1 recapturing the top spot with Cory Weeds Quintet's Everything's Coming Up Weeds rising up eight places to sit at #1. The only brand new #1 is Chali 2na's Fish Outta Water topping the Hip Hop chart.

Of special note in the longevity department, both Junior Boys' Begone Dull Care re-entering at #7 on the Electronic chart and Mastodon's Crack The Skye re-entering at #6 on the Metal/Punk chart have racked up 18 weeks on their respective charts.