145 years ago gold was discovered in the town of Gympie, Queensland, today though they can claim their first No.1 album by a local group; The Amity Affliction with their third album entitled “Chasing Ghosts” enters at No.1, the head of six Top 10 debuts this week.
The Amity Affliction
Gavin Ryan reports that “Chasing Ghosts” for post-hardcore band The Amity Affliction is not only their third album to chart after “Severed Ties” (#26, Oct 2008) and “Youngbloods” (#6 July 2010), but it is now their highest charting album, plus it becomes only the third album for the label Roadrunner to top the Australian charts, the previous two being “All Hope is Gone” for Slipknot (Sept 2008) and “Here and Now” for Nickelback (Nov 2011).
The Amity Afflictions “Chasing Ghosts” becomes the 654th No.1 album in Australia (1965 to 2012) and the 513th for ARIA (1983 to 2012). The album is the 153rd Australian performed No.1 album (and the sixth this year), and the 309th by a Group. They are also the 47th Australian Group to hit No.1, and The Amity Affliction is the 80th Australian act to make it to No.1.
There has been no previous titles with ‘Chasing’ at No.1 on the Australian Albums chart, and no ‘Ghosts’, but we have had some single ‘Ghosts’ at the top, “Ghost in the Machine” for The Police (1 week, Dec 1981) and more recently “In Ghost Colours” for Cut Copy (1 week, March 2008).
The second album for English indie-pop trio The xx entitled “Coexist” debuts at No.2, far surpassing their debut self-titled effort which spent two weeks at No.40 (TW-66) in February of 2010. They recently scored their first ARIA Singles chart entry with “Angels” (HP-46).
Sydney duo The Presets debut at No.3 with their third album “Pacifica”. Lead single from the album was “Youth in Trouble”, but current single “Ghosts” (HP-75) is up to No.89 this week. The duo first charted in September 2005 with “Beams” (HP-68), which later returned in April 2008 to hit No.55, at which time their second album debuted at the top of the ARIA Albums chart, “Apocalypso” spending one week at No.1, and scoring the ARIA Album of the Year at the 2008 ARIA Awards.
Former No.1’s “Birdy” by Birdy (2 to 4), “North” for Matchbox 20 (1 to 5) and “The Sapphires” Soundtrack (3 to 7) along with former No.4 album “Overexposed” by Maroon 5 (7 to 10) are the only Top 10 survivors from last weeks chart, as I mentioned above there are six new Top 10 entries this week.
Debuting at No.6 is the second collaborative effort for husband and wife team Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson, the album entitled “Wreck and Ruin”. Their first teaming was on the No.1 set “Rattlin’ Bones” which spent a week at the top at the end of April in 2008. This new album also becomes Kasey’s sixth Top 10 entry.
The 35th studio album for singer/songwriter Bob Dylan becomes his eighteenth Top 10 album in Australia as his new set “Tempest” debuts at No.8. This new album also becomes his fourth this century to crack the Top 10, having last been up here back in May 2009 with the No.5 album “Together Through Life”.
And finally, The Script’s third album is simple entitled “#3”, and it becomes the bands third Top 10 hit, debuting at No.9 this week. Their self-titled first album took seven weeks to achieve its peak of No.9, their second album “Science & Faith” debuted at No.3 and five weeks later surpassed that by climbing to No.2 back in October of 2010. Current single from the album is “Hall of Fame” (HP-7×2) which is at No.8 this week.
NEW PEAKS & MOVERS: “Born to Die” for Lana Del Rey climbs back up again this week, up four places to No.16, but leaping back up twenty places to No.19 is the former No.1 self titled album for The Temper Trap. Ahead of her new albums release, P!nk’s “Greatest Hits… So Far” is back up eleven places to No.41, also up eleven is “Spirit Bird” for Xavier Rudd, this week to No.45. With a new Top 50 entry, Of Monsters and Men see their “My Head is an Animal” album crack the Top 50 Albums for the first time, up thirty-five places to a new peak of No.47.
DOWN DOWN: With six new Top 10 entries, it’s only logical that there are six new former Top 10 albums this week. Last weeks second highest new entry “Beacon” for Two Door Cinema Club plummets this week from #4 to No.27, not as bad for James Morrison’s “The Awakening” (9 to 17). After 21 accumulated weeks in the Top 10, “+” for Ed Sheeran drops down six places to No.11, having reached No.1 for a week, and two more former No.1 albums fall out; “The Ol’ Razzle Dazzle” for Missy Higgins racked up thirteen weeks in the Top 10 (three weeks at No.1) and drops to No.12 this week, whilst Karise Eden’s “My Journey” is spending it’s first week outside of the Top 10 ever after eleven weeks inside, it’s at No.15 this week. Finally “Some Nights” (HP-2) for Fun. is down three places to No.13 after seven weeks in the Top 10.
Also we have some major drops this week, with Keith Urban’s “The Story So Far” (11 to 22); “Fires” for Ronan Keating (12 to 28); Timomatic’s self-titled album (3 to 13 to now 30); “Elvis by Request” (14 to 33) and “Sun” by Cat Power (26 to 40). Lower down drops are by “Planet Pitbull” by Pitbull (36 to 55); “Happy Home” for Darren Percival (30 to 60); “Take it to the Streets” for The Angels (24 to 69); “Hot August Night” for Neil Diamond (37 to 75); “Divination” by In Hearts Wake (27 to 76); “Havoc & Bright Lights” by Alanis Morissette (22 to 84); after their tour The Beach Boys’ “That’s Why God Made the Radio” drops from last weeks peak of No.31 to No.88 this week, and finally “Come of Age” for The Vaccines (43 to 97).
British singer/songwriter Rita Ora enters at No.24 with her debut album “Ora”, featuring the singles “How We Do (Party)” (HP-9, TW-70) and “R.I.P.” (TW-18). Debuting right behind at No.25 is the newly repackaged edition of David Guetta’s “Nothing But the Beat 2.0” (the original drops 59 to 100 this week), which features remixes and bonus tracks including the new remix of current single “She Wolf (Falling to Pieces)” (TW-14) featuring Sia.
The third solo album for New York native Amanda Palmer debuts at No.34 entitled “Theatre is Evil”, it features The Grand Theft Orchestra on the album. Her second album “Amanda Palmer goes Down Under” went to No.25 here in February of 2011. Entering a few places lower at No.36 is Canadian rock band Billy Talent with their fifth album entitled “Dead Silence”. They also charted here for the first time with their previous release “Billy Talent III” (HP-44, Aug 2009), which was their fourth album released.
Marina Prior has not released an album in sixteen years, and her fourth album debuts this week at No.43 entitled “Both Sides Now”. Her first three albums were “Leading Lady” (HP-15, peaked Xmas 1991), “Aspects of Andrew Lloyd Webber” (HP-22, Nov 1992) and her last charting album was “Somewhere – The Songs of Sondheim & Bernstein” (HP-75, Nov 1994).
The eleventh studio album for The Pet Shop Boys entitled “Elysium” debuts at No.50, becoming their thirteenth overall album to chart, twelve of which have made it Top 50 or higher (this includes this new album). Their first album; “Please” from May 1986 hitting No.10 in late June 1986.
Lower 50: Kelly Clarkson’s pending tour at the end of the month helps her current album “Stronger” to jump back up twenty places to No.54. Usher’s “Looking 4 Myself” rebounds twenty-three places to No.57, and with The xx debuting at No.2 this week, their self-titled debut album also jumps up twenty-three places to No.66.
Returning albums this week come from Far East Movement at No.83 with “Dirty Bass” (HP-37), Marina & The Diamonds at No.90 with “Electra Heart” (HP-32); “Little Broken Hearts” (HP-5) for Norah Jones at No.91, and Jay-Z and Kanye return at No.96 with “Watch the Throne” (HP-2)
There are two new entries in the lower fifty this week, with Canadian punk-rock band Propagandi debuting at No.61 with “Failed States”, their sixth studio album and second to chart here, as their fifth set “Supporting Caste” (HP-86) charted in March 2009.
Final new entry is at No.92, the debut album for UK band ∆ Alt-J entitled “An Awesome Wave”, the album a favorite to win this year’s Mercury Music Prize.
Gavin Ryan reports with thanks to Australian-Charts.com
The ARIA Chart is updated Sunday’s at 6pm.
Watch the Noise11.com interview with Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson.
Watch the Noise11.com interview with Marina Prior.
