NEILSTEIN SOUNDSCAM: A SCURRILOUS JOURNEY DOWN I-5

That headline doesn’t even make sense. So what? Seven of the Top 10 Hard Music albums on this week’s Soundscam charts are actually new(ish) releases! And only one is a greatest hits! Hallelujah!

Rise Against continued to dominate, while new releases by Soundgarden (sorta), Protest the Hero, Born of Osiris and Tesseract sold well. A bunch of other records came out, too (uhhh… Saliva, uhh…. CKY, uhhh… Straight Line Stitch) and some solid sellers from weeks past remained on the charts. Numbers after the break.

1 RISE AGAINST – ENDGAME
Last week: 21,491
Cume: 106,522

Some one please tell me if this band is good or not? Because I honestly have no idea and they’ve been #1 two weeks in a row. Any heavy band that sells this many records in this day and age is probably not that good, but just in case, let a brotha know.

2 SOUNDGARDEN – LIVE ON I-5
Last week: 11,002 (debut)

Oh yeah… this came out.

4 PROTEST THE HERO – SCURRILOUS
Last week: 6,750 (debut)

This number likely obliterates the first week total of Fortress. Lest you forget, no one in the metal community knew who the fuck this band was before Fortress was released.

5 SALIVA – UNDER YOUR SKIN
Last week: 6,537 (debut)

Oh yeah… this band exists.

7 SKILLET – AWAKE AND REMIXED
Last week: 5,824 (debut)

Oh yeah… people really like this band.

8 BORN OF OSIRIS – DISCOVERY
Last week: 4,813 (debut)

Ash Avildsen’s advertising campaign anti-piracy message must’ve worked!!

9 ART OF DYING – VICES AND VIRTUES
Last week: 4,803 (debut)

Who? Oh. I would’ve really liked this kind of music in 2002. How are bands like this still getting signed?

28 STRAIGHT LINE STITCH – FIGHT OF OUR LIVES
Last week: 2,723 (debut)

Oh yeah… doo-doo heads really like this band.

31 HALESTORM – REANIMATE: THE COVERS EP
Last week: 2,573 (debut)

I’m not sure what ya’ll think of Halestorm, but this EP has covers of Skid Row’s “Slave to the Grind” and GN’R’s “Out Ta Get Me.” Ballsy choices for a ballsy (sans-balls) singer.

36 CHILDREN OF BODOM – RELENTLESS, RECKLESS FOREVER
Last week: 2,304
Cume: 17,352

I like Bodom and would love to hear this album. I’ll bet it sounds like Bodom!

57 CKY – B-SIDES & RARITIES
Last week: 1,747 (debut)

Oh yeah… 1,747 people still like this band.

63 MASTODON –  LIVE AT THE ARAGON
Last week: 1,683
Cume: 8,894

Don’t let this number deter you; when they release actual new music, the masses will flock.

65 EMMURE – SPEAKER OF THE DEAD
Last week: 1,636
Cume: 21,059

My speaker sounds dead when I listen to this, amirite????

72 AS BLOOD RUNS BLACK – INSTINCT
Last week: 1,543
Cume: 6,274

…

96 TESSERACT – ONE
Last week: 1,167 (debut)

Not sure what to make of this. Is this a good number? Is it weak? Were they in fact late to the party? Good band regardless.

-VN