Royal Blood score fastest-selling rock debut in three years

Brighton rock duo Royal Blood top this week’s Official Albums Chart with their self-titled album, scoring the UK’s fastest selling British rock debut in three years!

Royal Blood have sold nearly 66,000 copies in the past seven days, the highest tally for a rock debut since Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds’ eponymous release in October 2011.

The duo – consisting of bassist/singer Mike Kerr and drummer Ben Thatcher – have gained increasing popularity following a string of summer festival sets including Download, Glastonbury, T in the Park and Reading and Leeds, as well as a stint supporting Arctic Monkeys at their Finsbury Park shows back in May.

Their chart success this week doesn't stop at a Number 1 album either; as Little Monster dominates in pole position on the Rock & Metal Singles Chart too.

Elsewhere, Ed Sheeran spends his tenth week in the Top 5 with X (Number 2), as US singer/songwriter Ariana Grande scores a personal best with new album My Everything (3). My Everything is Ariana’s second Top 10 album on our shores, following 2013 debut Yours Truly which peaked at Number 7.

Britain’s Got Talent winners Collabro slide three places to Number 4 with their debut Stars, while Sam Smith’s In The Lonely Hour is at 5.

New Entries and High Climbers

There are five new entries and eight re-entries in this week’s Official Albums Chart Top 40.

Swedish metallers Opeth score their highest charting album to date with 11th studio album Pale Communion (14), while South London dance duo Basement Jaxx score their 7th Top 40 with Junto (30).

London-based folk rock band Dry The River are at Number 31 with their second studio album Alarms In The Heart, while US country star Brad Paisley’s Moonshine In The Trunk is at 34.

Thanks to a 10th anniversary deluxe edition, Avenged Sevenfold’s 2003 release Walking The Fallen makes it’s Top 40 debut this week at Number 35.

Following the start of her critically acclaimed run of Before The Dawn stage shows, Kate Bush has become the first female in UK chart history to score eight simultaneous Official Albums Chart Top 40s. Click here for more details on this.

After the announcement of new single with Jamie Cullum, Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood, Gregory Porter’s Liquid Spirit (23) re-enters the Top 40 while Iggy Azalea’s VMA performance last weekend has seen her debut LP The New Classic jump 26 places to Number 23.

The Official Albums Chart Top 10 is as follows. Click here to see the Official Albums Chart Top 100 in full after 7pm.

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