Slipknot Favourites For #1 Album This Week

Costumed American metal outfit Slipknot are in with the strongest chance of a number one album this week from any of the new releases.

The band have emerged from losing two members – the passing of bassist Paul Gray in 2010 and the split with drummer Joey Jordison last year – with .5 The Gray Chapter. Announced as a headliner for the 2015 Soundwave festival, the band’s guitarist Jim Root told theMusic.com.au that Gray’s death shaped this new record.

“It’s basically a song that [Shawn Crahan, percussion] had in his head from when we were at Paul’s funeral,” he said, “and it’s kind of like the music that was running through his head when we were carrying Paul in his casket because we were all – the band were all – his pall bearers.”

Midweek figures are showing that the album will be the top debut on the ARIA Albums Chart this week and is in with a strong chance of dethroning current chart topper triple j’s Like A Version. It will definitely be a top three entry.

Another top five will come from Karise Eden’s Things I’ve Done, the original The Voice Australia winner re-emerging on the scene after a self-imposed hiatus to recover from a breakdown. Old-timey blues favourite CW Stoneking appears to be a top 20 chance with his new album Gon’ Boogaloo. Husky’s Ruckers Hill is sitting outside that target.

Also debuting this weekend will be Dami I'm’s Heart Beats, Neil Diamond’s Melody Road, Ella Henderson’s Chapter One and Rickie Lee’s Dance In The Rain, all of whom should be top 20 hopes. Further down Florida Georgia Line’s Anything Goes, The Game’s Blood Moon: Year Of The Wolf and Ozzy Osbourne’s Memoirs Of A Madman will also appear.

English singer-songwriter George Ezra is seeing his album Wanted On Voyage climb the charts this week, as is Keith Urban’s The Story So Far. The remarkable story of Rodriguez’s Cold Fact continues to be written, with the album climbing the chart from 50 this week. It should scan a few copies late this week as well, so it’s hard to plot just how high it’ll get.

The Script are the big movers in the ARIA Singles Chart with their track Superheroes climbing from nine. Current number one, Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud, will take some dislodging though.

The top debut will come from Jessica Mauboy’s Can I Get A Moment?, which can hope for a top 10 entry while the Hilltop Hoods’ Cosby Sweater will rise from 26 into the top 20. Watch for moves from Alesso featuring Tove Lo’s Heroes (We Could Be) and George Ezra’s Budapest, which were 13 and 17 respectively last week.

Top 50 debuts will come from David Guetta featuring Sam Martin’s Dangerous, Marlisa’s Stand By You, Olly Murs featuring Travie McCoy’s Wrapped Up, Guy Sebastian featuring 2Chainz’s Mama Ain’t Proud and Foo Fighters’ Something From Nothing.