Billboard 200: Dropkick Murphys Debut at No. 8

In another slow January sales week, Dropkicks Murphys earn the highest debut on the Billboard 200 with 11 Short Stories of Pain & Glory landing at no. 8. 

The January blues are the best way to characterize albums sales (and impact) and the Billboard 200 chart.  After topping the Billboard 200 last week, The Weeknd spends his third nonconsecutive week at no. 1 with Starboy.  Starboy didn’t ignite the charts with its 63,000 units, but it was good enough to top the charts once more.

Following The Weeknd, the soundtrack for La La Land is the big story, ascending to a new peak position of no. 2.  In regards to the total picture (sales, streams, etc.), La La Land didn’t even come close to threatening Starboy.  42,000 units is a far cry from 63,000.  However, according to Billboard, La La Land sold enough albums to top the sales chart. That total was nothing to “write home about” at 30,000 copies (~70% of total impact). Sheesh!

One low-profile new release gets some top 10 love, hence, earning the headline for this write-up.  Dropkick Murphys start at no. 8 with 11 Short Stories of Pain & Glory.  The numbers aren’t sexy – to the tune of 26,000 units.  Of that total, a robust (contextually) 92% are pure sales.  The ceiling looks pretty low…

The rest of the top 10 is characterized by familiar faces, some of which rebound back into the chart’s upper echelon.  Expectedly, the Moana soundtrack, Bruno Mars (24K Magic), J. Cole (4 Your Eyez Only), Hamilton, and Drake (Views) retain spots in the top 10.  Down the list, Chris Stapleton (Traveller) and Post Malone (Stoney) rebound.  As to how Post Malone rebounded…well, never mind.

So, who’s got next on the Billboard 200? The xx (I See You) and PnB Rock (GTTM: Goin’ Thru the Motions)  released new albums.  Also, new offerings arrived from The Flaming Lips (Oczy Mlody) and Danny Gokey (Rise).  That said, do any of these new releases scream definitive HIT? No. Essentially, January should continue with its lethargic pace. PnB Rock does have an up-and-coming hit working in his favor though (“Selfish”).

Photo Credit: Dropkick Murphys