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Arcade Fire are #1 (again)

Arcade Fire outside Capitol Records in LA (more by Marcus Haney)
Arcade Fire

Like they did in 2010 with The Suburbs, Arcade Fire have debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts with their new album, Reflektor. Reports Billboard:

Arcade Fire debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with “Reflektor,” selling 140,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

This is the band’s second No. 1 album. It also bowed atop the list with its last set, 2010’s “The Suburbs.” However, that record started with a slightly larger figure: 156,000.

“Reflektor” is distributed by Universal Music Group, the band’s first album with major distribution. Its previous sets went through Warner Music’s indie distribution arm Alternative Distribution Alliance. Another change in the world of Arcade Fire is that it has a new partner in Capitol Records, which is promoting the album to radio. (The band is still with its longtime label Merge Records, which celebrates its sixth top 10 with “Reflektor.”)

Last week’s No. 1, Katy Perry’s “PRISM,” falls to No. 2 with 92,000 and a 68% sales decline. That second-week dip is the smallest for a No. 1 debut since August, when the Civil Wars’ self-titled album fell by 66% in its second frame. Of the 10 No. 1 debuts after that (not including Arcade Fire), the largest second-week dip was Justin Timberlake’s “The 20/20 Experience (2 of 2),” which dropped by 80%.

Arcade Fire leads six debuts in the top 10 this week, as the group is joined by a pair of Christmas releases, two new country efforts and Linkin Park’s remix album “Recharged.”

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