Well, the Pauses must be feeling pretty good. Not only did their first album debut at #2 on the charts at Park Ave, but it debuted on the same chart as a Dismemberment Plan record. I’d say that must feel pretty good for those guys. One odd note on this week’s chart: Albert King & Stevie Ray Vaughan? I mean, I remember when I worked in music retail that album selling pretty consistently, but did STEVIE RAY die again?
- Cake – Showroom Of Compassion (Upbeat)
- The Pauses – A Cautionary Tale (New Granada)
- Cage The Elephant – Thank You, Happy Birthday (Red Ink)
- Tapes ‘N Tapes – Outside (Ibid)
- Mumford & Sons – Sigh No More (Glassnote)
- Deerhunter – Halcyon Digest (4AD)
- Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Def Jam)
- Florence & The Machine – Lungs (Universal)
- The Black Keys – Brothers (Nonesuch)
- Jimmy Eat World – Invented (Geffen)
- Vampire Weekend – Contra (XL)
- Ratatat – LP4 (XL)
- Explosions In The Sky – The Earth Is Not A Cold… (Temporary Residence)
- Interpol – Interpol (Matador)
- Dismemberment Plan – Emergency & I (LP Reissue) (Barsuk)
- Arcade Fire – The Suburbs (Merge)
- Kylesa – Spiral Shadow (Season Of Mist)
- Trombone Shorty – Backatown (Verve)
- Abigail Washburn – City Of Refuge (Rounder)
- Obits – I Blame You (Sub Pop)
- Nine Inch Nails – Pretty Hate Machine [2010 Remaster] (Null Corp.)
- Flying Lotus – Cosmogramma (Warp)
- Albert King & Stevie Ray Vaughan / In Session (Stax)
- Matt & Kim / Sidewalks (Fader)
- Shadow Shadow Shade / Shadow Shadow Shade (Public Records)
This article appears in Jan 19-25, 2011.