Dave Matthews Band Had the Biggest Rock Album Debut in 2018
Rock music's commercial position was at the center of many debates in 2018 and this may be one of the year's most interesting stats. Dave Matthews Band's first album since 2012, Come Tomorrow, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart with a total of 292,000 album-equivalent units. (Of that set, 285,000 were traditional sales.) It was the biggest sales week for a rock album in four years.
To put the feat into context, the nearest "traditional rock" release to the Matthews Band was Breaking Benjamin's new LP, Ember, which sold a total of 88,000 units in its debut week. (80,000 were traditional units.) Right behind that was Greta Van Fleet's impressive debut LP, Anthem of the Peaceful Army, with 87,000 equivalent units sold in its first week (80,000 were traditional units for that set as well).
It's worth noting that Matthews capitalized on an album-ticket bundle to bolster their first-week numbers. Any fan who bought a concert ticket was given the option to redeem a copy of Come Tomorrow. Many artists have begun utilizing this tactic in recent years.
Behind Matthews in 2018 came Mumford and Sons' Delta album, which moved a total of 230,000 units. (214,000 were traditional units.) Additionally, Panic! at the Disco, Paul McCartney, Twenty One Pilots, Jack White and Fall Out Boy all placed between Matthews and Breaking Benjamin.
With 2019 shaping up to be rock and metal's biggest year in recent memory, it will be interesting to see what numbers Slipknot, Rammstein and (hopefully) Tool, among others, will put up. Take a look below at over 50 bands who will be releasing new albums next year.
2019’s Most Anticipated Hard Rock + Metal Albums