While it will suffer an album-to-album sales drop in the vicinity of 25-30%, Muse’s new “Drones” is still on track to rank as the week’s best-selling new album.
According to Hits Daily Double, “Drones” will move approximately 70-75,000 copies in its first week of release. Predecessor “The 2nd Law,” which launched in 2012, moved 101,000 first-week copies.
With Track Equivalent Albums (10 single sales = 1 album sale) and Streaming Equivalent Albums (1500 single streams = 1 album sale) included, the album will earn a first week consumption total in the 75-80,000 range. That should earn “Drones” the #1 spot on the revamped Billboard 200.
If “Drones” indeed reaches the apex of the Billboard 200, it will become the band’s first #1 album in the US.
Other notable newcomers:
Of Monsters and Men’s “Beneath the Skin” (55-60,000 sales | 60-65,000 total units), Rolling Stones’ “Sticky Fingers: Deluxe Edition” (28-32,000 sales | 30-35,000 total units), A Thousand Horses’ ‘Southernality” (18-21,000 sales | 20-23,000 total units)
