CHART WATCH

Taylor Swift solidifies her position atop the ARIA singles chart with her latest single ‘Blank Space’. But over on the albums side of things, a new No.1 album displaces her. It’s a rock or bust type of week (if you get the drift) on this week’s Chart Watch.

SINGLES
Yes, the No.1 position in Australia is once again filled by Taylor Swift’s ‘Blank Space’ (that sounds unintentionally smutty!?), which maintains its No.1 heading for a third straight week, in the process notching up a platinum sales accreditation after achieving gold just last week. i.e. it’s selling its pants off.
But Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars are also doing alright for themselves with their new collaboration ‘Uptown Funk’ which, after bulleting from No.11 to No.2 last week, keeps its No.2 spot and achieves a shiny new gold certification.
Even Ed Sheeran’s getting in on the accreditation act this week with his No.3 placed single ‘Thinking Out Loud’ (now three times platinum).
After a No.12 debut last week, James Newton Howard’s single ‘The Hanging Tree’, lifted from the soundtrack to the new ‘Hunger Games “Mockingjay Part 1’ film, jumps to No.5, ahead of AronChupa’s earworm ‘I’m An Albatraoz’, new at No.6 and one of only four new entries into this week’s countdown.
Taylor Swift’s other big single ‘Shake It Off’ hits the quadruple platinum mark this week (No.8) and Meghan Trainor’s freshly platinum-coloured ‘Lips Are Movin’, albeit four places lower than last week.
Charli XCX jumps ten places with her latest single ‘Break The Rules’ (No.26 to No.16), but alarm bells may be ringing in The Veronicas’s camp after they tumble 12 places from last week’s No.5 debut with latest single ‘If You Love Someone’.
Sam Smith scores another top 20 hit down under with his latest single ‘Like I Can’, which improves three from No.23.
Band Aid 30’s ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ drops 11 to No.25, Jeremih’s ‘Don’t Tell ‘Em’ jumps 13 to a new peak of No.26, but The Veronicas’ ‘You Ruin Me’ tumbles nine places to No.27.
The post-ARIAs wave of euphoria continues for Chet Faker’s single ‘Talk Is Cheap’, which bullets from No.70 to No.31. Sheppard’s ‘Geronimo’ also improves No.43 to No.33) and with a wave of his wand (also not intended to be smutty), The Magician scores a gold certification for his single ‘Sunlight’.
We’re digging ‘Real Love’, the new single from Clean Bandit. And so, it seems, is the rest of the Aussie record buying public; the track bulleting from its No.96 debut last week to a rather respectable No.37 in week number two.
Beyoncé’s ‘7/11’ is open for business in the No.41 spot (up 18 from last week’s debut), George Ezra’s ‘Blame It On Me’ jumps 42 places from last week’s No.86 debut.
Beyond the walls of the 50, like a comet, she’s back… Yes, Ms Mariah is back in chart action for another year with her evergreen Christmas classic ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ (No.60). Though it’s only ever achieved double platinum sales, it’s back every festive season; a bit like egg nog, fruit mince pies, the man in the red suit and a sudden and overwhelming desire to punch your fellow shoppers. It’s not just us.
Labrinth jumps 33 places with ‘Jealous’ (No.94 to No.61), Yolanda Be Cool & DCup’s collaboration ‘Sugar Man’ premieres at No.66, but Samantha Jade’s in trouble with ‘Sweet Talk’. Seemingly out of favour with Aussie radio networks, the song is left to falter; dropping from a No.38 debut to No.67 in week two.
‘Maybe’ by Carmada drops from No.62 to No.70, but fans of the Sydney duo maybe realised that their EP ‘Realise’ was on the way and waited to buy that instead. Maybe.
Olly Murs’ ‘Wrapped Up’ is down 16 to No.71, Waze & Odyssey & R Kelly might have to try to ‘Bump & Grind’ again next year; it’s down 21 spots.
There are two further top 100 debuts; Northlane’s ‘Rot’ sets in at No.94 and Watermät (can’t forget the diaeresis, even though that in itself sounds like something that results from eating a few too many sugar-free gummy bears). Where were we? Oh yes, that’s right… Watermät scores a top 100 debut at No.99 with ‘Bullit (So Real)’.
And on its chart trajectory, we don’t think Dean Ray’s single ‘Coming Back’ will be doing so. After just five weeks on the chart, it’s gone from the top 100, slipping more than 32 places from last week’s No.68.

ALBUMS
It’s all ‘Rock Or Bust’ over on the ARIA albums chart this week, with Aussie rockers AC/DC pouncing on the No.1 position with their new album. Surprisingly, given the country’s supposed love for their favourite hard rock icons, ‘Rock Or Bust’ only represents the band’s fifth No.1 studio album in their 40 year career. It debuts strongly, however, with a platinum certification under its belt.
Ms Swift is only off one position, but the Bubes is back for another year with his festive collection ‘Christmas’. The ten-times platinum collection of seasonal favourites marches from No.10 to No.3, with Ed Sheeran’s now triple platinum album ‘X’ in four, One Direction’s ‘Four’ in five (are you keeping up?) and Human Nature’s ‘Jukebox’ playing its top ten sounds strongly in the No.6 spot.
The week’s second highest debut is courtesy of the Justice Crew lads, who premiere in the lucky seven spot with their long-awaited long player ‘Live By The Words’.
The Veronicas are down from No.2 to No.8, the ‘Frozen’ soundtrack is stronger (now triple platinum) at No.11 and though Guy Sebastian’s album ‘Madness’ drops from a No.6 debut to No.14, the guys at Sony have done enough to sell more than 35,000 copies into stores. It’s now up to the Aussie record-buying public to do its part.
Chet Faker’s ‘iTunes Session’ is new at No.18 (just ahead of ‘Built On Glass’ at No.19), the ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy : Awesome Mix Vol.1’ rises eight spots and the new BBC compilation of classic ’80s songs covered by today’s artists (‘Sounds Of The ’80s’) is new at No.25.
Mariah once again wishes the Aussie charts ‘Merry Christmas’, a No.26 re-entry, David Guetta’s ‘Listen’ drops 17 from last week’s No.11 debut and Pentatonix scores some festive chart love with ‘That’s Christmas To Me’, which jumps 18 spots to a new peak of No.36. Wu-Tang Clan’s ‘A Better Tomorrow’ just scrapes into the top 50 on debut (No.49).
Beyond the 50, it’s a No.60 debut for Pitbull’s ‘Globalization’ (that’s what you get for spelling it with a ‘z’, we guess), a jump for Beyoncé’s self-titled album (No.99 to No.62), but a 23 place drop for Flight Facilities’ ‘Down To Earth’ (No.41 to No.64) and an even bigger drop for Iggy Azalea’s ‘Reclassified’ (No.32 on debut to No.69).
Kerser’s ‘King’ vacates the top 50 throne after just two weeks on it (No.9 on debut, No.49 last week, No.78 this week) and Knife Party’s ‘Abandon Ship’ abandons the top 50 (No.47 to No.85).
Olly Murs, meanwhile, might have ‘Never Been Better’ himself, but his Aussie album sales sure have. After a respectable No.27 debut last week, Olly’s new album slumps 65 places to No.92.
Idina Menzel’s ‘Holiday Wishes’ scrapes into the countdown at No.97 on debut, but Boyzone’s latest album (a No.43 debut last week) goes from Dublin to Detroit, then on a sharp southern trajectory to a little town called Oblivion.

For a full run down of the ARIA top 50s, head over to the ARIA CHARTS WEBSITE, now every Saturday from 6:00pm AEDT.

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