Tool (photo: Travis Shinn)
Tool‘s first new album in 13 years, Fear Inoculum, debuts at #1 on this week’s Billboard 200 chart, with 270,000 equivalent album units. Nielsen Music reports that 248,000 were in album sales. Fear Inoculum was only released for sale digitally or in a deluxe, limited edition CD package. Tool also had the largest total week for a Rock album on the Billboard chart in over a year. The band’s last album, 2006’s 10,000 Days, also debuted at #1.
Taylor Swift‘s Lover falls to #2 with 178,000 equivalent album units in its second week on the chart. The second-biggest debut of the week comes from Lana Del Rey with Norman F***ing Rockwell, which earned 104,000 equivalent album units (66,000 in album sales). Her last release, 2017’s Lust for Life, debuted at #1 with 107,000 units.
At #4 is another debut, with rapper Lil Tecca and his first album We Love You Tecca. The vast majority of Lil Tecca’s equivalent album units came from streaming data. Billboard notes his hit single “Ran$om” has been #1 on their streaming songs chart for two weeks.
The rest of the top ten is filled out by Young Thug (#5), Lizzo (#6), Billie Eilish (#7), Chris Brown (#8), Ed Sheeran (#9) and Travis Scott (#10).
