Arctic Monkeys may set a new chart record this weekend by having eighteen songs in the singles Top 200 at the same time.
The record will be aided, of course, by the change in UK chart rules at the start of the year which means that single track digital sales are now counted in the singles chart, even if there is no equivalent physical release. This means that anyone buying single tracks off either of Arctic Monkeys' two albums from chart returning download platforms - rather than downloading the albums as complete packages - are helping those songs get into the singles chart.
The band already reportedly have ten tracks off new album 'Favourite Worst Nightmare' in the Top 75, and another in the Top 120. With the hype surrounding the new album boosting digital sales of tracks from debut long player 'Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not', chart experts say the band could have 18 songs in the Top 200 by the weekend. In fact, such is the demand for Arctic Monkeys this week that reports suggest that for every seven singles being bought in the UK, one is an Arctic Monkeys track.
Commenting on the band's single selling success, HMV's chief chart cheese Gennaro Castaldo told reporters yesterday: "The Arctic Monkeys are currently on course to have a total of 18 songs in the top 200 when the next Official UK Charts are announced on Sunday. You'd probably have to go back to the heyday of the Beatles in the early-mid Sixties to find anything that could come close to matching this record".
He continued: "On the chart albums front, sales of 'Favourite Worst Nightmare' continue to power ahead. The album looks set to go through the 250,000 mark by the end of the week - making it the fastest selling album since the Arctic Monkeys' Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not'. This not only underlines the growing iconic status of the Arctic Monkeys as the UK's leading rock act, but visibly demonstrates how the recent changes to the rules governing chart eligibility have impacted on the make-up of the charts".