These last six weeks of NACC Charts have given us an interesting back-and-forth battle for #1 between Arlo Parks and Bully. And as the dust has settled, both artists have ended up being as diplomatic about their time at the top as possible (not that they are trying to do that!) But Arlo Parks spent three non-consecutive weeks at #1 and now Bully has accomplished the same feat. Bully, a solo project for Nashville-based Alicia Bognanno, grabs that third week at #1 and maintains roughly the same lead she had last week over Parks with her fourth LP, Lucky For You (Sub Pop).
Both artists are losing ground though over the next tier of artists behind them so a brand new #1 isn’t out of the question next week. Time will tell. In the meantime, Bully matches the three-week #1 run that her previous album also enjoyed. She also spends a fourth week at #1 on NACC NEXT, tying her with Gorillaz for the longest chart-topping run there so far this year.
We have the freshest NACC Top 20 in ages with the oldest albums being the Arlo Parks and Bully releases. We can’t recall a time the Top 20 had no albums older than seven weeks old on it. Two of those fresh albums reach all the way to the NACC Top 10 this week and both make big moves in doing so. Lawrence, KS duo Sweeping Promises jumps 49-10. But it’s last week’s ‘most-added’ champ, PJ Harvey, that makes the biggest climb, sailing from #95 (where she debuted last week) to #9 with her tenth LP, I Inside The Old Year Dying (Partisan), giving her one of the Top 5 biggest climbs into the Top 10 so far this year. Those eager to see Harvey live stateside will need to be patient as her current schedule has her focus on festival dates this summer and a fall tour that keeps her in Europe throughout.
The week’s biggest climb on the NACC 200 belongs to Swedish electronic quartet Little Dragon. The band formed in Gothenburg in 1996, with three of the four members meeting in high school. Slugs Of Love is Little Dragon’s seventh LP and their second on Ninja Tune. It soars 171 spots, rising 193-22 this week, giving them the second-biggest climb on the NACC 200 this year (Youth Lagoon holds the title with their 173 spot climb a few weeks ago). Slugs Of Love also reaches the Top 10 at NACC Electronic, racing 26-8.
After an eight-year hiatus, Antony And The Johnsons is back, though now called Anohni And The Johnsons as lead singer Anohni had previously announced her name change and elaborated on her views of being transgender in 2016. After releasing four Antony And The Johnson releases between 1995 and 2015, Anohni put out two solo releases after the band’s dissolution. The band’s fifth LP, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross (Secretly Canadian) is this week’s highest debut, opening at #33 and the first new music from Anohni since her 2017 EP, Paradise, and the band’s first release since 2010.
The battle for the most-added album this week could not have been closer. Coming out one Top 10 Add ahead of Claud Metz (who records as Claud) was Palehound. The trio formed in 2013 after lead singer and Connecticut-native El Kempner moved to New York City. Eye On The Bat (Polyvinyl) is the band’s fourth LP and first since 2019. In addition to collecting 51 Top 10 Adds this week their album pops onto the NACC 200 at #186 so expect quite a sizable jump there next week.
The tantalizing pairing of Beck And Phoenix has resulted in the single “Odyssey.” Co-headlining a tour together this summer that begins August 1 will no doubt result in a baton-passing when they perform the song together. They spend a second week atop the NACC Singles Chart this week. More singles that usual appear on this week’s NACC 200 Top 30 Adds Chart, no doubt due to the slate of high profile new releases. The Hives, Yard Act, Vacations, Declan McKenna, and Jamila Woods all make an appearance. But it’s Los Angeles trio Cherry Glazerr that grabs the most Top 10 Adds this week with their new single “Soft Like A Flower.” The song has introduced the band’s fourth album, I Don’t Like You Anymore, due September 29.
The current NACC 200 Top 20, the Top 5 overall NACC Adds, the genre chart-toppers, and the week’s most-added genre records are included below. There are new chart-toppers this week at Heavy & R&B/Soul.
