Metallica’s Album Jumps Nearly 7,000% In Sales

Metallica recently re-released its album Load, offering a super deluxe edition to fans who just can’t get enough of the band’s music. The project was expanded to include previously unreleased demos and live recordings, and even a book for those who opted for the physical version. Sales of the decades-old collection skyrocketed following the exciting drop, turning it into a Billboard chart success yet again.

Load Rises 6,900% in Sales

In the past tracking period in the United States, Load sold 12,100 copies (according to Luminate), and that sum marks a dramatic increase from the period before. In the prior week, Load sold only a little less than 200 copies, just before Metallica re-released it. That growth represents a surge of a little more than 6,900% from one frame to the next. That’s the kind of spike that can usually only be experienced when a group delivers something exciting – such as a new deluxe version of an album – or a major news event unfolds, like the passing of a musician.

100 Weeks as a Bestseller

That uptick in pure purchases turns Load into a bestseller once again on multiple tallies. This week, the set reenters the Top Album Sales chart at No. 4. It’s a special frame on that ranking, as Load has now spent 100 weeks as one of the top-selling titles in America.

Load’s New All-Time Peak

At the same time, Metallica’s project breaks back onto the Vinyl Albums roster at No. 12. Load has only ever appeared on that wax-focused ranking once before, and No. 12 now stands as its all-time peak.

Load Debuts on Multiple Billboard Charts

Metallica also debuts Load on four other rankings, ones that are not focused entirely on purchases. The 1996 project hits, for the first time, the Top Hard Rock Albums (No. 4), Top Alternative Albums (No. 6), Top Rock Albums (No. 13), and Top Rock & Alternative Albums charts (No. 14).

Metallica Returns its Classic to the Billboard 200

Load is also back on the Billboard 200, thanks almost exclusively to all those thousands of sales. Metallica’s album moved 14,200 equivalent units, with only about 2,000 of those coming from any type of consumption that wasn’t fans buying the full project.