Since May when Billboard magazine began relying on the high-techSoundScan system to monitor retail sales, albums by two other rockgroups - Van Halen and Skid Row - have also entered the charts at thetop spot.
But it is news - and good news - when an album as daring asMetallica's new "Metallica" enters so convincingly at No. 1, selling,according to industry estimates, as many as 600,000 units in itsfirst week in stores.
That is the biggest single week sales of any album since theBillboard began using the SoundScan system and, according to themagazine's Geoff Mayfield, more than twice as many copies as theprevious single week high-seller - the Van Halen album.
Kenny Hamlin, senior vice president of sales for ElektraRecords, says that orders for the Metallica album now total 2.2million.
This dramatic sales surge of Metallica is an importantdevelopment in rock, far more so than the No. 1 entries of Van Halenand Skid Row.
Where those two bands' albums were conventional works thatshould have little impact on the direction of rock, Metallica'ssuccess may represent an important breakthrough.
Mainstream rock has been mired in recent years in a commercialand creative slump partially created by radio programmers who favorpassive pop sounds over the challenging or independent rock spiritthat was celebrated in earlier decades.
Though some '80s bands - most notably U2 - found ways to makechallenging records that also appealed to a mass audience, many ofrock's most creative outfits have become so frustrated in recentyears by the slow erosion of mainstream pop-rock vitality that theyseemed content to operate outside of that mainstream.
Metallica was a prime example, exhibiting a force on stage andon record that was so powerful the San Francisco-based groupvirtually was viewed by hard-core metal fans as the Beatles of thegenre.
Unlike the numbing repetitiveness and mindless ramblings of mostheavy-metal acts, Metallica was a group that combined stimulatingsonic assault with thoughtful themes and career integrity.
Its 1988 album, ". . . And Justice for All," stands as amasterpiece of metal - a swirling collection of long, intricatemusical soundscapes that was a triumph in almost every way - exceptfor it's virtual inaccessibility to mainstream listeners.
Though the Metallica qualities of integrity and imagination areso badly needed to help jump start mainstream rock, the band, evenafter "Justice," meant almost nothing in the larger rock community.That began changing after a video for the song "One," from the"Justice" album, started getting lots of MTV airplay.
Perhaps stimulated by the response to "One" and the challenge ofreaching a wider audience, Metallica had the courage to step out ofits metal shell with its new album. Not only did the quartet come upwith songs that are more compact and accessible, it brought inproducer Bob Rock, whose past credits - much to the horror of manymetal purists - included such pop-leaning rock outfits as Motley Crueand Bon Jovi.
Some fans - and some critics - see the new album as a stepback, a work that sacrifices too much individuality and impact. Yet,there is much to admire in "Metallica," and critics, generally, arehailing the album.
The most immediate thing about the album, as Robert Palmer notesin his Rolling Stone review, is that it may be the best sounding rockalbum in years. Rock has done a remarkable job of giving Metallicaclarity and definition without sacrificing force.
The album's songs, examining issues ranging from obligations todeceits, also stand as convincing expressions, and even JamesHetfield's singing, which often seems too close to the stiff,regimental style favored in metal, shows signs of greater emotionalrange. This is especially true in the tender "Nothing ElseMatters."
But perhaps the most exciting thing about "Metallica" is therelationship it builds between the band and mainstream rockaudiences. With albums also due shortly from Guns N' Roses and U2,this may be entering the most stimulating period for mainstream rockin years.
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