Kings Of Leon, Drake and Jessie J go head-to-head in albums race

Kings Of Leon lock horns with Drake and Jessie J in the race to top this week’s Official Albums Chart.

Kings Of Leon, Drake and Jessie J are currently battling it out in the race to score this week’s Official Number 1 album.

While sales remain incredibly close at this mid-way stage, Kings Of Leon (pictured above) have taken an early lead with their sixth album Mechanical Bull (Number 1). Should the Tennessee rockers manage to remain in pole position right through to Sunday’s final whistle, it will be their fourth UK chart topper.

Drake is on course for his highest charting album to date with Nothing Was The Same at Number 2 (the Canadian rapper’s previous career best was 2011’s Take Care, which peaked at Number 5). Jessie J debuts today at Number 3 with her second album, Alive, featuring the star’s recent Top 5 hits, Wild and It’s My Party.

To find out where Kings Of Leon, Drake and Jessie J finally chart, tune into the Official Chart Show on BBC Radio 1 from 4pm on Sunday, and log on to www.officialcharts.com at 7pm to see the UK’s Official Top 100 biggest selling albums of the week in full.

Meanwhile, reigning Official Albums Chart leaders Arctic Monkeys fall three places to Number 4 with AM, while Jason Derulo rounds off today’s Top 5 with his third album, Tattoos (5).

New Entries

In addition to Kings Of Leon (Number 1), Drake (2), Jessie J (3) and Jason Derulo (5), there are ten further new entries on today’s Official Albums Chart Update.

Scottish electro pop trio Chvrches are new in at Number 6 today with their debut album, The Bones Of What You Believe, followed by 17-year-old singer/songwriter Birdy, with her second album, Fire Within (7).

US metallers Dream Theater are on course for their highest charting UK album to date with their eponymous twelfth studio offering (9), while Sting looks set to enter a few places behind them with The Last Ship (11), his first new solo release in almost a decade.

Mazzy Star’s Seasons Of Your Day is fresh in at Number 17, while New Model Army’s Between Dog And Wolf and the 20th anniversary edition of Nirvana’s iconic In Utero album enter at 19 and 20, respectively.

This week’s new entries are completed by Roy Harper’s Man & Myth (Number 24), Anathema’s Universal (37) and Thunder’s Live At Donington 1990 & 1992 (38).

The Official Albums Chart Update Top 40 is as follows. The Official Albums Chart Top 100 will be posted in full, here, on Sunday at 7pm.

© 2013 Official Charts Company. All rights reserved.