Eminem and The Courteeners are locked in battle for this week's UK Number 1 album, with just 2,000 chart sales separating the two in the latest Official Chart Update.
The Courteeners are currently in the lead at Number 1 with their sixth studio album and first in four years More. Again. Forever., followed by Eminem's Music To Be Murdered By at Number 2. The Courteeners have never reached the top spot before but have charted inside the Top 10 with all of their previous albums.
Eminem’s surprise-released eleventh album could extend his chart record, should it climb to the top spot by Friday (Jan 24). Eminem has the most consecutive Number 1 albums in UK chart history, landing nine chart-topping albums in a row, most recently with 2018's Kamikaze.
Eminem’s last nine albums have all entered straight in at the top spot of the Official Albums Chart, in fact the last act to successfully block the rapper from Number 1 in release week was Whitney Houston some 20 years ago with her 2000 Greatest Hits collection. See all of Eminem’s singles and albums and where they charted.
Three songs from Eminem’s album are set to enter this week’s Official Singles Chart Top 40: Godzilla ft. Juice Wrld is battling Stormzy’s Own It for Number 1, while Ed Sheeran collaboration Those Kinda Nights and Darkness are proving popular.
Another indie band making a grand return this week are Bombay Bicycle Club. After a six-year absence, the London quartet have released their fifth album Everything Else Has Gone Wrong, and it currently sits at Number 3.
Elsewhere in the Top 10, US singer-songwriter Halsey starts at Number 5 with her third album Manic, Louise's comeback album Heavy Love - her first record in 20 years - is currently at Number 7, and posthumous Mac Miller album Circles is at Number 9.
Further down, British singer-songwriter Gabrielle Aplin is at 11 with Dear Happy, her first album in five years; UK drill rapper DigDat opens at 13 with his first album Ei8ht Mile; R.Y.C by multi-instrumentalist Mura Masa is at 14; and Michael Kiwanuka's Kiwanuka rebounds 49 places to 15 following his appearance on BBC's The Graham Norton Show.
Elsewhere, Birmingham rockers Magnum are Number 16 with 21st album The Serpent Rings, and US metal supergroup Sons of Apollo could land their first UK Top 40 album with MMXX, currently at Number 32.
