Australian Albums: 5 Seconds of Fame's Luke Hemmings Debut Album Is No 1

Lead singer for 5 Seconds of Summer Luke Hemmings sees his debut solo album “When Facing the Thing We Turn Away from” debut at No.1 on the ARIA Albums Chart this week.

“When Facing the Thing We Turn Away from” (Sony Australia) becomes the 922nd No.1 Album in Australia (1965 to 2021), the 772nd chart-topping album for ARIA (1983 to 2021), the 22nd No.1 for 2021, the 558th to debut at No.1 and the 31st for Sony Music while it’s their third for 2021 after Illy in January and Delta Goodrem in May. It’s also the first debut album to enter at the No.1 spot this decade for a local Solo Male Artist and the last such chart feat occurred on May 27th, 2019 for Conrad Sewell and his first album “LIFE” (1 week).

Overall this is the fifth appearance at No.1 in Australia for Luke, as his band 5SOS had four No.1 Albums in 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2020 with their first four albums, making it now five consecutive No.1 (studio) albums for Luke, while he landed a sixth Top 10 entry for the band’s live album “LiveSOS” (HP-7, Dec. 2014). For 2021 this is also the twelfth No.1 Album for an Australian artist, with the last being the Jungle Giants at the start of August, while this new No.1 set becomes the 263rd overall by an Australian Act (solo male or female, duo, group) and Luke becomes the 126nd Australian Artist to hit the top Albums spot plus also the 33rd Australian Solo Male Artist to take out a No.1 Album, while for overall Solo Male Acts (local or overseas) his album is the 262nd to hit No.1 and the sixth for 2021 after Barry Gibb and Illy (both in Jan.) The Kid Laroi (Feb.), Justin Bieber (March-April-May 1 week in each month) and Jimmy Barnes (July).

For the words in the albums title, this is the fifth ‘When’, the last being a similarly long titled album for Billie Eilish “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go” (8 broken weeks from April 2019), the fourth ‘Thing’ (last being Michael Bolton in 1994) and the fourth ‘Away’ (last was Vance Joy in Sept. 2014). The eleventh time that the word ‘From’ has graced a No.1 Album title (the last was in 2020 for ‘Music from the Home Front’ in late June), the second ‘Turn’ (only other one was The Black Keys in May 2014) and the first for the word ‘Facing’ (one Face previously for Westlife in 2006).

Spending a thirteenth week within the Top 2 is the debut album for Olivia Rodrigo and “SOUR”, which is stable at No.2 this week, as too is Doja Cat’s “Planet Her”, a non-mover at No.3, claiming a fifth week at it’s peak of No.3, while the album rises to No.1 in New Zealand this week. After two weeks at No.1, the second Billie Eilish album “Happier Than Ever” drops down this week three spots to land at No.4, while the set remains for a second week at the top in both America and Canada.

Down one spot to No.5 is the Kid Laroi set “F**k Love”, while he logs a sixth week at No.1 on the singles chart with “Stay” this week. The new No.1 album in England this week, and their seventh consecutive #1 there, is the new entry at No.6 here for The Killers’ seventh studio album “Pressure Machine”, which arrives 51 weeks after their third No.1 Album entry “Imploding the Mirage” (1 week on 31st of August, 2020). By entering at No.6 it also becomes the band’s ninth Top 10 entry from seven studio albums and two best of collections.

Two further albums claiming another week within the Top 10 are Dua Lipa with “Future Nostalgia” down two spots to No.7, while she is also sitting at No.7 over on the singles chart with a new entry alongside Elton John called “Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)”, with another dropping album in The Weeknd’s collection “The Highlights”, down three places to No.9.

Two further Top 10 entries occur at No.8 and No.10; coming in at No.8 are local Sydney act Polish Club with their third studio album and now first Top 10 placement called “Now We’re Cookin'”, with their previous two entries being “Alright Already” (LP#1, HP-19, April 2017) and “Iguana” (LP#2, HP-20, June 2019). Followed at No.10 by another act with their third album and first Top 10 placement, English act Jungle and “Loving in Stereo”, which also became their highest charted album in their homeland (TW-3). Previously they entered the charts here with “Jungle” (LP#1, HP-20, July 2014) and “For Ever” (LP#2, HP-28, Sept. 2018).

UP:
TOP 20: Thanks to a Top 10 debut on the singles chart for the first time in sixteen years for Elton John, his collection “Diamonds” jumps back up five places to No.13, with the only other Top 20 climber being “Rumours” for Fleetwood Mac, back up two to No.20 as a dance remix of “Dreams” also climbs into the Top 20 singles chart this week at No.18.
TOP 30: The only two climbing albums within the Top 30 are back-to-back this week, with Eminem and his “Curtain Call: The Hits” set rising five to No.21, followed by Pop Smoke’s first release “Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon” back up two to No.22.
TOP 40: After falling from 11 to No.36 last week, the latest John Mayer album “Sob Rock” turns back around and rises three spots this week to No.33. There are two eight place rebounds back into the forty this week for Amy Shark and “Cry Forever” (44 to No.36) and the self-titled Dua Lipa album from No.48 to No.40.
TOP 50: There’s a three place rise to No.43 for Post Malone and “Hollywood’s Bleeding”, a four spot move to No.46 for the Green Day “Greatest Hits: God’s Favourite Band”, five places for the Pitbull “Greatest Hits” (52 to No.47) and an eight place jump to No.50 for Foo Fighters GH’s set.

DOWN:
TOP 20: The first two of four Top 10 dropouts sees “Justice” (HP-1×3, WI10-20) for Justin Bieber down three to No.11 and “Fine Line” (HP-1×3, WI10-73) for Harry Styles dipping two to No.12. Three albums which rebounded last week drop back down this week for Luke Combs’ second set (11 to No.14), Lewis Capaldi (12 to No.14) and the first Billie Eilish studio album (13 to No.17).
TOP 30: Taylor Swift’s “folklore” set falls eight places to No.25, while last week’s highest new entry for Youngn Lipz with “Area Baby” (HP-7, WI10-1) falls twenty places this week to land at No.27, followed by a nine place tumble to No.29 for the second Pop Smoke set “Faith”.
TOP 40: Barbra Streisand and “Release Me 2” is another twenty-place dropping album, down to No.35 this week after entering at No.15 last week, while the Jungle Giants see a twenty-three place fall to No.39 for their recent No.1 set “Love Signs”.
TOP 50: A second (of three) dropping albums for Taylor Swift sees her “evermore” set fall seven spots to No.42, while her “Lover” album leaves the Top 50 this week and is spending it’s second year within the Top 100 this week (104 weeks). After rebounding ten places last week, this week the INXS “Very Best of” is back down twelve places to No.45, while Tones and I’s debut album “Welcome to the Madhouse” plummets twenty-one spots to No.48. The fourth and final Top 10 dropout is the 50th Anniversary Edition of the George Harrison album “All Things Must Pass”, which leaves the Top 50 from last weeks No.9 spot, with other new entries from last week to depart being for Nas (#28), May-A (#31), Tom Cardy (#40) and the recent Prince set (#37).

FURTHER NEW ENTRIES:
* #18 (LP#2) – Long Term Effects of Suffering by $uicideBoy$ (G59 Records) is the second album and now second entry for the American rap-punk duo who saw their debut effort “I Want to Die in New Orleans” debut and peak at No.10 here in mid-September of 2018.

* #28 (LP#4) – Good Things by Dan + Shay (Warner Nashville) is the first new album from the country duo of Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney in over three years, plus it now becomes their third albums chart entry in Australia after “Obsessed” (LP#2, HP-91, 2016) and their self-titled third album which debuted and peaked at No.15 in early July of 2018.

*ARIA Chart info is based on sales for the week from the 13th to the 19th of August, 2021.