Album Sweep: February 9, 2013 - Part One...

It's time to bring out the first part of this week's "album sweep", where I sample the new records making the Top-200 Albums sales chart in Billboard magazine. Like always, I've included links to buy anything you like on AmazonMP3, but please get your butt to an indie store if you can.

The big winner this week is Californian country troubadour Gary Allan, who debuts at #1 with his ninth studio album, Set You Free, and selling over 100,000 copies. It's his first chart-topper on the big list, and the second country #1 album after Tough All Over in 2005. He also has the biggest song on country radio with "Every Storm (Runs Out Of Rain)", so I'm doubly chuffed...

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This year's version of the award show previews, 2013 Grammy Nominees, enters at #4 this week. It has few surprises, with selections from Gotye, Pink, Kelly Clarkson, Ed Sheeran, Adele, and more, but there are a few nuggets the general public may have missed like Jack White, Frank Ocean, and Alabama Shakes...

Coming in right under the top-10 at #11 is country singer (and major hunk) Randy Houser with his third (and biggest so far) album, How Country Feels. It has last week's #1 country single, the title track, on it....

Veteran SoCo punk-rock band Bad Religion are back at #19 with their 16th studio album True North. Their last four albums reached the top-40 on the albums chart, but this by far is the biggest...

Christian rock powerhouses Casting Crowns arrive at #35 with The Acoustic Sessions (Volume One), featuring "unplugged" versions of previous tracks. It follows their recent #2 album, Come To The Well...

Gospel veteran Kurt Carr & The Kurt Carr Singers debut at #43 with Bless This House, his seventh record. Besides his own group, he's worked with gospel greats like Andre Crouch, James Cleveland, and Kirk Franklin...

Alt-metal band Trapt return at #44 with their fifth studio set, Reborn. They have had two albums reach the top-20, with 2005's Someone In Control reaching #14.

Soul legend Aaron Neville is also back with his first studio album in seven years, My True Story, at #45. This retro-styled album, with Keith Richards and Don Was sitting in the producers' chair, has cameos from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. Since his debut solo album in 1965, Aaron has reached the top-40 on the album chart twice, with his classic 1993 platinum album The Grand Tour and 2007's Bring It On Home...

Welsh modern rock band the Joy Formidable take their sophomore set to #51. Wolf's Law is their first time on the big chart...

Cincinnati-based indie-rock group Walk The Moon made it to #36 with their self-titled debut album, and now their Tightrope EP featured the latest single from that set and other goodies comes in at #54. Now this is the way to get your music out in the land of "the digital single". It includes a live cover of the Talking Heads' "Burning Down The House" as well...

"Chillwave" master Toro Y Moi (real name Chazwick Bundick) slides in at #60 with his third full-length album, Anything In Return....

That's it for the first half, and there is something good about everything here, but to really pick my three I'd go with the Aaron Neville, Bad Religion, and Joy Formidable sets (though really everything here is top-notch, that's what I love about winter music releases).

I'll be back tomorrow with part two, with music from Ra Ra Riot, Tim McGraw, and more, but before that, tonight I'll recap what's going on in Britain. See ya there!