System "Hypnotizes" Charts

There's no bucking the System.

System of a Down has made chart history, becoming the first band to debut two different studio albums at number one in the Billboard 200 in the same calendar year. Holding back former chart-topper Kenny Chesney, the L.A.-based outfit's Hypnotize was the biggest selling album of last week, moving 320,000 first-week copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Only two other acts have accomplished such a two-fer since the inception of the Billboard 200 chart in 1983. The Beatles landed the compilation albums Anthology 2 and Anthology 3 on top in 1996 and rapper DMX accomplished the feat in 1998 with his first two solo albums, It's Dark and Hell Is Hot and Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood, but SOAD s the first band to achieve the mark with studio albums.

Hypnotize is the second installment in System's song cycle that began with May's Mesmerize. That disc opened at number one with a more robust 453,000 copies. With a boost from the Hypnotize release hype last week, Mezmerize sold 20,000 more, climbing 21 spots to 97; it has now moved 1.5 million copies.

System's bow marked the 11th straight week that a different album debuted at number one. Not suprisingly, three former chart champs held down the three places: Kenny Chesney's The Road and the Radio at two, Now That's What I Call Music! 20 at three and Madonna's Confessions on a Dancefloor at four.

Aside from Hypnotize, three other discs also made Top 10 debuts. Enya's first studio album in five years, Amarantine, sold over 178,000 at eight. Harlem-born rapper Juelz Santana followed at nine, selling 141,000 copies of What The Game's Been Missing!. And Texas rapper Chamillionaire furthered the notion that Houston's the next Atlanta as The Sound of Revenge sold 129,000 copies in the 10 spot.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, this week's Top 10 included plenty of leftovers: the Fiddy-fueled Get Rich or Die Tryin' soundtrack at five, Mariah Carey's The Emancipation of Mimi at six and Carrie Underwood's Some Hearts at seven.

Just missing the Top 10 was Reba McEntire's hits collection Reba #1s. The disc, featuring the new tracks "You're Gonna Be" and "Love Needs a Holiday,"opened at 12 with 117,000.

Former Creed frontman Scott Stapp debuted at 19 with 94,000 copies of his first official solo album, The Great Divide. These sales numbers pale in comparison to past debuts by Creed, whose last studio album, Weathered, sold 887,000 first-week copies and held the top spot for eight straight weeks. Stapp's solo sales also trailed the opening figures for his ex-Creed mates, whose band Alter Bridge moved 95,000 copies of its debut, One Day Remains, to open at number five in 2004.

Capitalizing on the holiday shopping season, Nelly combined his Sweat and Suit albums into a single condensed disc, Sweatsuit, which debuted at 26 on 64,000 copies sold. The original albums, released separately, debuted in the top two spots in September '04.

The John Mayer Trio's Try!, recorded at the House of Blues earlier this year, marks the Grammy-winning singer's new full-band effort. The blues-tinged album of new material sold nearly 50,000 copies at 34.

While Linkin Park albums are usually locks to debut at number one, Linkin rapper Mike Shinoda fell far short with his new solo project, Fort Minor. The group's Rising Tied sold just 28,000 copies at 60. But those are superstar figures compared to Britney Spears' B in the Mix: The Remixes, which sold a woeful 14,000 copies at 134 after Spears chose not to promote it. The disc flopped so badly that one would think scrubby hubby Kevin Federline did the remixes.

Other noteworthy debuts included the Rolling Stones' Rarities 1971-2003 at 76, Michael Bublé's live disc Caught in the Act at 82, Talib Kweli's Right About Now at 113, Sin Bandera's Manana at 170, Billy Joel's My Lives box set at 171, Anita Baker's Christmas Fantasy at 181 and Queens of the Stone Age's CD/DVD combo Over the Years and Through the Woods at 186.

The holiday weekend traditionally provides a sales boost, and this year is no exception: Album sales were up 30 percent over the previous week. Overall sales were off 10 percent from last year's Thanksgiving week, but year-to-date figures are still 13 percent higher over 2004. .

Here's a recap of the Top 10 albums for the week ended Sunday:

1. Hypnotize, System of a Down
2. The Road and the Radio, Kenny Chesney
3. Now That's What I Call Music! 20, various
4. Confessions on a Dancefloor, Madonna
5. Get Rich or Die Tryin' soundtrack, various
6. The Emancipation of Mimi, Mariah Carey
7. Some Hearts, Carrie Underwood
8. Amarantine, Enya
9. What The Game's Been Missing!, Juelz Santana
10. The Sound of Revenge, Chamillionaire