UK band The Reytons have claimed to have outsold James Arthur in album sales this week, despite placing second on the Official UK Album Chart. The South Yorkshire-based band said they sold 17,262 copies of their new album “Ballad Of A Bystander,” while Arthur sold 16,901 copies of “Bitter Sweet Love”. The Reytons were docked 2,200 units after the Official Charts Company allegedly “rejected” some of their album sales on a technicality due to an industry complaint.
The band took to Twitter to declare their achievement and thanked their fans for their support, writing: “Despite not winning the trophy or officially coming first… You did it!! We have sold the most albums in the UK this week!! We’ve had the most amazing week with you all, thank you to everyone who has gone above and beyond to help us achieve the impossible! Please don’t let this ruin your night. Raise a glass and celebrate… our validation comes from within, we won before we even started.”
Despite the setback, “Ballad Of A Bystander” topped this week’s Official Record Store Chart and debuted at number five on the Official Vinyl Albums Chart. The band received its first number one album with last year’s “What’s Rock And Roll?”, which was self-released and surpassed major label artists including The Weeknd, Taylor Swift, and Måneskin.
The Official Charts Company said: “The Official Charts are governed by our publicly available chart rules which are defined and agreed with the music industry. All releases are governed by the same set of rules, as standard procedure we take action regularly against releases which breach these rules, as part of our ongoing commitment to ensure that the Official Charts are reflective of genuine purchases and consumption.”
Jonny Yerrell, The Reytons’ frontman, previously told NME: “Every artist wants to have a number one album. But when you’re talking to people like Jack Saunders on Radio 1… I’m just looking down the camera and he’s there in the studio. It’s like, ‘What the f***?! This is real now’.”
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