13. October 2010 11:12
by
Rob
The signs are already here. Garish tinsel is beginning to adorn shopping emporiums across the nation. Glove and scarf wearing has become mandatory rather than a mere fashion choice. X-Factor has reached the live finals. Yes, it’s almost – whisper it – Christmas.
Ok, so it’s only the middle of October but it’s also, significantly, the fourth quarter. It’s no secret that this is an incredibly important period for the music industry, with around 40% of all album sales for the year occurring in the last three months, so now would seem an apposite time to cast an eye over some of the titles scheduled for release.
The momentum in the run up to the festive season has already started gathering, with high profile titles in September including new albums by Katy Perry, Phil Collins, Brandon Flowers and The Script. October has built on that immediately with the debut by one of the breakout stars of 2010 - Tinie Tempah – released in the first week. Robbie Williams’ new Best Of (including his duet with Gary Barlow, Shame) follows this week as do titles from Belle and Sebastian, Magnetic Man and Cliff Richard (now there's a three-way collaboration I'd like to see). Highlights from the second half of the month include the follow up to Kings Of Leon’s 2.5m selling Only By The Night (entitled Come Around Sundown) and debuts by last year’s X-Factor winner Joe McElderry and the boy band sensation that is The Wanted.
Subject to schedule adjustments, November promises a wealth of fresh material from both the familiar and the new. Rihanna, Westlife, Jamiroquai, Rod Stewart, James Blunt and Kanye West are among the more established acts to release albums, while there are debuts due from the much-tipped Rumer, rising Urban star Devlin, I Blame Coco, Girls Aloud’s Nadine Coyle (whose bandmate Cheryl Cole also returns) and X-Factor finalist Olly Murs. There are also a number of second albums from artists who experienced massive success with their first, including Duffy, Susan Boyle and JLS.
All this only really scratches the surface of what is shaping up to be a very promising line-up. Oh, and did I mention the small matter of a new Take That album? There’s a new Take That album.