Rage ahead of Joe McElderry in midweek sales
Rage Against the Machine ahead of Joe McElderry in midweek sales
Tuesday, 15, Dec 2009 02:16
By Lewis Bazley.
Rage Against the Machine are marginally ahead of X Factor winner Joe McElderry in the race for the Christmas number one spot.
The rock band's song Killing in the Name has been championed by an internet campaign aiming to end four years of X Factor dominance of the Christmas charts.
More than 750,000 people have joined a group on social networking site Facebook backing the campaign and early figures suggest the politically-minded band - who headlined last year's Reading and Leeds festivals - are in the lead.
Initial sales tallies (for Sunday and Monday trading) indicate that there is a ten per cent gap between Rage Against the Machine's 17-year-old song Killing In the Name and McElderry's debut single The Climb, a cover of the Miley Cyrus song.
"This is shaping up to be a very exciting battle between two different records which have captured the nation's imagination," said Official Charts Company managing director Martin Talbot.
"But, although Rage Against the Machine have started off in front, according to our initial sales estimates, there is no doubt that this tussle is far from over."
The physical version of McElderry's debut single is released on Wednesday and is expected to give the 18-year-old a huge boost in his bid to top the Christmas charts.
Record label Sony BMG will be the winner whoever tops the charts on Christmas Day, as both Rage Against the Machine and McElderry are part of its roster.