'St. Anger' Soars In At No. 1 In Europe

Metallica's "St. Anger" (Vertigo/Mercury) debuts at No. 1 on European Top 100 Albums, succeeding Evanescence's "Fallen" (Wind-Up/Epic), which falls to No. 3. "St. Anger" goes straight to the top in Germany, Denmark, Norway, Finland, and Portugal. Metallica will play various European festivals this month.

Italian superstar Eros Ramazotti registers another smash, as "9" (Ariola) zooms 71-2 on Top 100 Albums, on the back of debuts at No. 1 in his home market, No. 2 in Germany and Austria, No. 5 in France and Spain, and No. 7 in Denmark. The set also holds at No. 1 in Switzerland and soars 43-3 in Belgium and 43-9 in Holland.

Welsh rock act Stereophonics debut at No. 4 on Top 100 Albums with "You Gotta Go There to Come Back" (V2). It enters at No. 1 in the U.K. and Ireland, marking the act's third consecutive album to top British charts, following 1999's "Performance and Cocktails" and 2001's "Just Enough Education to Perform." The latter title has worldwide sales of 2.4 million, according to V2 international product manager Julia Connolly.

The solo set from Depeche Mode vocalist Dave Gahan, "Paper Monsters" (Mute), hits Top 100 Albums at No. 10, bowing
at No. 5 in Germany and No. 10 in Switzerland.

Though Evanescence's "Fallen" drops on the European albums chart, the group fares better on Eurochart Hot 100 Singles, where "Bring Me to Life" featuring Paul McCoy races 6-1 following its No. 1 bow in the U.K. The song also climbs 9-6 in Belgium, 9-7 in Denmark, and 20-8 in Italy.

Entering at No. 2 on the U.K. album chart is S Club's "Best--The Greatest Hits" (Polydor), a set of the pop act's songs under that name and as S Club 7. The group, which has disbanded, has had 11 consecutive top-five hits, including four that reached No. 1, since debuting in 1999 with the chart-topping "Bring It All Back."