'Lovesick', 'Love and Life' rise and fall

With the first quarter of 2018 over, and the business of making and presenting music cranking up for the summer season, the new releases are flying thick and fast. With that flurry of discs and digital formats comes, of course, fits and starts on the charts, rather than the almost predictable weekly humdrum closer to the turn of the year.

The movement of Romain Virgo's Lovesick exemplifies this. The 16-track set debuted at number one last week, but is all of three places down at four for the current listing, valid up to Saturday, April 21. It has been replaced at the top spot by another new release the Bumpin Uglies' Beast From the East. In-between the new and displaced number ones are two resurgent sets. Second is Box Full of Steel (The Dubplates) and third is Damian 'Jr Gong' Marley's Stony Hill. The latter is now at its 38th week on the listing.

Wrapping up the top five is another set which has experienced a strong debut followed immediately by a downturn although, after slipping from last week's number three to number five this time around, I'Octane's Love & Hate has not experienced the peak and fall of Lovesick.

In the lower half of the top 10, the re-entries dominate with three of the five slots. Highest of the trio is Hollie Cook's Vessel of Love at number seven, a spot behind Henrici's Sister Caro EP. Chronixx's Chronology has reappeared on the listing at number eight, making this its 38th week on the listing. Khago is the last of the returnees at 10th place, with Walk a Mile.