IB on CMG, Katy

LEGENDS OF THE FALL: As you may have noticed, we’ve been all over the release of Katy Perry’s PRISM, for obvious reasons. The eagerly awaited LP, which has already sprung one chart-topper in “Roar,” is Capitol Music Group’s entry in the Q4 superstar sweepstakes, with early retail projections suggesting a sales total approaching 300k, or around 100k higher than her previous album’s 192k first week. (For a detailed recap of the album rollout, click here.) As I.B. Bad points out in his upcoming column, posting Friday morning, CMG is the most improved label year-to-date in terms of frontline (aka new-release) marketshare, having gained nearly two and a half percentage points to occupy the #5 position since Steve Barnett took the helm of the transitioning company early this year. The company now appears to have a real shot at establishing another top-selling act in Bastille, signed by the Ted Cockle-led Virgin U.K., which has quickly become a key A&R source for CMG in the States. (10/23a)