HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL TOO MUCH

If only Michael Eisner was still around to see it.

Using a multimedia strategy that takes full advantage of its cable and radio assets, the House of Mouse is rolling out its High School Musical 2 soundtrack this week, and it’s headed straight for the top of the Matterhorn.

According to one-day sales from retailers still at their registers in mid-August, the Walt Disney Records follow-up to last year’s top seller, High School Musical, currently at 4 million and still at #30 on the HITS Top 50, will debut at #1 with between 550-600k in sales on next Tuesday’s chart. The movie debuts this Friday on the Disney Channel, so all bets are off.

Understated Disney Records EVP/GM Jim Weatherson: “We are just a humble little record company with 39 employees (real number) trying to peddle a couple of records. Back to your regularly scheduled programming.”

In fact, those two albums, High School Musical 2 and the blockbuster Hannah Montana 2/Miley Cyrus package will both be in next week’s Top 5.

Among the week’s chart debuts, RCA’s Dave Matthews/Tim Reynolds Live at Radio City album should garner between 50-60k based on huge fan site sales.

Interscope’s Blaqk Audio, an electronic side project of AFI’s Jade Puget and Davey Havok, is headed for around 25k, more or less, for its debut album CexCells.

Capitol Nashville country star Luke Bryan is in the same 25k neighborhood, give or take a few.

Norfolk, VA, Tooth & Nail alumni Mae (stands for Multi-Sensory Aesthetic Experience, by the way), will see their major label debut for Capitol, Singularity, score in the 20k range.

Overall, the market was down 2.8% vs. last week, down 14% vs same week last year and now down 14.2% year-to-date. Don’t ask. We’re going to Disneyland.