Most of the 29th floor (that’s MTV News HQ) is seriously in denial of the country genre — except when co-opted ironically by Jack White, or tweaked into hipster Americana by Conor Oberst. You know, Pitchfork country! That’s why it’s particularly painful to deal with this industry touchstone called “SoundScan” week in and week out: it’s just hard evidence of how much the rest of the USA disagrees with us.

This is a wordy setup for the news that country has yet again kicked rock to the curb in sales, with that punk George Strait (who?) selling 166,300 copies to beat out R.E.M. The alt-rock legends’ latest, Accelerate, comes in at #2 with 115,500 scans.

To salute R.E.M. — and, basically, to put up a SoundScan fight — we’ve posted this excellent interview with the band shot just before the new album’s release. And if you’re a believer in numbers, check out the rest of this week’s chart writeup after the jump.

Now That’s What I Call Music!, Vol. 27 follows at #3, climbing two spots on the strength of 60,000 scans, while Day26’s self-titled first falls three spots to #4, selling 51,000. The soundtrack to “Alvin and the Chipmunks” experienced a 111 percent boost in sales, which moves the record 11 chart positions to #5 this week; the set also sold 51,000 units. Another newcomer follows at #6, as Trina’s Still Da Baddest generated sales of more than 46,700, just edging out Danity Kane’s Welcome to the Dollhouse by less than 120 scans; DK’s disc occupies the #7 slot. The Counting Crows’ Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings dips five spots to #8, with another 43,300 sold, while Rick Ross’ Trilla falls three positions to #9, with 41,400 snatched up. Van Morrison’s Keep It Simple was the only other new release to crack the top 10, rounding things out with 37,000 scans.

Elsewhere on the chart, there were several notable newcomers making their mark. The Rolling Stones’ Shine a Light bows at #11, with 37,000 sold, while the Black Keys’ Attack and Release enters at #14, selling 29,000 units. Sevendust’s Chapter 7: Hope and Sorrow enters at #19, having sold close to 25,000 copies, and George Michael returns to the chart at #23, as his Twentyfive moves 22,700 copies during its first week on store shelves.,

Theory of a Deadman’s Scars and Souvenirs takes the #26 position, with 21,800 sold, while Moby’s Last Night follows at #27, with sales reported at 21,100 and change. In Flames’ A Sense of Purpose enters at #28, selling 20,300 copies. Hawk Nelson’s Hawk Nelson Is My Friend bows at #34, after selling 18,000 units, and Muse’s H.A.A.R.P. finishes at #46 with 14,000 scans. The Sword’s sophomore LP Gods of the Earth makes its debut at #102, with 7,500 sold, and Anti-Flag’s The Bright Lights of America takes the #118 spot with 6,500 scans.