Lorde topped by Sol3 Mio in album charts

New Zealand singer Lorde. Photo / WireImage

Lorde may be queen of the singles charts for 2013 but her album sales have been dethroned by a trio of young Samoan-Kiwi opera singers.

Released just five weeks ago, Sol3 Mio's self-titled album has sold so quickly it has become the best-selling album in New Zealand for the year.

Sol3 Mio - made up of brothers Pene and Amitai Pati and their cousin Moses Mackay - recorded their album in London. It features their take on opera classics such as O Sole Mio and Nessun Dorma, and pop songs including My Way and Ten Guitars.

Sol3 Mio beat out Lorde in the album charts. Photo / Vibe

Lorde still cuts a strong figure in New Zealand's end-of-year charts.

Her international hit single Royals was the second-biggest single of the year in New Zealand (behind Robin Thicke's Blurred Lines), and her album Pure Heroine was outdone only by Sol3 Mio.

In addition, her Love Club EP was fifth on the end-of-year album charts.

Her other New Zealand number one single, Tennis Club, was at 19 on the end-of-year charts.

In a strong year for New Zealand music, two other acts had number one singles - LA-based Ginny Blackmore with Bones and X-Factor winner Jackie Thomas with It's Worth It - while Shapeshifter, Fat Freddy's Drop, Dennis Marsh, Thomas and Blacklistt joined Lorde and Sol3 Mio with number one albums.

Fat Freddy's Drop were the most successful of these on the album charts, with their album Blackbird sitting at seven on the end-of-year charts.

The most successful non-New Zealand album of the year was Bruno Mars' Unorthodox Juke Box, which finished at number three.

Top Selling Singles of 2013:

1. Blurred Lines - Robin Thicke Feat. TI and Pharrell
2. Royals - Lorde
3. Just Give Me A Reason - Pink Feat. Nate Ruess
4. Roar - Katy Perry
5. Impossible - James Arthur
6. Let Her Go - Passenger
7. Radioactive - Imagine Dragons
8. Wake Me Up - Avicii
9. Get Lucky - Daft Punk Feat. Pharrell
10. When I Was Your Man - Bruno Mars

Top Selling Albums of 2013:

1. Sol3 Mio - Sol3 Mio
2. Pure Heroine - Lorde
3. Unorthodox Jukebox - Bruno Mars
4. The Truth About Love - Pink
5. The Love Club EP - Lorde
6. Plus - Ed Sheeran
7. Blackbird - Fat Freddy's Drop
8. Midnight Memories - One Direction
9. 25 Years: The Chain Box Set - Fleetwood Mac
10. The Heist - Macklemore And Ryan Lewis

- AAP