The next studio album of legendary rock band AC/DC is to be sold exclusively at Wal-Mart in the U.S., after the band signed a deal with the world’s largest retail chain, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

The deal comes at a time when Wal-Mart, which is the largest seller of compact discs in the nation, announced it would start stocking fewer CDs. This move is supposed to accelerate the decline of CD sales, as consumers prefer buying music online.

The yet untitled Columbia album, which was produced by Brendan O’Brien, is scheduled to be released in the fall.

AC/DC have thus become the latest music legend to sign an exclusive deal with the retail giant, following bands such as The Eagles, Garth Brooks and Journey.

The Eagles’ double disc, “Long Road Out of Eden,” sold 711,000 copies in its first week and three million since its release in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Journey released “Revolution,” which consists of one CD with new songs, one CD of new renditions of the band’s classic songs and one DVD of a recent concert performance. The album sold 45,000 copies in the first three days since the release.

A possible reason for the success of the albums could also be the quite low retail price of $11.98.

The new AC/DC album is the band’s first since 2000’s hit “Stiff Upper Lip,” which sold more than 930,000 copies. The release is expected to be followed by a tour.

The rock band is one of the major acts yet to make its music available via Apple’s iTunes Music Store. In August 2007, Verizon Wireless obtained the exclusive rights to sell the band’s entire back catalog through March 2008. Verizon was the first and only digital music store to offer AC/DC’s content.