Wahey student types, thanks be to the Student Loans Company who this month pay us some of that beautiful student loan. A loan which will, of course, be spent on vitally important things such as textbooks, rent, food and most importantly, music. Whether you download the naughts and ones like an addict, or are continuously adding to that mountain of CD’s that have amassed, then perhaps you’d like to consider some of this month’s up and coming releases.

1st September: The Mirimar Disaster – Volumes

Give it a brief glance and you could be forgiven for thinking that that’s the album cover for We Are the Romans, and the Mirimar Disaster have more than just that in common with Botch.

I’ve got to admit, I wasn’t really going to give this one a look in, having grown weary of the continuously massive claims purported by the likes of Kerrang! about the next brilliant thing to come out of the UK, but having read one of my Sonic Dice colleague’s review of the album (a flawless victory with 6/6) my interest was piqued and I headed to their Myspace, only to be very, very impressed.

It’s sounding heavy and bludgoning, in a similar vibe to the aforementioned Botch, and that’s just the way we fucking like it.

9th September: United Nations – United Nations

I should imagine that the majority of people who buy this album will be buying on the strength of one name alone – being the supergroup as seemingly spearheaded by one Daryl Palumbo of Glassjaw fame.

Whilst rumours abound about a possible new Glassjaw record, Palumbo has put that signature voice to good use, alongside the prestigious talent of Converge’s drummer Ben Koller and Geoff Rickly of Thursday, to create an absolute nuclear bomb of an album.

A full stream of the work can be found here, and it’s certainly a preview that has left me wanting the real deal in my hands upon release day.

8th September: Jesu – Why Are We Not Perfect?

Jesu are one of those sonically massive bands that take a lot of time and patience to appreciate, unlike more popular contemporaries such as ISIS and Neurosis. Indeed, the title for Justin Broaderick’s new EP is an interesting step in itself – perhaps suggesting an undercurrent of self questioning in Broaderick’s project given the fickleness of his fans (anyone I’ve met who likes the project are all of the opinion that the Silver EP was shit).

Whilst it’s not a massive offering from Broaderick, it’s good to see the Jesu name on release schedules again and I look forward to hearing what this follow up to 2007’s well receieved Conquerer sounds like. If it’s anything like the gut-wrenching track Friends Are Evil‘ from ’05’s self titled release, then it’s a guaranteed barrel of laughs.

12th September: Metallica – Death Magnetic

I severely doubt you’ll need to look out for the arrival of this album, as the internet and popular music media is set to collapse under the weighty promises of this album.

Months of delicate preparation and carefully scheduled media announcements have meant that, despite a few years ago Metallica being all but dead with St Anger, millions of metal heads are already popping a boner with this next offering, and if you haven’t heard about it then you simply must be living in a battery (ha).

Of course, just like St Anger, whether it’s shit or not is negligible – this will be the biggest selling metal record of ‘08, without a doubt, so let’s see if it’s got the music to back the sales.

22nd September: Kings of Leon – Only By the Night

Surprising pretty much everyone when they released Because of the Times, with its fantastic leading single and overall quality, Kings of Leon certainly stuck a collective finger up at the trendsetters that argued over what their best album was.

Truthfully, I’ve never been too infatuated with Kings of Leon, although their early albums certainly spawned some cracking singles, and in the case of ‘The Bucket‘ a brilliantly realised video. But, give them their due they are a band who have begun to experiment with their comfort zones, and I’m quite looking forward to hearing what this next release is set to sound like, especially considering how quickly it’s taken them to put together. Will it be another step forward, or standing stock still? We’ll see.

22nd September: Mogwai – The Hawk Is Howling

There was a time when I didn’t like Mogwai. Of course, having grown a bit older and wiser I’ve come to fall in love with the majority of their back catalogue, from the cult-like Young Team (not my favourite) and the underdog Happy Songs for Happy People (one of my favourites).

So there’s no doubting how excited I am for this release. Batcat, the EP that precedes this album (out September 8th) is a slice of demonically heavy rock that genuinely unsettles, especially when paired with its video, and if that is a sign to come then I can’t wait to cuddle up to The Hawk is Howling.

Reports from live shows have been extremely positive, and have also suggested that Batcat’s heavier turn is one that is exacerbated on the new album. What a way to close September.