TWO top Southend bands who have already received international acclaim will battle it out for supremacy in the UK album charts in September.

Nothing But Thieves and the Horrors are both set to release highly-anticipated new albums, which brings back memories of the single chart battle between Blur and Oasis, which captured the headlines back in 1995.

Of course, back then it was deemed to be the north of England versus the south, with Colchester art-rockers Blur, from Colchester, taking on swaggering Mancunians Oasis.

In that week, Blur released Country House against Oasis’ Roll With It and it was Damon Albarn’s outfit which took the honours as they stormed to the number one spot.

The Horrors will release fifth studio album V while Nothing But Thieves are set for their second outing with Broken Machine.

In the case of Nothing But Thieves and the Horrors, the releases being in the same month are most likely just a coincidence.

Both bands are at different points in their careers but still young and with potential to take their music to even bigger audiences.

Nothing But Thieves, best known for their single, Itch, shot to fame with the single, Trip Switch which appeared on the soundtrack of EA Sports’ FIFA 16.

After that and the eventual release of their self-titled debut album in 2016, they have continued to climb up the music ladder, supporting one of the biggest rock bands in the world, Muse, on a European arena tour.

The Horrors have also had their fair share of arena and stadium show performances.

They performed at the London Stadium, home of West Ham United Football Club, as the main support to legendary Basildon three-piece, Depeche Mode, on Saturday, June 3.

At the Village Green Festival in Chalkwell Park, the crowd was treated to a very special homecoming performance from Nothing But Thieves, which went down a storm.

With both bands’ previous albums having featured prominently in the top ten, hopes are high that one, or both, will manage to take the coveted number one spot during September.

Depeche Mode will also be re-releasing their greatest hits set on triple vinyl the same month, underlining once again that south Essex remains a hotbed of musical talent.

So, who will win? Well, bearing in mind the strength of the songs heard so far, it is a fair bet they will both reach the summit.