Generation

The Audio Bullys are a strange musical creature. One minute Simon Franks and Tom Dinsdale's alter ego deliver one of the finest examples of what can be achieved with a little imagination. "Shot You Down" rightly one of the key releases of this, and almost any year, blending Nancy Sinatra's haunting and ethereal vocals with stark, toughbeats.

But in keeping with all equilibrium theories, every positive must have a negative. Generation's downfall, like its predecessor Ego War, is that there aren't that many good tracks here (with the exception of the urban stanzas "I'm In Love" and "All Sing Along").

It may well be the sound of the suburbs, drawing on a cacophony of influences born out of a misspent youth, but to paraphrase that great 80s catchphrase, where's the beef?

The pointless "Eq-ing" tries to pick up the Adrian Sherwood post-punk deconstructive fusion of dub, rock and dance, and fails miserably. Even their trademark white toasting is a pale imitation of Gary Clail's Tackhead Sound System.

It has been argued that by throwing away the genre rulebook the Audio Bullys are innovators. They're not; although to fair to them they're certainly enjoying more success then those that have inspired them.