After last year's 'Subculture' by The Selecter, DMF Music now also presents a new long player by The Beat, and as the first new album of this Brummie band in nearly three decades, the release of 'Bounce' is quite the event. On 'Bounce' we heard poppy reggae and ska (with unmistakable echoes of the sound of Men At Work), supplemented with influences from punk and rock. The pop-reggae of 'Work Work Work' - bringing to mind bad memories of a number of American reggae acts - was far too flimsy to our taste. Moreover, the entire album sounds so upbeat, that it almost seems an anachronism in the current musical landscape (but please read that as a compliment). The fact lead vocalist and founding member Ranking Roger (on 'Bounce' vocally assisted by his son Matthew aka Ranking Junior) is mentioned on the cover of the album, has nothing to do with the singer's ego (or so we hope), but with the fact these days there are two versions of The Beat (see also, unfortunately, The Selecter): this version around Roger, and another around vocalist/guitarist Dave Wakeling, The English Beat starring Dave Wakeling.