It's not easy to take Men At Work seriously. Their hit singles, though pleasant, are lightweight and derivative, and their live shows have more in common with Monty Python than, say, the Police. Colin Hay and Greg Ham, the band's self-deprecating frontmen, don't like that. Two Hearts, their third album, and the first in two years, is a blatant attempt by the band to reconcile itself with the current state of pop (Warning: the rap is on side one) and an equally obvious plea to be taken seriously. The result is mostly pleasant pop, lightweight and derivative.

Sometimes the strategy works: the band is able to integrate additional instruments and vocals into its tried-and-true formula without cluttering the mix, and the mix itself, supervised by Bob Clearmountain, is clean and modern. Most of the time, though, Two Hearts isn't beating at all. "Children on Parade" offers inane political commentary, the metaphor of the title track rings false, and the characters in the songs are one-dimensional. More annoying is Hay's voice, which is as forced as the words he sings. When he jumps octaves midsong (most jarringly in "Hard Luck Story"), he sounds as though someone just smashed his fingers with a hammer. Two Hearts may turn out to be one of the summer's biggest hits, but I liked Men at Work better when they were content to extol the virtues of Vegamite sandwiches. (RS 452-453)

JIMMY GUTERMAN