Jim Carroll reviews the latest from The Cool Kids

THE COOL KIDS The Bake Sale XL****

Try to imagine what Fiddy, Snoop, The Game, Kanye or any other members of hip-hop's A-class would make of The Bake Sale. They'd click right away that Chuck English and Mikey Rock were trying to bring 1988 back, and they'd probably nod their heads to the "new black version of The Beastie Boys". But that would be as far as it goes. For hip-hop's mainstream, the back-to the-old-school Cool Kids are probably a novelty turn, as far removed from hip-hop's current lexicon as you can get. No surprises, then, that The Cool Kids appeal to fans who abandoned the Fiddy panto a long time ago, as well as indie kids looking for some beats and rhymes. The Bake Saleis a throwback to a time when hip-hop was about hooting and hollering and not shooting and beefs. Indeed, there's a real charm to the low- slung electro beats and the duo's sharp wordplay and spot-on lyrics. www.myspace.com/thecoolkids Download tracks: Black Mags, Mikey Rocks, 88