Mandy Moore "Amanda Leigh"

I never thought in a million years I’d be reviewing an album like this. Mandy Moore has grown up musically with the help of Mike Viola. His melodies and fingerprints are all over this production. The opening track, “Merrimack River” is just gorgeous as she sings with Viola in a duet. As usual his songwriting is top shelf and Moore’s vocal skills match up to the tunes well. Each song tells a clear story and with this style of adult pop she has left her teen trappings behind (something Britney, Jessica and a few others could learn from). Mandy gives a quick nod to dance pop with “I Could Break Your Heart Any Day of the Week,” but it’s the only fleeting reminder of her past. It’s restrained just enough with catchy hooks aplenty and almost puts Moore into a category similar to those 1970s female singer-songwriters, like a folky mix of Olivia Newton John and Joni Mitchell. The mid tempo “Pocket Philosopher” boasts a jaunty tack-piano and a playful vocal delivery. In a confessional way she mentions “there’s no regrets” about her life in  “Songs About Home.” Another gem here is “Love to Love Me Back” with an easy sing along melody. Viola’s brilliant instrumentation (a variety of keyboards) accents the tunes and puts these tracks over the edge. The dominant clavinet in “Nothing Everything” is a good example here, with Cowsills/Partridge pop orchestrations exploding forth. So if you never gave this pop tart a chance before, Moore has succeeded in transforming into a real melodic pop ingenue.

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