Disco de Mandy Moore: “Wild Hope [Bonus Track]”

Some of the reviews for "Wild Hope" are ridiculously divisive and, frankly, I don't see the need for it. People should step back, take a breath, and remember that musical tastes (for both artists and listeners) change over time, and Mandy Moore is no exception. I personally love her old stuff, and it still plays regularly in my deck, but "Wild Hope" has earned it's place there, as well. Instead of comparing this offering with her older collection, it is necessary to examine it in it's own right. Many people are decrying that they expected 'more', be that lyrically, vocally, or in terms of maturation. Mandy Moore is twenty-three years old, not forty. I think "Wild Hope" speaks volumes of where she is in her life right now, and I'm grateful to be along for the ride.

The bottom line: Moore is a superior vocalist compared to most of her contemporaries and manages to make even the weakest songs shine. Her previous CDs were littered with both gems and a few clinkers. Fortunately, there are no weak songs on this album. Perhaps people are reacting to the genre or another nebulous construct, but I consider this to be very fitting with my view of who Mandy is (and BTW, I have no problems understanding her vocals - a lyric sheet is unnecessary). Every note is infused with gentle passion, her interpretation belies her years, and I find her writing interesting and provocative without being shameless or melodramatic. Standout tracks include the much-heralded 'Gardenia', 'Looking Forward to Looking Back', 'Slummin' in Paradise', and the title track. If you like Moore, you'll like this, provided you accept that she's an actual person with thoughts and opinions, and not a mindless corporate drone. This has been in my player 24/7 for almost a week and will undoubtedly stay there for the foreseeable future.

As a folk-pop singer-songwriter fan of a certain age, I probably have a different viewpoint regarding this album than some previous reviewers. In fact, I never paid any attention at all to Mandy Moore's CDs until I began reading favorable reviews of "Coverage" from familiar veteran critics. So I bought the album, was pleasantly surprised by Mandy's abilities as a adult-pop interpretive singer. Her latest release,"Wild Hope" not only demonstrates Moore's vocal talents, but also showcases her gifts as a songwriter. (As others have noted, she co-wrote all of the tracks on the new CD.)

Stylistically, the songs range from the pure folk-pop sound of the title track, "Wild Hope" to the 70s soft rock of "Nothing That You Are" (which is very reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac). But most of the tracks fall somewhere between these two extremes. Particularly noteworthy are "Most Of Me" and "Looking Forward to Looking Back", both of which have strong Joni Mitchell influence in the vocal line. A fine effort by Mandy, one which I would expect to appeal to fans of Norah Jones, Jewel, and Sarah McLachlan. One of the best new albums I've heard so far this year - highly recommended!

I typically don't bother to review music because usually the fans write glowing reviews and rate it a 5. The anti-fans came in to trash it and rate it a 1. It's boring and not terribly helpful. That said, I felt moved to rate this album. I was not a Mandy Moore fan, in fact I had never really heard her sing before. I previewed the album on AOL Listening Party and loved the country-inflected pop songs enough to go out and buy the album. It's not often I love a whole album and this one is my favorite album released this year. Stand out tracks for me are "Ladies Choice", "Gardenia", and "Slummin' in Paradise".

I am not a huge Mandy Moore fan, honestly just the sound of her voice used to annoy me. But thanks to broadband at work and a love for new music I gave her a quick listen. The cool thing is that I even played it again after I listened to it the first time. She finally found a sound that works for her. You can feel her in the lyrics, her voice sounds real (instead of like she's trying too hard to sound perfectly polished), and as a result you feel like you are really getting to know and love her. I hope she is very proud of this album, I love "Extraordinary"...makes you feel very empowered

Well I was pretty hesitant to give this album a try since it was coming from one of the bubble gum pop princesses of the late 90's early 2000's. Now I can say this should be considered Mandy Moore's actual debut album. She shows that she is out to create good music that is influenced with folk, rock, country, soul and pop overtones. This album really gives her credibility as an artist and reaffirms that she was the one of the pop stars who actually grew up and learned to act in a mature way. The only reason I give this album four stars and not five is the backing music. While the lyrics are sang in tune, showcase her wonderful voice and act as a confessional for her life the backing music is lacking. Being a guitar player myself I can tell you that the group never really changes keys or plays anything too varying throughout the whole album. They seem to play it safe even though Mandy's voice has quite a bit of range. All in all I feel that this is great all around album and it showcases Many Moore as a great artist. Hopefully she and her band can vary it up a bit on their next album to extend her talents.