By: Amber Schadewald
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| Mandy Moore - Publicity Photo |
Bad acting, junior high and “Candy” are things that come to mind when I think of Mandy Moore. Naturally I expected to see some combination of the three at her live show, but instead, I was pleasantly surprised and even impressed.
Even though her latest album, Wild Hope (released Summer 2007) hadn’t attracted much attention, the Fine Line was packed with Mandy fans, both men and women, 98 percent of whom are old enough to gamble. Mandy mentioned multiple times how much she adores Minneapolis, specifically thanking some fans who sent her letters and flowers, and even singing happy birthday to some “Brandon” guy in the crowd.
On her first official tour, Mandy is living out a long time dream. Taking center stage, the glowing 23-year-old was a bit stiff and maybe a little nervous. Her voice, on the other hand, was flawless. Whether or not you had time to notice, Miss Mandy Moore has grown up quite a bit in the last few years. Her songs speak of life-changing moments and trials with love, yet at times are still a hair too typical. Thankfully, her genuinely sweet, feather-light voice shadows the lame lyrics.
A stark difference from the bubble-gum tunes that started young Mandy’s career, the back up band of five men created a country-inspired sound, relaxed and breezy. Her set consisted mostly of songs from Wild Hope, including “Ladies Choice,” which she said was co-written with her pal Rachel Yamagata. She also covered Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” a strange choice, yes, but actually quite romantic and far less annoying than the original.
In between songs Mandy told stories about their road trip thus far, explained song meanings and other tidbits that reeked of cheddar. Things like “I want you all to be my friends— (referring to MySpace),” “do a little rat tat tat on the keyboards,” and “I’m just joshing” had me fighting my gag reflex. She also introduced the band, each with full-on nicknames. Not to mention when the keyboard player, “the King of Plaid” or “plaid-ass” told the crowd to “party like its 1989”— I’m not even sure what that means. Shortly after that comment, someone yelled out something about being pregnant with his child. Uh….awkward.
Regardless of all things I found irritating, I couldn’t help but be completely in love with her voice. Mandy is intermittently reminiscent of Alanis, Tori and Sarah, yet unique and goose-bump inspiring. At the same time, I kept wishing for some more experimental moments, wishing she’d let loose and let that talent scale some octaves. Instead, she played it safe, keeping true to her innocent Mandy image.
She ended the show with her 2000 hit, “Candy,” which she claimed “no longer has meaning” to her. The crowd shrugged and was more than pleased to hear it. With a more natural, jam-band-ish style, she finally relaxed, quit wrinkling her forehead and just sang. She danced around, had a slight look of embarrassment when it got to the bridge, but in general just made a nauseating pop-song sound like a quality piece of music.
Location Info:
Fine Line Music Café
Artist Info: Mandy Moore
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