Mandy Moore - Mandy Moore (2001)

Mandy Moore is the second studio album by American singer Mandy Moore. It was released by Epic Records on June 19, 2001. Moore began taking more creative control of her music with the album, transitioning from the teen pop styles from her debut studio album, So Real (1999). The album includes elements of dance, R&B, pop rock, hip hop and Middle Eastern music.

Over one year following the release of So Real (1999), Moore became very displeased with her early music, saying "All of the music has started to look and sound the same"[1] and that she decided that it was time for her to move away from that. She expressed a desire to perform with more live instruments, saying in a Billboard interview that she wanted "no more dancers, no more singing to tracks. I got tired of that in a big way".

The album was a departure in sound for Moore. The opening track "In My Pocket" is a dance-pop song mixed with techno and R&B beats with a Middle Eastern sound. Moore co-wrote the final track on the album, "When I Talk to You". The song was written with Matthew Hager, who produced it. Moore said that the song was written while her and Hager were waiting to do a soundcheck. It was also the first song co-written by Moore that was included on one of her albums.

The album scored 56 out of 100 at review aggregator Metacritic, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

AllMusic gave the album a very positive review, saying, "Mandy Moore manages to pack more hooks, melody, beats, clever production flourishes, and fun into its 13 tracks than nearly all of its peers – remarkably, it's a stronger album, through and through, than either of Britney's first two albums or Christina's record..immaculately crafted, precisely polished, & exactly what a teen pop album should be."

Entertainment Weekly gave the album a mostly positive review and a B−, saying that Moore "tries out new sounds -- Eastern rhythms, jangly percussives -- that help separate her from the pack. Best of all, she spares us 'Look at Me!' vocal gyrations in favor of a breathy Natalie Imbruglia vibe. [...] [A]s teen pop goes, it could be a lot worse."

Rolling Stone also gave the album a positive review, saying, "It's so rare and refreshing when a teen star takes the high road...[Mandy's] CD offers the most startlingly liberated teen pop since Eighties mall-rat icon Tiffany euphemistically declared herself 'New Inside'."

Slant Magazine also gave the album a positive review, saying, "Mandy Moore is a refreshingly modest pop/rock excursion that gives Moore the opportunity to differentiate herself from the competition and further solidifies a promising musical future." It was given an honorable mention in the magazine's top music picks of 2001. The album was chosen as one of Amazon.com's Best of 2001.