Candy Review

07/13/2005 7:31 AM, AMG


"She's just 15 years old, " reads the first line of the sleeve note of the promotional package containing Mandy Moore's debut single, "Candy," cutting right to the chase. Moore is 550 Music's entry in the female teen singer sweepstakes of 1999. The midtempo dance tune is equally direct, with a chorus that goes "I'm missing you like candy, " a sentiment the intended audience of pre-teens can surely understand. Moore lacks the undercurrent of sensuality Brittany Spears brings such material, but then she seems to be aiming at a younger demographic. Whether or not she makes it is more dependent on her looks, her ability to dance, and her label's promotional abilities than on the record itself, which is about par for this sort of thing. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide