More Seduction

If the name Manda & the Marbles sounds like it's straight from mid-'80s modern rock, you'd be half right. The Ohio trio plays like it's 1985, nodding to bands such as the Go-Go's and the Ramones. And while More Seduction sounds a bit dated, it brings back that high-school party attitude from the '80s instead of trying to reinvent detached synth pop. While that in itself is ironically refreshing, most of this is as catchy as the songs you'll hear on the soundtrack of a cheesy '80s teen comedy. Clap-alongs such as "Through" and "Fast Cars" are fun and peppy. Sometimes they stray from their norm, like on the slightly serious "Sexobject" and "Dead By Dawn," which would be apt for a horror-comedy film with lyrics such as "no one will hear your cries." "Wanna Go Home," by original new wavers Holly & the Italians, ensures that the band knows the era from which it's echoing. More Seduction may have done wonders in 1983, but in 2003 it's just a small wonder.