The world of R&B is full to the brim with singers that equate riffs with emotion.  As a result, vocalists run lines as if they’re running a marathon, fulfilling the necessary attitude quota with mandatory head rolls, prerequisite finger wags and, should the need arise, just a hint of side eye.  Within the first five minutes of listening to Jennifer Lang’s latest album, 3 O’ Clock Saturday, you’ll notice something significant: no riffing and running, just straight singing.  It also helps to know something about what you’re singing about and it’s clear that sister Lang knows a thing or two about having loved and lost.  

There have been many crossover artists that have come out of the church and been able to make a big splash as pop, rock, soul or R&B singers (Aretha Franklin and Whitney Houston being immediate examples).  Jennifer Lang could be another one of those artists, but as beautiful in tone as her voice is, it conveys more sweetness than grit.  Considering that a majority of the album’s songs deal with losing the game of love, the pain and sorrow that comes part and parcel with such experiences is not always convincing.  

Take “I Don’t Understand” as exhibit A, where she confronts her significant other on their past discretions.  Even while she’s singing “Say goodbye, ‘cause this is the last time,” you can’t help but get the feeling that this scenario will reoccur.  The fact that “I Don’t Understand” is followed up with “You Said” (as in “You said you’d always love me”) only reinforces that belief.  This is not to say that she absolutely has to sound like she’s about to slash some man’s tires, but evidence of a breaking point is slow in revealing itself.   

Nevertheless, Ms. Lang is capable of becoming one with the words on the page.  Credit is due in part to producer and multi-instrumentalist Cloyd Willis Jr. for crafting effective musical beds for Jennifer’s voice to rest upon.  “Hi” taps into the sweetness of her vocals, revealing her playful side.  “Falling In Love” is the best of these themed selections, as she dusts herself off over a shuffling drum beat accented with acoustic guitar and occasional horns.  “Betcha Thought” is one of the strongest offerings overall, set up beautifully with a warbling bass line from Willis and punchy flute and sax riffs that bounce under Jennifer’s strong delivery on the chorus.  “Hey Love” gets hypnotic with an airy, spacey instrumental and vocals that elude to the butterflies in your stomach when love is brand new.  

However, love is far from the only subject out there, so it’s good to hear her take the motivational route on “Keep Your Head Up,” which brings the album to its logical conclusion and steps into the spiritual realm.   “I Don’t Know When It’s Coming” is faith that you can feel.  In time, Jennifer Lang’s ability to express real pain and anger through her music may not be as strong as the promises of God she stands upon, but it will increase in conviction.

Review by Jason Randall Smith
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Raised singing in church, Jennifer Lang’s introduction to music and performing started at eight-years-old. A member of her church and high school choir, Lang’s sophomore release, 3 O’Clock Saturday, is a stellar album of heartfelt and soulful music. It is no question that music is her passion.

“What excites me most about music is simple: The sound…music is in the ocean. It’s in your heart beat. It’s in your spirit. Even a guy who can’t carry a tune in a bucket is moved by music,” Lang said. 

While comparisons to Jennifer Hudson abound, Lang proves her continued versatility. Whether it’s tracks about heart wrenching relationships such as “I Don’t Understand” or gospel filled album closer, “I Don’t Know When It’s Coming,” Lang keeps the listener intrigued.  

3 O’Clock Saturday begins quickly with intro, “Jenny’s Groove.” An upbeat track with electric beats and soulful vocals, “Jenny’s Groove” is one of the more lively tracks on the album. Segueing into the optimistic “Fairy Tales,” Lang introduces romance to the listener before her world seemingly crashes. 

Throughout the 14-track album, Lang takes the listener on a journey. From the fantasy of “Fairy Tales” and “You’re All I Ever Wanted” to the heartbreak of “I Don’t Understand” and “You Said,” describing an unfaithful lover, the listener witnesses the ups and downs of a relationship. 

A solid release, at times the musical accompaniment overpowers Lang’s soulful vocals, “Hi” is one example. The interludes are distracting from Lang’s vocals on this track. Unfortunately for listeners, her sultry singing is masked over the beat of the music.

On “Take Me There,” a slow drum beat is heard in the distance while Lang sings, “I want to go to that place in your heart/Where nothing can tear us apart/You’re the love story that I dream/That was written just for me.” Mid-song she continues, “Every time I see your face/Every time I feel your embrace/There is something I can’t deny/The butterflies they don’t lie”

“Ya Keep Sayin’” switches things up from the R&B feel of previous tracks on 3 O’Clock Saturday. With obvious jazz influence, the song showcases Lang’s talented vocals with a light tap of cymbals, horn features and continuous percussion beats. Just over two minutes, the track is long enough to make an impact without leaving the listener wondering.
Emotional “I Don’t Understand” is a tale of saying goodbye to one who does you wrong. “You cheated on me,” Lang sings with passion. Portraying appropriate angst and confusion with the horn feature and bass beat throughout track, she continues, “I don’t understand that you lie/Sure don’t understand why I cry/I don’t understand saying goodbyes/’Cause this is the last time”

“You Said” continues the wrath of “I Don’t Understand.” An edgy track with a heavy percussion Lang sings, “You said you’d always love me/You said you’d always care/You said you’d always love me/But now you’re not there.”

A slower ballad, “Falling In Love” switches gears once again. The anger is gone and it’s time for the woman in the story to get over a relationship’s end. “I know that it’s going to take some time/To get you out of my mind/But I’ll be strong and I’ll go on/Somehow I will learn from this.” 

On “Betcha Thought,” Lang’s voice blends well with the musical accompaniment, so well if fact, the listener forget she’s even signing. “Hey Love” is a soulful R&B infused track that complement’s Lang’s vocals well as the music takes a backseat to her singing. Finally a song with a happier ending than previous tracks, the album starts to come full circle. Ending with gospel track “I Don’t Know When It’s Coming,” it is refreshing to hear spoken word interwoven within the song. 

With her angelic and soulful vocals, Jennifer Lang is well on her way. While at times the music overpowers her vocals, 3 O’Clock Saturday is an album that begs to be listened to on repeat. Whether she’s lamenting failed relationships or singing gospel tracks, Lang gets her emotion across. I’d be interested to listen to her sing sans musical accompaniment. 

Review by Annie Reuter
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Review Summary:
Jennifer Lang's second album, 3 O’clock Saturday reveals itself to have two stars; Jennifer Lang with her full voice and sincere songwriting, and producer/multi-instrumentalist Cloyd R. Willis Jr. Together, they've created a solid R&B album with uplifting spirituals, danceable numbers, and soulful ballads.

Review:
The liner notes to Jennifer Lang's 2009 album, 3 O’clock Saturday are peppered with thanks to God, tongue-in-cheek, crediting to herself and thanks to Cloyd R. Willis Jr. From this, it's a bit tough to anticipate what's going to play once the disc starts spinning. About one minute into the opening, "Jenny's Groove", everything becomes clear; Jennifer Lang is going to deliver a soulful collection of R&B tracks with passion. 

Lang's spiritual influences are rooted deep into her youth as she grew up singing in church and eventually began listening to the music of Aretha Franklin and Al Green. Fittingly enough, Lang's voice is well described as an amalgamation of those two. Though she doesn't display the range of Aretha (but who does?) she takes a bit of her power and combines it with the smoothness of Green. Lang's songwriting plays well with her voice as much of the subject matter is fairly by the books. There's a good deal of female empowerment and triumph over love and life's pratfalls, ("Don't Think On It", and "Betcha Thought") betrayal, ("You Said", "I Don't Understand) and hopeful numbers that round out the album's sixty-minute running length ("Keep Your Head Up", "I Don't Know When It's Coming"). 

The songwriting is well done but on its own, seldom exceptional. More than anything, it's sincere. Lang's voice however is compelling whether it’s standing on its own, or superbly overdubbed like on "Falling in Love." When she sings her self-penned lyrics, it lifts the songs to a level they wouldn't otherwise reach. Her passion for her music is very much evident and it shines through on every song.

Though Lang's name is the one on the cover, the album's "secret weapon" of sorts is the aforementioned Cloyd R. Willis Jr. Willis is responsible for not only the production, but every instrument on the recording, including (but not limited to) Fender P-Bass, strings, vibes, flute, percussion, oboe, electric piano, soprano sax, organ, and French horn. The consistent stand-out is his bass playing. There's not a song on here that doesn't feature a tight bass groove. The drum programming though often leaves much to desire. As is typical with much modern R&B, it's very mechanical and static. Given the dynamics of the rest of the music, real drums would've been a welcome addition to the mix.

Some of the album's finest moments are when Lang deviates from the formulaic R&B to deliver performances that feature the influences of other genres. "Ya Keep Sayin" is almost a throwback to slow jazz. It's easy to imagine this song being played in the confines of a smoky bar in a film noir. The album's closer, "I Don't Know When It's Coming" is the most gospel influenced of the fourteen songs; a surprising oddity in how much Lang's faith is displayed in the liner notes. Regardless, the placement of this song is impeccable; ending on a strong gospel note of hope and faith is a welcome turn-around from some of the darker images presented on earlier songs. Some more of this material would've made for a stronger album overall, but doesn't really detract from it being a solid R&B album.

3 O’clock Saturday will be very well received by R&B fans. Lang's voice is a great instrument, effectively produced by Willis throughout. What the album lacks in amazing songwriting it makes up for in a fantastic amount of sincerity and emotion. Safe to say, Lang has avoided the "sophomore slump" that artists can encounter and has turned out an album that she can be proud to thank God for helping her and Willis create.
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Review Summary:

Music flows through Jennifer Lang’s veins. Whether it was from her family’s aptly named band “The Lang Family” or growing up singing in a church choir, from a very early age Jennifer’s life has been surrounded and shaped by music. She lives it. She breathes it. She channels it. Is it any wonder what career path that the fates led her down?

Jennifer Lang’s album 3 O'clock Saturday is sultry journey into chilltastic realms. Jennifer’s voice is smooth, soulful and above all else extraordinary! At times her voice puts me in mind of Jennifer Hudson. It’s the kind of voice that’s capable of belting out rafter shaking ballads or sweet melodies whispered to the ear.

Jennifer’s style is absolutely rooted in R&B, but with that said a few tracks off of 3 O'clock Saturday have a bit of a new age meets trip-hop vibe about them. These tracks, “Fairy Tales” and “Hey Love” set her apart from all the rest. These are tracks that Jennifer truly hits her stride. This isn’t to say that her soulful R&B tracks are weak–far from it. Tracks like “Keep Your Head Up” and “Betcha Thought” more than prove that she could go toe-to-toe with such artists as Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige and Angie Stone. It’s just that I’ve listened to quite a few chill, trip-hop, downtempo and electronica tracks and I can’t help but wonder what an album Jennifer released of any of these genres would sound like. Wishful thinking? Perhaps…

I suppose if I were to knit-pick, I’d have to say that some of the music (not vocals) seems a bit patchwork. That is to say that in some songs it comes off as a bit over the top or just doesn’t seem to quite sound right. I may be wrong, and it would hardly be the first time, but the music sounds a bit computer generated. I have nothing against computer-generated music when done well, but on some tracks it seems to come off as sounding a little cheap. Tracks like “Ya Keep Sayin’” should have more of an organic feel. I picture this song stripped down to just a drum, bass guitar and that’s it. It should have more of a bluesy atmospheric vibe about it.

The intro track I have mixed feelings about. On the one hand it shows off personality–which I give major props for. On the other hand it sounds a bit hokey. That’s a trap that every intro track of this type falls into, so I can’t really hold that against the album. Put the intro in the plus column!

Jennifer Lang is an amazingly talented singer whose voice will carry her far in the music industry. While her album 3 O'clock Saturday seems to have not reached its full potential, it is an album worth checking out.
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