When
En Vogue exploded commercially in the early 1990s, labels responded by signing more female urban contemporary groups. At Reprise/Warner Bros., such a group was Ex-Girlfriend. To be sure, the quartet was influenced by
En Vogue's appealing, robust harmonies, but without being as interesting. Many reviewers found their debut album of 1991,
X Marks the Spot, formulaic and contrived, although
It's a Woman Thang was a slight improvement. The
R. Kelly-produced single "You for Me" is a pleasant slow jam, and hip-hop-influenced funk numbers like "Can I Get a Nasty" and "Sexual Chocolate" are fairly catchy, if clichéd. Also noteworthy is the
Isley Brothers-ish "Falling 4-U." The members of
Full Force are among the executive producers on
It's a Woman Thang; they do their share of writing and producing on an album that isn't fantastic but has its moments. ~ Alex Henderson