ARMAND & BLUESOLOGY
Too Much Is Just Enough (New Moon Music)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

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After a nearly two decade apprenticeship playing behind the likes of Skeeter Brandon, Walter "Lightnin' Bug" Rhodes and Nappy Brown, Chapel Hill, NC based guitarist Armand Lenchek assumed the role of bandleader with a vengeance on his solo debut, Everything I Need. He's back again, still in front of the rotating crew of blues breakers he calls Bluesology, for his latest New Moon release, Too Much Is Just Enough.

He can call his album whatever he wants, but by the time you get through a listen or two you're apt to agree with me that neither too much nor enough are fitting terms when applied to Armand Lenchek. Whether covering the masters like Albert King ("Personal Manager") and his mentor, Walter Rhodes ("Your Whole Life Thru") or cranking out one of his own tunes, each of which is both fully in the blues tradition and completely original, Lenchek's tuneful growl and instrumental prowess combine for a completely pleasing listening experience.

Although he can shred with the best of them, Lenchek has mastered one of the most difficult skills in any guitarist's repertoire: restraint. He plays every note he needs to, and not a note more. Sometimes that's a blistering fury, sometimes it's a laid back shuffle, every time it's just what the song calls for. Too Much Is Just Enough is neither, but it's something, and anything Armand & Bluesology put out is something worth hearing.

Track List:

Too Much * One Night * A Dog & His Bone * Dream Intro * Where Did The Dream Go? * Personal Manager * Rely On Me * There She Is * When The Axe Comes Down * Your Whole Life Thru * Cat In A Hat With A Strat * Missin' The Whole Point * New Kakalaky Blues * Come Back, Baby

© 2001 - Shaun Dale