My favorite part of writing music reviews is when an artist I'm not familiar with reaches out with new music that is absolutely mind-blowing. That happened yesterday when I started listening to Arrizza's new album, Voyage to Eternity, and several more listens to the album have only made that impression stronger! This is Arrizza's fourth album, starting with his 2014 debut, Arrizza, followed by Electronic Dreams (2020) and Astronomia (2022). He has also released several singles, one of which received a nomination for "best contemporary instrumental single" for the 2022 OWMR awards. Arrizza's primary instruments are Spanish guitar and keyboards/synths and his music has strong New Age, Electronic and World music influences. He cites artists he grew up listening to - including Yanni, Mehdi, Sajjad, Jean-Michel Jarre and others - as being influential to his own music, but Arrizza is no wannabe and is definitely an artist with a musical voice and vision all his own. Based in Long Island, New York, Arrizza's music also includes various sounds of Spanish, Latin-American, Greek, and Middle-Eastern cultures. Making all this even more exceptional is an outstanding sound quality that brings the music to life. I'm really excited about this very recent discovery and am looking forward to hearing more!

Voyage to Eternity begins with the beautiful and passionate "Earendel." The melodic keyboard is propelled with a driving rhythm as well as spoken words and soaring wordless vocals. Wow - what a start! "Journey of the Underseas" is darker and more mysterious, with a powerful rhythm behind more ambient keyboards. There are also some melodic passages that enhance the sense of adventure and discovery. Another WOW! "Fantasia Sacra" begins with the sound of a male voice singing in what could be a very large cathedral. The instrumentation behind the voice is spare. Then the rhythm kicks in behind choral voices and operatic singers whose voices send the song skyward - very compelling and exciting! "Between Two Spirits" is gentler and comes from the heart with a strong rhythm and a variety of keyboard sounds. The title track expresses a powerful sense of adventure and excitement with its driving, buoyant rhythm and mystical instrumentation - you can almost feel the sea-spray on your face! The Spanish guitar near the end is a wonderful, if unexpected, delight! "Meeting of Two Souls" shows us a more romantic side of Arrizza, and is lovely and soulful. He plays the guitar on this one, too! "Dreamer's Fields" has a light, upbeat keyboard melody driven by bass and drums that send it soaring with a feeling of joyous adventure before it comes to an abrupt end - much like a real dream! "Return to Me (Embrace)" includes the beautiful operatic voice of Maria Grigoryeva and would make a very romantic slow dance. Tender and graceful, the music overflows with yearning and includes a short spoken word passage that expresses the meaning of the piece. Our voyage comes to a close with "The Siren's Dance," a beautifully hypnotic ending to one of the most exciting albums of the year!

Voyage to Eternity is available to download and stream from Arrizza's website as well as Amazon and AppleMusic/iTunes. It is also available on many streaming platforms including Pandora and Spotify. I give it my highest recommendation!