The Journey Continues is the follow-up to Sundad’s 2005 Journey to Eternity, which was nominated for Best New Artist and Best Instrumental Acoustic Album by New Age Reporter. Sundad is a father and son acoustic guitar duo, John Eurell Sr. and John Eurell Jr., and includes percussionist Chet Soares as well as several guest artists. They describe their music as “world fusion/new age music with a heavy dose of percussion,” which puts it in a nutshell. Rhythmic, joyous, and up-tempo, this is some mighty-fine finger-picking accompanied by Soares’ hand drums and light percussion. All of the music is original and is improvised to a large degree. The musicians are in complete synch with each other, making this a sophisticated yet very accessible and enjoyable listening experience.

The CD opens with “The Veil,” which has already won multiple awards. Light and airy, with some interesting chord and rhythmic changes, it’s a wonderful beginning. “Chet’s Favorite” steps up the energy level and lets the music soar with an infectious rhythm and free-flowing melody. “The Conquistador” is smooth as silk with a dreamy, slow Spanish dance feeling. Gorgeous! My favorite track is “East Meets West.” A sense of mystery as well as multiple ethnic influences make this piece a real standout. I also really like “The Midnight Express,” which features Dave Kline on violin. High energy and full of fun, this piece must be a blast in concert! From there, we cool off to the sensuous “Moonlight in Manhattan” - a beauty. Another favorite is “Dancing in the Park.” Some of the “percussion” in this is hand clapping, which heightens the carefree mood. You can almost feel the warm sunshine and smell the grass as the dancers move freely to the beat - a little picnic for the mind!

The Journey Continues is a wonderful musical expedition that will calm as well as energize. When musicians play this well together, the result is magic! The CD is available from sundad.com. Recommended!