Music: Hellana Pandora

Out of left field, a supremely talented French woman puts on a masterclass in tasty hard rock music. I am so here for this!

The news has been heavy this week, so, I think an intensely tasteful instrumental jam is due.

Today, I am bringing you a killer guitarist, a French woman who is so fresh, that I only find social media (Bandcamp, Twitter, Facebook, Insta, etc) mentions of her. Hellana Pandora is a synthetic name, as her band specializes in adaptations of music from Japanese “Anime” programs.

She plays in costume, and the mask helps create the aura of mystique.

But damn, can she play. Here, in this video, the official video for the song “Seizure”, she partners with the outstanding Jordan Rudess of Dream Theater fame in this banger of a tune.

It begins with an arpeggiated run that grows in intensity until it goes full shred. Hellana ties the theme together throughout a winding tune that keeps it fresh and interesting. Jordan’s keys are the perfect accent to Hellana’s playing, both artists feeding off the work of the other, making an even more soaring tune.

I really enjoyed this and will add her work to my ever-growing “Daily Grind” playlist on YouTube Music.