Near Life Experience

Mayadome was another amazing, talented, and high quality prog metal band but unfortunately they never got the critical acclaim they so well deserved. Near Life Experience (1999) is their second and last album. They broke up a while ago. The drummer Teddy Moller and keyboard player Sebastian Okupski have formed a new band called Loch Vostok. So if you were wondering what happened to Mayadome you might want to check LV out.

The biggest difference between Mayadome's debut album Paranormal Activity and Near Life Experience is the change of vocalists. Former singer Holmquist was replaced by Bassel Elharbiti. While I had no serious problems with the original singer I find Elarbiti has done a good job on NLE and his style fit the music very well. Also former keyboardist Jonas Hagg was replaced by Okupski who totally shines on this record.

Mayadome are a Swedish prog metal band. Like many other bands out there they draw influences from Dream Theater but they don't play over the top technical stuff like Portnoy, Rudess and Petrucci. The musicans play within the song guidelines never overstepping (overplaying) and they're more about capturing the atmosphere rather than showcasing their ability on their instruments. I hear a lot jazz elements in some parts of the songs, especially the drummer and keyboard/piano player do an awesome job. The keyboardist tries to keep it easy and simple but he does manage to create a lush atmosphere and adds a nice vibe to the overall sound. The drummer is magnificent! Very technical, kind of like Neil Peart and Mark Zonder mixed. He has an impressive style. Also the drums are a bit high in the mix, though it's not disturbing at all. If I was in a band and had such a great drummer, I too would mix him high. The guitars are very well used as well. Actually there's not a single member in the band that is below average. They're all amazing. The guitar solos are quite emotional and he's got a very smooth tone. The riffs and bass lines are h e a v y. Bassist Erik Grandin recently joined Danish prog metal band Wuthering Heights.

It's a shame this band is no more, cause I really think they could have a future. So many talented prog bands come and go cause only a handful of them get a decent promo. Other bands you might enjoy are Reading Zero, early Threshold, Poverty's No Crime, early Tad Morose (with Kristian Andren on vocals) and Pagan's Mind.