Celebrating the release of their new anniversary album IM25, the pioneering psy-trance group Infected Mushroom looks back on a quarter-century of studio and stage time with the stories behind ten of their most beloved loved tracks.
These ten songs represent the music we enjoy playing at the moment, tunes we have played in our sets during this summer’s festival season, and favorites that have withstood the test of time. Our new album, IM25, was produced in the last couple years during the pandemic. It is very much a multi-genre crossover effort which is reminiscent of one of our older influential long-plays called Vicious Delicious. IM25 includes killer collaborations with artists such as Ninet Tayeb, Bliss, Nick Hexum from 311, Hope 6, Mr. Bill, May Sfadia, and our talented new guitarist, Joseph Mizrahi. This is a journey that pushes the boundaries of dance music and celebrates a quarter century of the evolution of our sound. We are honored after all this time to still be relevant and respected; we are excited to see what will come in the next 25 years. Our legacy is our music, and we want to keep making more of it for the world.
Infected Mushroom’s 25-year anniversary album IM25 is out now via Monstercat. Buy it on Beatport.
Infected Mushroom – Becoming Insane [PMI Digital]
This is our most successful track to date, the song that brought Infected Mushroom into the mainstream, and ultimately it became one of the most influential psy-trance pieces ever made (by numbers). This song single-handedly brought us opportunities to play in front of our biggest crowds.
Infected Mushroom – Heavyweight [PMI Digital]
This is probably our most iconic track. “Heavyweight” represents what Infected Mushroom is all about: a psychedelic jam that crosses genres from rock, to metal, and even to chillout. Very experimental and one of our all-time favorites.
Infected Mushroom – I Wish [BNE/Yoyo Records]
Transcending time, and ultimately influencing the creation of one of our most popular production effect plug-ins, “I Wish” finds its roots off the trance side of our popular double album, Converting Vegetarians. Fun fact, this was the final song that made it into that album after the entire LP was already finished, so it almost didn’t make the cut, but we are so happy it did because “I Wish” ended up becoming one of our biggest hits.
Infected Mushroom – Walking on the Moon [Monstercat]
This special gem came out on one of our recent Monstercat albums called Head of NASA and the 2 Amish Boys. “Walking on the Moon” is a low-tempo track that found its way into Rocket League, and subsequently catapulted us onto the radars of dance music’s younger demographic, a direction we did not expect while we were in the studio.
Infected Mushroom – Saeed [Mushroom Touring, Inc.]
The title was inspired by our favorite hummus spot in Israel, called Abu Saaed in Akko. Even though the song lyrics have different meanings, this was an important part of our food diary album, known fondly as Legend of the Black Shawarma.
Infected Mushroom – Bust a Move [BNE/Yoyo Records]
This was the opening track of our second oldest album, Classical Mushroom, which showcases our influences from classical music sources into one song. More importantly, it revealed Infected Mushroom to the European trance scene back in the late ’90s. This piece regularly finds its way into our retro sets.
Infected Mushroom – U R So Fucked [Dim Mak]
This is an experimental dubstep tune of ours that always makes the crowd melt. Funny story, the song actually started as “U R So Smart,” but Erez decided to change the lyrics last minute to be more “radio friendly.”
Infected Mushroom – Elation Station [BNE/Yoyo Records]
“Elation Station” is one of our all-time favorite dance/chillout/electro tracks, hailing from our highly applauded Converting Vegetarians double album. This one always reminds me of an imaginary mystical train-stop between cities in Israel, which makes me feel connected to home.
Infected Mushroom – Suliman [PMI Digital]
This tune also reminds us of home because it gives off a Middle Eastern vibe, which definitely represents the sound of Infected Mushroom. There is an epic guitar solo in the middle… but I’ll let you in on a little secret, it is actually Erez with a keyboard and distortion. So, the iconic guitar jam of Suliman is in fact with no guitar.
Infected Mushroom – Ani Meshuval [Monstercat]
This is one of our many collaborations with the talented artist, Bliss. In recent times, he has become like our third fungal finger, someone we respect, and with whom we’ve made a ton of memorable music. “Ani Meshuval” translates to “I am baked” in Hebrew. It’s a psychedelic effort coming out of our three-headed monster. And let me be clear, no monster with any number of heads is ever complete without a blissful mullet illuminating the artistic pathway forward through its follicle glory.
