Infected Mushroom

Infected Mushroom is a US-based Israeli Psy-Trance / rock cross-over act.  Centred around the duo of Amit Duvdevani and Erez Aizen but now featuring numerous other musicians for live performances, Infected Mushroom are one of the most commercially successful Psy-Trance acts and are similarly influential.  They have released seven studio albums to date.

Early Years: 1997 to 2004

Amit Duvdevani and Erez Aizen formed Infected Mushroom in 1996.  Though both were formally trained pianists, the pair came from diverse musical backgrounds. 

By the time he was 18 Eisen released three Psy-Trance albums and numerous tracks under aliases including Shidapu and Shiva Shidapu).  Duvdevani’s musical background was punk rock and heavy metal, having played keyboard in a Haifa based punk band Enyzme.  Dudevani’s introduction to trance was going to a trance party in 1991 one week before he left for military service.  On return from his time in the Israeli Defence Force he spent a year in India, mostly in Goa.

Duvdevani and Aizen released a number of tracks as INfected Mushroom in 1997 and 1998 but their breakthrough came in 1999 with the release of their debut studio album ‘The Gathering’ (YoYo Records 1999).  The album enjoyed cross-over commercial success in the pair’s native Israel and featured the highly successful single ‘Psycho’ (YoYo Records 1999), a dark and minimal Psy-Trance track with sparse percussion, sinister acid lead lines and driving rhythm.  In many ways ‘Psycho’ was a precursor of the Full On Psy-Trance that the likes of Astrix would soon after pioneer.

Infected Mushroom’s follow up album ‘Classical Mushroom’ (YoYo Records 2000) was even more successful than their debut and is seen by many as their landmark release.  The third Infected Mushroom album ‘B.P.Empire’ (YoYo Records 2001) was critically acclaimed but not as commercially successful as its predecessor.  ‘B.P.Empire’ was the first step in what would prove to be a long journey of musical experimentation for Infected Mushroom.   Though still firmly a Psy-Trance album ‘B.P. Empire’ incorporates diverse musical styles and real instruments to complement the electronic core.

With the release of the album ‘Converting Vegetarians’ (YoYo Records 2003) Infected Mushroom took their musical experimentation further.  The double disc release featured one disc of the club oriented Psy-Trance their core fans expected and a second one of more experimental sounds.  The album included many key tracks including the twisted dark Psy-Trance of ‘Deeply Disturbed’ (YoYo Records 2003).

Early Years: 2004 to present

Live performances have long been a part of the Infected Mushroom experience (they perform approximately 120 times a year).  In 2004 they added two guitarists - Thomas Cunningham and Erez Netz – to play with them in live performances, with Cunningham playing US gigs and Netz all others.

In the same year Infected Muchroom released their fifth studio album ‘IM The Supervisor’ (YoYo Records 2004) which alienated some long term fans for being perceived as too commercial.  However its mix of diverse genres coupled with a more accessible style resulted in ‘IM The Supervisor’ becoming Infected Mushroom’s most successful album to date.

Two years later Infected Mushroom relocated to Los Angeles where they remain based today.

In 2007 Infected Mushroom, with the extended line-up which now additionally included Brazilian percussionist Rogério Jardim on drums, released ‘Vicious Delicious’ (YoYo Records 2007), an even more diverse album than ‘IM The Supervisor’.  One of the highlights of ‘Vicious Delicious’ was Infected Mushroom’s most successful track so far, ‘Becoming Insane’ (YoYo Records 2007).  Its combination of Psy-Trance dark bass line and drums, flamenco and heavy metal guitars and eccentric vocals are a typically audacious multi-genre tour-de-force for Infected Mushroom.  ‘Vicious Delicious’ also saw Infected Mushroom begin to show their rock influences more strongly, as seen on the nu-metal track 'Artillery'.

Infected Mushroom’s most recent studio album is ‘Legend Of The Black Shawarma’ (HOM-Mega Productions 2009).

Infected Mushroom are a hugely innovative and similarly influential act.  Not satisfied with simply being a driving force in the Psy-Trance movement their fusion of diverse influences and genres have helped push the boundaries of electronic music.  Although they have lost some of their hard core Psy-Trance fans in the process, Infected Mushroom will go down in history as one of electronic dance music’s most adventurous innovators.

Erez Eisen was born in Qiryat Yam in Israel, played the organ at four years old and was studying piano in the Haifa Conservatory by eight years of age.  Amit Duvdevani started playing piano aged seven.