Infected Mushroom Feat. Jonathan Davis - Smashing the Opponent (HOM-MEGA Productions)

[psytones]

Infected Mushroom Feat. Jonathan Davis - Smashing the Opponent (HOM-MEGA Productions) 2009 (HMCDS13)

 

 

1. Smashing The Opponent (Album Mix) 4:30

2. Smashing The Opponent (Timo Maas Mutant Dub Mix) 8:35

3. Smashing The Opponent (Adam White Perfecto Remix) 9:41

4. Smashing The Opponent (XI Remix) 6:53

5. Smashing The Opponent (Robert Vadney's Vicious Remix) 6:47

6. Smashing The Opponent (J.Viewz Remix) 4:44

 

They have released their Legend of the Black Shawarma album,

this is the Single with remixes of their hope to reach those extra thousands

of people ready to become infected by the Mushroom flue:

 

1. Infected Mushrooms (Album Mix) latest single is taking its viciously controversial toll by challenging the mainstream/commercial market with hooking melodies, attentive details in production, hungry vocals and a beat which might manifest a new generation of curious clubbers looking for something different, maybe something weird in a playful shroom-sense. Jonathan Davis (KoRn) is hosting the main vocals on Smashing the Opponent and if you’re one of those who like his suffering voice you'll find the tracks lyrical theme to become sort of addictive with touches of personal truth, agony and openness, no matter how awkward it might be for some listeners. Smashing the Opponent works as a fusion as it delightfully and annoyingly combines rock, electronic and, well, dare I say; ‘Psytrance’ elements. If you can stand this pop-tart, I think you will find yourself enjoying its offering more then you’re willing to admit. I know after multiple rounds in the CD-Player, I have gotten myself a new earworm and I don’t mind it crawling around in my head for a while. Together with Shpongle I see Infected Mushroom as being one of two main acts in the wide world of commerpsylizing who are acting as important door openers with fusion of psychedelic institutions to infiltrate and aspire new lofty headspaces of potential psychonauts across the globe to discover parts of them self and the kosmos which they never knew actually existed. So watch out, the infection is spreading faster than the flue. ****

 

2. Timo Maas (Mutant Dub Mix) is well known by most inside the electronic club scene. This is one extremely thumping track which walks in a electro bubble with scattering bits of Jonathans voice here and there. The beat is deep’n clubby with a highness to the flow which manages to keep the legs moving and head swaying while grooving the pants, and the attention to details and bass is enjoyable so make sure you play this one on a system with base. For those interested in its style, it's a relaxed piece and creates an Old-skool’ish groove hard to miss out on. ***

 

3. Adam White (Perfecto Remix) is a guy who gives us another old-skool mix and it manages to draw me right back to the über supportive and uplifting trance anthems of the late 90’s. White’s track is interesting in some aspects and becomes worn-out and ripped off in other views. What I like is the counter the classic Eurotrance-leads offer to the suffering and crying lyrics of Smashing the Opponent. It feels as if White comes in to lift and support the sad feelings of the title track which is a brotherly and an almost tear dripping attempt if you ask me. If you where to strip away the vocals you would be left with a very typical trance track from the uplifting EuroTrance days, which in this case feels like an enjoyable copy of an imitation - I know I’ve heard this melody many many times before so I’m unsure if it's a total rip-off of some other well known melody used in that genre a million times before or if it just sounds really familiar? I like the acid touches floating around, and Ok, so it has the old cheesetrance x2c-vibe, but it does manage to mix in futuristic and beautiful bubbly details of the more tripped out space and together with the whole romantic idea of the tracks melody and power, this piece survives and becomes a swell tune for the euphoric and hopeful ones with soul. ****

 

4. XI (FullOn Remix) is well known name for people liking more powerful, mature and groovy trance music. This remix of Smashing the Opponent gives us some standardized Full-On PsyTrance which can become extremely boring and predictable for those wishing to reach higher and more exiting grounds, and this is where XI’s power plays a part for the better. I really like the surprising feel of the first high pitch lift of the vocal sample where XI puts the whole theme up on a shelf only to groove out a bit with a shrugging smile like we need to party and not become drawn inside the sorrow and emotional chaos which is human nature. I like the difference of Euro-Trance (Perfecto Remix) and Isra-Trance (XI Remix) which this single offers, it’s very funny and interesting to hear the Adam White remix before XI’s contribution because White’s contribution is extremely up-lifting, hopeful and euphoric in the main melody theme while the XI remix is funky, groovy, powerful and serious in its full-on realm and promotes pleasure of almost forgetting the hurtful world surrounding us asking everyone to take it like a ,,man” and party like an animal. Unfortunately my enthusiasm ends there and it becomes generically boring only offering a glimpse of what today’s mainstream PsyTrance might offer new listeners of electronic 4/4 dance music. Top points for the introduction vibe of the remix, too bad it falls short and becomes a snooze after it has stabilized itself in the first round of pumping the blood around your dancing body. ***

 

5. Robert Vadney (Vicious Remix) presents the roughest mix on this single where industrial elements rock the track into new grounds and pushes it onto mechanical and computerized worlds of yawn. It feels pleasing as a short snippet but when the track keeps on going and grinding it feels repeating and not saved by its computer rock elements which bleep in annoying maneuvers trying to be more interesting than it actually is. After playing this single in repeat for days I have found myself skipping one tune almost every time.. So Ok, it has an interesting almost head-banging walk representing its effort to combine Metal and Data. As an emotional side-drawn piece of the title track I guess it sort of has its value and it shouldn’t be ignored. However, it doesn’t hide the fact that this is not good in its whole unless you really like it ruff and simple with some sounds crunched by stinging bleeps and blips without much variation. **

 

6. The final mix by J.Views (TripLounge Remix), best known as half of Violet Vision, is maybe the best remix contributor of the lot and defiantly the most exiting one for me because of its alternative heart influenced by some great music from the days of soul and jazz. It has a lovely experimental vibe to it and the way J.Views has chosen to include elements and his own creativity in inspiration really shines a smile as it’s funny, quirky and well balanced in its poetic way of humming an alternative tune which suits perfect to the title tracks suffering agony - Beautiful. *****

 

 

Favorite Tracks: 1(!), 2, 3(!), 4, 6(!!)

 

 

Where to buy and other links:

IM-Base: http://www.infected-mushroom.com

IM-Space: http://www.myspace.com/infectedmushroomcentral

IM-Discogs: http://www.discogs.com/artist/Infected+Mushroom

Psyshop.com: http://www.psyshop.com/shop/CDs/hom/hom1cd913.html

Saikosounds: http://www.saikosounds.com/english/display_release.asp?id=8057

Play.com: http://www.play.com/Music/CD/4-/12149408/Smashing-The-Opponent/Product.html

Beatport: https://www.beatport.com/en-US/html/content/home/detail/1/beatport#app=7ef5&a486-index=3

Beatspace: http://beatspace.com/dettagli/dettaglio.asp?id=5172

More Smashing Reviews: http://www.myspace.com/psytonesmusic

[psytones]

Hey, this is the orignal review posted @ Isratrance.com

 

 

Infected Mushrooms latest album Legend of the Black Shawarma is a direct follow-up of their last release Vicious Delicious with firmer ideas and a more confident approach on where they're headed and how they might get there. Through the latest years Duvdev has received heavy critique for his missed singing talent ever since he decided to go back to his roots of playing and singing in a rock'n'roll band ...

 

 

1. Smashing The Opponent (Album Mix) 145BPM 4:30

2. Smashing The Opponent (Timo Maas Mutant Dub Mix) 125BPM 8:35

3. Smashing The Opponent (Adam White Perfecto Remix) 138BPM 9:41

4. Smashing The Opponent (XI Remix) 145BPM 6:53

5. Smashing The Opponent (Robert Vadney's Vicious Remix) 133BPM 6:47

6. Smashing The Opponent (J.Viewz Remix) 77BPM 4:44

 

 

.. People offered to pay for his singing lessons and others begged on their knees for him to stop his SingStar frenzy because it was and ended up almost killing the immerse beauty of what people perceived as being the essence of Infected Mushroom. (T1) The Infected crew took notice and after some string pulling they got the possibility to include the voice of Jonathan Davis (from KoRn) on a track which would eventually become their new hit (?) single with a suiting music video ready to invade MTV. Some complaints has been that it feels all too inspired by Depeche Mode in the melodic sense and that the fusion of psytrance and metal sounds like a failed soup of hope and ideas to conquer the mainstream market of commercial music, which in all honesty is fusing different styles and making it trendy all the time. Just watch the success Kanye West is getting by fusing together the French Daft Punk electro with his ShitHop. So why shouldn't Disinfected Mushroom get to eat a piece of the global success pie? This is an earworm track to the fullest and I wish them all the luck to achieve their goals to infect the world. (T2) Timo Maas is a legend on his own inside the world of club music. The man has managed to create a lot of house oriented tracks which are getting recognition all over the globe. However, in my opinion most of his tracks are utterly boring and at times much uninspired. The track itself is ok and humps on its road and gives some pleasure as long as a good bass is present because it sounds soft and nice and we don't get to hear the singing theme much. (T3) Adam White's contribution offers a recycled Euro-Trance theme with uplifting spirits and dreamlike state of being. It's funny to hear the contradictory elements of the title tracks suffering with the Perfecto's hopeful and helping hand. It feels as if White's remix takes the suffering singing voice on his melodic shoulders and carries the wounded man like a euphoric gentleman- poetic and honorable in its essence.

 

(T4) XI represents Full On and it sounds cool enough in the dunkadunk FullOfPower remix sense, which I think we've gotten unwillingly used to by now. I think this one lacks a lot but kudos for the smart way of starting the track, I really like the way it lifts us up to a groovy state of mind. (T5) Robert Vadney has chosen to industrialize the track with heavy guitar riffs and a head-banging attitude with computerized and stinging melodic noise. It's some sort of industrial techno'n'metal remix, not sure what to say... Rock on bleep'n'peep twats? (T6) I think we all have a sense of respect for the work of J. Viewz (ex-Violet Vision) has given us throughout the years of playing with different, and maybe at times, more sophisticated music styles. As with the Violet Vision remixes of Cities of the Future and Deeply Disturbed, he/they gives/gave us the most interesting twist on an Infected Mushroom track and this one is no exception. It's different, it's down-tempo and it plays with fusions of lounge and jazz with spices of snobby electronica.

 

Recommendation: Even though a harmonic approach in progression is needed and craved for here,

I think this single with its 5 remixes is one of the best I've heard and I'm glad I own it.

 

Favorite tracks: 1(!), 2, 3(!), 4, 6(!!)

 

Love,

 

psytones

[psytones]

Still love this track and Maxi-single, so therefor I will *bump* btw. Nice read; http://psymusic.co.uk/forum/threads/infected-mushroom-feat-jonathan-davis-smashing-the-opponent-single-cds.55121/