“Through a seventy minute set we explored Mushroom Giant’s career, playing tracks from their most recent record and even some sneak peek performances of promising new songs off an upcoming record, we were able to see how they’ve grown over the years as songwriters. Channeling different moods from chaotic, frantic riffs to grim, lumbering jams to delicate, nostalgic synth moments, their set showcased their unique take on songwriting within the progressive metal genre. The newer material had fans excited, with fast heavy metal driven riffs, high energy drumming and a thundering bass that shook the floor.”

“Mushroom Giant was a much heavier endeavour to behold than the previous act. They really leaned into the noisier aspects of what would usually be ambient effects. I could hear elements of Opeth, Firebreather, Primus, Mr Bungle, Mastodon and Mike Oldfield amongst others; all culminating in what I’d imagine the Melvins would sound like if they were a progressive rock act. The rhythm section was the real engine of the group, with abundant loud rumbly bass guitar and sweeping Brann Dailor-style drum fills; a driving groove that underpinned the whole set. Their stage show here was an entertaining feat to endure, the frenetic lighting and the group's truly psychedelic backing video.”

“Eine gute Wahl, “In A Forest” gleich mit dem mächtigen ‘Owls’ zu beginnen. So hat man wirklich keine Wahl und schon überhaupt keine Argumente mehr, den Trip wieder abzubrechen. Das vierte Album der australischen Mushroom Giants, die mittlerweile auch schon über zwanzig Jahre ihre Spuren hinterlassenden Kreise ziehen, flanieren wieder großspurig zwischen Stoner, Post und Alternative Rock, wobei auch hier wieder alles vollkommen auf instrumental gestriegelt wurde. Nach den wie gesagt beeindruckenden ‘Owls’ folgt mit ‘Vestige’ ein mit einem recht Tool’schem Basslauf ausgestatteter Stone Progger, der den einmal eingeschlagen Pfad lässig erweitert, um Platz zu machen für Tracks vom Kaliber des postrockenden ‘Earthrise’, des heavyesken Headbangers ‘Aire River Rapids’ und ‘Mountain Ash’, des semi-doomigen ‘And The Earthly Remains’ und dem lässig-verhaltenen ‘The Green Expanse’. Trotz Nichtvorhandensein jeglicher Lyrics haben uns Mushroom Giant j”

“„In A Forest“ gleicht in vielerlei Hinsicht einer filmischen Reise durch die Vielseitigkeit der Natur. Ist der eröffnenden Brocken „Owls“ gemeistert, finden sich lautmalerische Momente zwischen dröhnenden Riff-Bergen, psychedelischen Melodien und Kopfkino-Sequenzen, die einer nächtlichen Fahrt durch eine endlos erscheinende Waldstrecke gleichen.”

“With a two decade history behind them, this is a band that cannot be stopped, and with a new album on the way and a live show that can best be described as transcendent, they will not be denied. Swirling atmospherics signal the opening of their set, a violin bow across the strings of the bass guitar lending the sound eeriness and a mesmerising tone. This is a band that plies their own path, and to hell with convention, expectation and traditional song structures. They let it all hang out, as they have done for so long, an ebbing and flowing wash pouring from the stage captivating all in its path, the rear-screen visuals only adding to the psychedelic vibe of the whole thing. Sometimes this band rocks like the blazes, sometimes they apply the break and drag things back to an unsettling ambience, sometimes they sit on a relatively straightforward groove, and everything they do fills the room with swells of beautiful sound.”

“Owls is one of those astute, dextrous pieces of music that manages to be dynamic, to ebb of flow beautifully over the course of its epic length while still building to a riveting climax. That climax, in this instance, comes at around the six to seven minute mark. When the heavy guitars are roaring, it truly sends shivers through you”

“„Painted Mantra“ von den wahrhaft riesigen Mushroom Giant aus Melbourne ist solch eine Kostbarkeit, bei der einfach alles stimmig ist.”

“Mushroom Giant smashed out their strange, beautiful, vocal-free sounds for the growing throng. They’re difficult to describe beyond the ‘instrumental’ tag, but we’ll give it a shot: They combine elements of prog, stoner and avant-garde rock in one very heady concoction, and the set today covered much of their recorded career. That they are unable to use their usual psychedelic visuals for this set proves that their music is more than the visuals are just a bonus.”

“Did someone say Mushrooms? Those of the human kind in Mushroom Giant absolutely floored the entire space with their booming tones. Instrumental only, yes, but boy, they made it great to watch. With stunning visual graphics creating some wonderful background effects for the photographers, the band launched into a cascade of awesome tunes that left plenty walking away mesmerised. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better instrumental band in the country.”

“They open with a quiet, brooding intro that sends shivers down spines and you can tell that something major is brewing. When it comes, it is beautiful and the crowd is in instrumental heaven. This band are not really stoner rock, not really post-rock or post-metal, not really psychedelic rock, not truly prog, but rather they combine elements of all of the above and plenty more besides, channelling it all into something that is very much their own. You could say they exist in a genre of one.”

“If you are one of those prog fans who are always looking for that mystical missing link band that is a cross of Floydian landscapes with Rush-like power, this might be just the band you've been searching for. A dual-guitar attack joins keyboards and a powerful rhythm section, balancing technical virtuosity with emotion, and sending both to the edge of instrumental rock imagination without crossing into avant or dissonant realms. It is imaginative but it maintains accessibility as well. They move effortlessly from the serene and subtle to the heavy and epic allowing one to be absorbed, listening can become something more than just song, song, song. This is one of those albums that can be like a prog-rock fan's version of a rave, except rather than dance beats you have something much more winding and not repetitive, but still with a trance-like effect.”

“Entering the Gershwin room at The Espy for the first time, I notice local act Mushroom Giant setting up their equipment ready for their set. Their psychedelic-metal vibe and complete array of songs was an experience to say the least. The first thing I noticed was that this band was experienced and definitely had a large following. They really knew how to create an atmosphere that would enchant the older audience. This started with the visuals – it was really something else. The backdrop began with a journey through space, accompanied with the lights ranging between magenta and baby blue, giving an experience that was not just aural but took you on a visual journey too. Songs like “Woman Heroin” and “400 and Falling” were the crowd favorites at Rock The Bay, with people grooving along at their own pace with organic fluid motions. A spectacular show from Mushroom Giant! I did not expect such an intense vibe. It was incredible.”

"MUSHROOM GIANT followed and set the bar high. It hadn’t been for a long time that this reviewer had watched a support act and suspected the main act (Pelican, USA) could possibly be upstaged ... MUSHROOM GIANT were at the very least on par with some of their better known contemporaries ... forty minutes of brilliance."

"They’ve always been a band with a talent for creating epic, cinematic soundscapes, but with [Painted Mantra] Mushroom Giant have taken it a step further. The sheer scope of the album is incredible. This isn’t a record you can just drop in and out of at random. It’s an experience, an hour-long voyage through a spectral brew of prog, post-rock, metal and Eastern-influenced rock. And they manage to do it all without vocals..."

“Their vivid, cinematic soundscapes call to mind bands such as Jakob, Earth, Mogwai – but their style remains broad and malleable, entertaining a vast number of influences far beyond the standard cliches. At any given moment the calm, collected piece the band is solemnly strumming out might take a jarring diversion into a burst of distorted black metal, or slip deep into a doomy Morricone-esque spaghetti-western number – and this is really what makes this band special; they succeed in pooling a vast number of styles and influences together, further complemented with a strong songwriting ability and a penchant for progressive experimentation.”

"The reinterpretation of ‘Shadows’ into ‘The Shadows Under The Skin’ ... with Gogerly’s vocal structures beautifully interwoven in the dark and edgy track, and thus earning itself a place as one of the definitive highlights of the EP."

"This is the most I’ve enjoyed music today. It’s like a soundtrack for when you leave your body. I nearly go into a trance. Mushroom Giant are shaking me out of my coma – interspersing metal shredding and catatonic blackness – fast and loud – effectively, scaring the shit out of me in the

"Crescendos are used to great effect throughout Kuru to build tension and elevate mood ... The gentle, light-filled first part to Kuru is just the calm before the storm. The track Kuru holds a thunder-filled Sabbath drone while Poor Tom is truly the eye of the storm.

“Kuru is a truly deep album, one not easily judged after a single listen, but one that becomes more rewarding with each listen. Give it the time and space it needs to show itself to you, and the album's beauty will make itself evident.”

“Their sound sits right on the line between rock and metal, spacey and earthy ... great variety in the album, probably best shown in “Poor Tom,” which quickly switches from shred metal to spacey ambience again and again. Easily the heaviest song on the album”