“My main resounding fear is of mushrooms,” Stu said on Andy Frasco’s World Saving Podcast. “Which is really strange, and like, being like a vegetarian person is a really annoying thing to be like, fearful of but I have, like a very… I’m scared of mushrooms which is a running joke within King Gizz. I just don’t like mushrooms for some reason. Like a lot.” When asked if he was talking about psychedelics alone, Stu clarified and said it was a fear of all mushrooms. Perhaps his uncomfortable attitude towards these fungi can be demonstrated in “Mycelium” — a carefree track about the spread of mushrooms following the extinction of human beings.
The song references different mushrooms such as the “Devil’s fingers” (Clathrus archeri) as well as the various parts of their structure including the titular mycelium — a system of fungal roots that react to the world around them and grow within the soil.
Beyond the deceptively gruesome lyrics and a quick callback to the song “Automation”, “Mycelium” is in the Ionian scale or better known as the major scale. Stu said that the band tried to limit the song’s happiness in a Guitar World interview. “…the straight‑up major scale/Ionian was quite challenging as well. It was about finding something that didn’t feel too happy, too ‘Disney’.” Joey commented that the song’s scale led it to becoming an “African-type thing,” bringing to mind an influence from Afrobeat. This balancing act seemed to affect the lyrics which can grow rather dark with the song’s third verse mentioning some gnarly side effects of eating certain mushrooms. The end result is a conflicting opener for Ice, Death… that sets up the improvisational tone of the album, as well as the often strange and sinister lyrics.

The lyrics were written by Stu, Ambrose, Joey, Cook and Lucas while the music was written and performed by Stu (piano/bass/guitar/organ/vocals/percussion/flute), Ambrose (keys/saxophone), Cavs (drums), Joey (bass/keys/guitar) and Cook (bass/keys/guitar). It was released on October 7th, 2022.

“Mycelium” has never been played live but it was quoted during a performance of “The Dripping Tap” on 2024-05-29.