The Shamen – In Gorbachev We Trust

As said great album before Mr C and his Cockney market boy ranting people gorgeous The Shamen were a band of two clear parts

This is the Shamen,s best album in my opinion, no Mr C rapping or silly girly warbling, just straight up brilliance from start to end. Adam Strange is a wonderful song written about colins experience on M.D.A., all phased out and blissfull. One of the copies I own is signed by Colin Angus and Will Sin, I totally love this album.

An amazing record, one of my personal overall faves. It shows a band originating in indie and psych rock being among the very first ones to adapt elements from acid house and techno and thus sounding like a lighter, more melodious version of the EBM bands of that time, but still with a sharp edge.
After a first full-on guitar album (Drop) and a string of early dancebeat/guitar-clashes on 12” in 1987/1988 (Christopher Mayhew Says/Knature Of A Girl/Jesus Loves Amerika), The Shamen made their second full-length statement with In Gorbachev We Trust, and it was mainly about bringing psychedelia and beats together. Having no predecessors in what they were trying to do, they fared very well, though the tunes vary in style and quality.

Synergy as the opener is a relatively restrained tune with a nice acid line and more hints of what's to come, but it sounds a bit more standard pop type than the rest. Sweet Young Thing, originally written by The Monkees, has been centred around a beat and arranged spartanly and kind of spacey; it would fit well onto Jesus Jones’ debut album, where it would be a standout tune.
It's on the energetic Raspberry Infundibulum that The Shamen bring their psychedelic roots to the forefront and give the album its defining tone. War Prayer remains mystic and positively strange, you just wouldn't expect that almost goth-type tune here which combines sung poetry with sampling of political speeches. Adam Strange continues the psych pop in a very relaxed mood, before Jesus Loves Amerika (Fundamental) ups the pressure. It's a brillant, beat-heavy indie tune with evil lyrics and a clever melody. The guitars on this version compared to the 12” version have added vibrato effects.
The peak of the record comes with the original version of Transcendental. A dry synth bassline and a straight techno beat push the tune forward, while witty sampling and a gorgeous vocal melody make it an engaging listen. This version compared to the 12“ released on Desire Records has the advantage of a smoother mix and some guitars left in the mix quite far back during the chorus parts. Bam Bam's mix might have been better suited for 1988/1989 dancefloors, but the one included here has aged better. Misinformation sees Will Sin take the mic from Colin Angus for the first time, and he does one of his great, more leftfield kind of tunes; guitar and bass are nicely placed in a surrounding of aggressive electronic beats and distorted vocal noises.
Raptyouare is a beat-strong, slick synth-pop tune with a nice vocal melody. A remixed, and as I find, improved version of this appeared on the Phorward EP. In Gorbachev We Trust, the title tune, closes off the album well (as it's the last track on the LP version). Credits go to Will Sin for a second time, and he delivers a chilled yet moody, dubby and softly grooving tune. The subject of the USSR shortly before its collapse is dealt with for the second time, which makes this the main lyrical topic of this album besides drug use.
The last two tunes are unnecessary additions to the CD version – Yellow Cellophane Day being an average indie pop tune, and Mayhew Speaks Out being a brutally stripped-down version of the great early single. I mostly stop the CD after track 10.
Cheers to The Shamen for their exciting early fusion of acid house and techno with indie and psych rock on this album and the Phorward EP.