Prompted by me picking up Budd & Robin Guthrie's new soundtrack album, Mysterious Skin... it's very much a casual revisiting of Moon and the Melodies, so much so that the first few tracks kind of fight me a bit as being too familiar, but then Budd kicks in and before long it's clear that they're still the only people who can make music like this.
good to be hearing this after Avalon Sutra, which was announced as his final solo record. Which I appreciate, though the sax & chamber arrangements are so frosty and removed that I haven't been able to enter into it as much.
top tier favorites - The Pearl, Lovely Thunder, The Serpent in Quicksilveralso: Plateaux of Mirror, Pavillion of Dreams, Luxa. as well as White Arcades.
I've got most of the others as well, my favorite recent record is definitely La Bella Vista, no electronics at all, just piano...
I was on the same bill as him once in 98 or so, he played a beautiful 25 minute set on grand piano with the chorus and reverb processing piled on so heavy that the sound was on the brink of absolutely beautiful feedback the entire time. At the end of his set, our applause was picked up by the microphone and was coming back through the speakers at nearly the same volume as the applause itself, a reflected wall of light shimmering noise.
― milton parker (Jon L), Monday, 27 June 2005 01:28 (7 years ago) Permalink
― kyle (akmonday), Monday, 27 June 2005 02:15 (7 years ago) Permalink
after Mysterious Skin I went back to Pavillion. Side two is impossibly lovely. When I bought it the first time, coming from the electro-acoustic ambient albums for EG, I was thrown by this one, but these days it sounds like some of his best.
― milton parker (Jon L), Monday, 27 June 2005 04:35 (7 years ago) Permalink
After that ('good but not essential'): Serpent in Quicksilver and Abandoned Cities, By the Dawn's Early Light. The only two that I found lackluster are Luxa and Glyph (w/Zazou).
― Joe (Joe), Monday, 27 June 2005 11:07 (7 years ago) Permalink
― Joe (Joe), Monday, 27 June 2005 11:08 (7 years ago) Permalink
The collaboration with Andy Partridge is likely out of print (Through the Hill). It was nice moments but always reminds me that any Budd album with poetry reading soon becomes less worthy.
Never got into the Alice Coltrane-influenced Pavilions of Dreams.
Moon and Melodies and Abandoned Cities/Serpent in Quicksilver (due for re-issue next month) are my faves.
"Children on the Hill" is maybe the peak.
― Duke Dubuque (Duke Dubuque), Saturday, 21 January 2006 20:37 (7 years ago) Permalink
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Saturday, 21 January 2006 20:53 (7 years ago) Permalink
― blackmail (blackmail.is.my.life), Saturday, 21 January 2006 21:11 (7 years ago) Permalink
Hey, he has two new albums with Robin Guthrie coming out. I thought he had retired?
― Joe, Monday, 11 June 2007 23:39 (5 years ago) Permalink
I have really got to catch up with the stuff Guthrie's been doing - Budd, Violet Indiana, the new Schnauss album etc.
― Trayce, Tuesday, 12 June 2007 01:40 (5 years ago) Permalink
guthrie just remixed a couple of tracks for the new ulrich schnauss EP, i don't think he had anything to do with producing the album.
darla certainly seems to have put him to work remixing their artists lately. he did one for the new alsace lorraine that's nice.
oops, this is actually a harold budd thread.
― f. hazel, Tuesday, 12 June 2007 01:48 (5 years ago) Permalink
Oh remixes, ok. I thought he'd done some production.
― Trayce, Tuesday, 12 June 2007 02:16 (5 years ago) Permalink
I've heard one of the collaborations with Robin Gunthrie, After the Night Falls. It's nice if a little new-agey in stretches.
― The Macallan 18 Year, Tuesday, 19 June 2007 15:33 (5 years ago) Permalink
ditto for the companion LP...still, pretty lovely in places...
― henry s, Tuesday, 19 June 2007 16:44 (5 years ago) Permalink
saw the new Budd / Guthrie albums in the store this weekend, but paused
anyone who's heard them, do they actually sound like collaborations? Mysterious Skin sounded like alternating solo tracks from each of them, and I liked it, some good moments, but in the end I'm not sure it could compete with Moon and the Melodies, so I'm almost hoping the new ones were an attempt to actually work together...
― Milton Parker, Monday, 25 June 2007 19:18 (5 years ago) Permalink
I'm not familiar with the ones you cite, but of the new stuff, it's clearly the trademark Cocteau glimmering guitar set against barely-there piano twinklings...
― henry s, Monday, 25 June 2007 19:37 (5 years ago) Permalink
Also there is "Perhaps", a live solo piano album (download only) on David Sylvain's SamadhiSound label. Looks like it came out in February of this year.
― Edward Bax, Tuesday, 26 June 2007 04:56 (5 years ago) Permalink
No love for Music for Three Pianos, with Budd, Daniel Lentz and Ruben Garcia? Some really nice stuff on there.
― Tim R-J, Tuesday, 26 June 2007 09:45 (5 years ago) Permalink
Must get my hands on the Budd/Guthrie stuff dammit. I love "Moon and the Melodies".
― Trayce, Tuesday, 26 June 2007 10:32 (5 years ago) Permalink
No love for Music for Three Pianos, with Budd, Daniel Lentz and Ruben Garcia?
Oh, I give much love for Three Pianos.
― Edward Bax, Wednesday, 27 June 2007 02:02 (5 years ago) Permalink
anyone else think La Bella Vista is his best album?
― Milton Parker, Monday, 10 March 2008 22:04 (5 years ago) Permalink
La Bella Vista and Music for 3 pianos
― Dan I., Thursday, 11 December 2008 13:04 (4 years ago) Permalink
Coincidentally I started my rainy day off listening to The Pavilion of Dreams, but now this thread has put me into a day-long Buddfest.
I mostly agree with the consensus favorites listed above, plus The Room. I think Luxa is a little better than some do--it's kind of a mix of all styles he's tried over the years, which makes for an uneven flow though. Avalon Sutra has a bit of that problem but is better overall.
Much as I love both Budd and Cocteau Twins, that Robin Guthrie watery mid-range production sounds better on guitars than it does piano to my ears, so Lovely Thunder and some of The Moon and the Melodies get dropped a notch. The two new Budd-Guthrie collabs sound better to me if somewhat familiar (which doesn't bother me at all).
The live album Agua is excellent and (provided there was no studio tweaking later) shows that he really could recreate those sounds on stage.
― Hideous Lump, Thursday, 11 December 2008 19:20 (4 years ago) Permalink
I am quite enjoying The White Arcades of late. Of the records I know, it seems his most synthed out. Which despite his lovely piano playing is not an altogether bad thing.
― Naive Teen Idol, Monday, 18 July 2011 15:42 (1 year ago) Permalink
Can we revive this? I've been listening to a ton of The Pearl of late and trying to suck up everything I can about how Eno and Lanois did it.
― Naive Teen Idol, Saturday, 13 October 2012 00:57 (7 months ago) Permalink
i've only heard The Pearl and Pavillion of Dreams, the latter of which has quickly become one of my favorite ambient albums ever. incredible sleepytimes. I've got a nice copy of The Pearl, I should revisit it. Can't flip a record when it's sleepytime, though.
― Thanks WEBSITE!! (Z S), Saturday, 13 October 2012 01:06 (7 months ago) Permalink
if you are into the Serpent in Quicksilver / Abandoned Cities era, this is great: http://rootstrata.com/rootblog/?p=5869
the one he put out last year, In The Mist, has a lot of wide-ranging moods on it, making it hard for me to throw it on and leave it on, but the good pieces on it are great, such a relief he was lying when he said he was retiring
La Bella Vista is all time
― Milton Parker, Saturday, 13 October 2012 01:22 (7 months ago) Permalink
He's been on a tear lately! Song for Lost Blossoms, Candylion, and Little Windows are all completely great.
― the girl from spirea x (f. hazel), Saturday, 13 October 2012 06:17 (7 months ago) Permalink
More live stuff: Harold Budd @ Redcat, Los Angeles, 9/18/2004. (Streaming Quicktime only, I'm afraid.)
Almost 2 hour's worth--1st hour is music composed by Budd but performed by Clive Wright, Alex Cline, and a string quartet; 2nd hour is Budd himself with guest Jon Gibson.
― Hideous Lump, Saturday, 13 October 2012 06:58 (7 months ago) Permalink
Just pulled this down. Live Budd is an interesting proposition.
― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 18 October 2012 01:04 (7 months ago) Permalink
Looking for the original "Children on the Hill" online, but can't find it.
Are either of these it?
― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 18 October 2012 15:10 (7 months ago) Permalink
First one is the one from this chockfull 1983 Crépuscule compilation -- http://www.discogs.com/Various-From-Brussels-With-Love-1983-Edition/release/2005886 -- almost everything on it is alternate or unreleased versions
Second one is the 1981 version from 'The Serpent (In Quicksilver)'
― Milton Parker, Thursday, 18 October 2012 17:16 (7 months ago) Permalink
Gah, so neither. I can't find either of these records anywhere online right now. Boo.
― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 18 October 2012 18:06 (7 months ago) Permalink
correcting myself: compilation originally came out in 1980
http://www.discogs.com/Various-From-Brussels-With-Love/master/32946
slightly shorter CD version came out recently - http://www.amazon.com/From-Brussels-With-Various-Artists/dp/B000K97MUC
― Milton Parker, Thursday, 18 October 2012 18:09 (7 months ago) Permalink
Sorry, "either of these records" == Serpent/Abandoned Cities
― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 18 October 2012 18:11 (7 months ago) Permalink
Ergo, the original is available nowhere.
― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 18 October 2012 18:37 (7 months ago) Permalink
Wait, found it here: http://grooveshark.com/#!/search/song?q=Harold+Budd+Children+On+The+Hill
Still not available to purchase, however.
― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 18 October 2012 18:57 (7 months ago) Permalink
It's not hard to snag a used CD copy on Amazon for $5-15.
― the girl from spirea x (f. hazel), Thursday, 18 October 2012 19:20 (7 months ago) Permalink
Still Budding. I like the viola on By the Dawn's Early Light.
― Naive Teen Idol, Tuesday, 23 October 2012 04:51 (7 months ago) Permalink
How does everyone rate the collabs with Clive Wright? I know nothing of Wright but my local shop has three albums (all on Darla, of all labels).
― If Assholes Could Fly This Place Would Be An Airport, Monday, 4 February 2013 23:35 (3 months ago) Permalink
budd don't
― ☏ (am0n), Monday, 4 February 2013 23:41 (3 months ago) Permalink
I listen to the Clive Wright collaborations far more than the Robin Guthrie ones, although I like them both.
― the girl from spirea x (f. hazel), Monday, 4 February 2013 23:51 (3 months ago) Permalink
So, I broke down and bought Little Windows, and I love it. Parts of it remind me of Popol Vuh, others remind me of Evening Star. I really love what Wright is doing on guitar and I wonder if the other Budd / Wright collaborations feature him so prominently? If so, I'm buying 'em all. Loving this dude right now.
― If Assholes Could Fly This Place Would Be An Airport, Saturday, 23 February 2013 14:59 (3 months ago) Permalink