Harold Budd’s self proclaimed final album from 2004, Avalon Sutra, is one of his finest and I return to it often. It was a real steal at $12.99 for two full discs, but the real beauty is in its expansive concept.
The first disc is the album of songs, Avalon Sutra. The second disc, As Long As I Can Hold My Breath, is a disc-long work done with the help of label-mate Akira Rabelais transforming the sophisticated, elegant tracks of Avalon Sutra into a meditation something like Basinski’s Disintigration Loops I.
I usually find remix discs to be overkill, but the lush quality of Avalon Sutra is so high and, for ambient music, relatively fleeting that it is perfectly rewarding to move on to the sustained, meditative beauty of As Long As I Can Hold My Breath.
I should mention, too, that the saxophone playing is by the great Jon Gibson!
links to: Jon Gibson artwork, opera (which I’m super curious about!)
