The Serpent (In Quicksilver) – Harold Budd (1981) – Album Review

Album: The Serpent (In Quicksilver)

Artist: Harold Budd

Release Date: January 1, 1981

Harold Budd, the originator of Ambient Americana (more on that later), was having trouble finding a commercial outlet for his work. Commercial outlets for Ambient composition barely existed, and Budd’s early pieces sounded too personal for the art-music establishment and too abstract for pop. When The Pavilion of Dreams was released in 1978, it seemed almost sure that Budd would find someone other than Brian Eno’s label, Obscure, to release his work; but that trepidation from other mainstream labels remained. Budd followed Eno’s example and set up his own label, Cantil, and it resulted in some pretty iconic Ambient albums from Budd. It’s first release was Budd’s own The Serpent (In Quicksilver).

His independence set an example for other composers who recorded and released outside established systems, and for that, listeners like me are eternally grateful. I believe this album in particular is the birth of Budd’s signature sound of Old West aesthetics without adhering to its tropes or idealized culture, directly avoiding nostalgia and myth. It’s the purest form of Ambient Americana you’re going to find. He’s a master of the detuned piano and slide strings. I think what’s great about Budd’s signature sound, is that it’s the blueprint for a lot of Ambient musicians who were first inspired by his work. Many contemporary ambient artists still draw from his approach to pacing, decay and tone placement.

His sense of space on this album purely carries traces of the American West: vast, reflective, and weathered. But for me, the standout track on this album is the brief two minute piece, “Widows Charm.“I used to loop it for hours, sinking into its delicate ache. Never had I felt isolation in a open desert so clearly than when I heard this piece. At times, it feels like Budd built an entire world from the sound of … distance and isolation – and for a few minutes, we get to live there with him.

An amazing Ambient album you should add to your collection.