“Return to the Healing Church” by Young Hierophant

Recorded over the course of six years, Young Hierophant’s final album is termed “an epic synthesizer and tape fantasia chronicling the final ascent of an upstart Paladin on a pilgrimage through hell in search of Halidom on High.” Lofty words to be sure, but Andrew Horton — the Young Hierophant himself — makes them stick thanks to a wide array of electronic sounds that feature everything from out-there krautrock and dreamy Warp-style IDM (if Autechre and Boards of Canada had grown up on easy listening) to solemn cathedral organ arrangements.

As with Horton’s previous recordings, there’s certainly something retro and nostalgic about these analog compositions, but not as mere slavish remakes. And though the above description might lead one to imagine a dungeon synth epic, Return to the Healing Church isn’t really interested in being a lo-fi D&D session soundtrack. The album’s title track immediately makes that clear with graceful synth washes and scintillating arpeggios that sound like the music that would certainly accompany a holy knight’s first steps into paradise.

Return to the Healing Church is currently available from Good Glass Records. Horton has also posted an extensive essay that chronicles the album’s development and delves into the origins of the Young Hierophant moniker.