Seattle-based electronic artist Megan McDuffee is back with her second album, Crimson Legacy. The album is a dark, dreamlike experience perfect for the Halloween season as she dedicates the album to all her “fellow weirdos, witches, warlocks, and creatures of the dark corners of the earth.” McDuffee is best known for scores for film and games, so it’s no surprise that alongside bands like The Cure and Nine Inch Nails, she is also influenced by the moody and weird films she grew up with, including Labyrinth and Rocky Horror Picture Show. Consequently, her album is just as much about world building, and the listener is sucked into a complete immersive adventure.
The moody, noir-like electronica of tracks such as “Lovely Psycho” and “Cult Movie,” sound like post-90s Depeche Mode with their subdued yet intense emotions, and they blend in perfectly with the more traditional goth and post-punk tracks including, “Anywhere With You” and the neofolk touches of “Break.” Also included is a cover of Björk’s “Army of Me,” and although it’s one of those songs that is difficult to imagine adding anything of value to, McDuffee does a fantastic job including elements of metal, turning it into a far more nightmarish experience than the original.
With Crimson Legacy, McDuffee joins the ranks of great musicians like Danny Elfman and Brian Eno who inhabit the film and music worlds with effortless ease, creating vital works of art in both spheres.
