Music to Level Up Your Day: Deus Ex: Human Revolution

November 28, 2022

I don't know much about musical theory, nor am I a musically inclined person. However, I do love to listen to video game soundtracks. Who doesn't? They can be a powerful listening experience in their own right, or be as evocative as the scores composed for film. Each of these posts will feature music tracks from a single game title, or series/franchise in some rare cases.

Composer: Michael McCann
Singer: Andrea Revel and Courtney Wing
North American Release Date: August 2011

Set in the year 2027, the story follows Adam Jensen, a security officer for Sarif Industries, a company that develops controversial artificial "augmentations". After an attack on Sarif, Jensen undergoes extensive augmentation and investigates the shadowy organization behind the attack.

McCann handled production, performance, mixing, and arranging of the soundtrack. The non-linear nature of the gameplay and story made the composition more challenging, so McCann chose to focus on themes of "technology/nature, past/future, wealth/poverty". A musical structure defined by the thematic use of triangles was also incorporated into the soundtrack: acoustics representing the past, electronic music representing the future, and a mixture of the two for the present. Vocals were used to evoke religious overtones, which connected to the use of the number three in multiple religious associations. McCann claims to have been strongly influenced by electronic bands and musicians.

Icarus | (Opening Theme)