Monuments Yann Tiersen Skyline (Mute Records) 2011 Listen

For inspiration, Yann Tiersen looks to the magical islands of the northern hemisphere. From the UK to Ushant, the tiny isle where he spent a slice of time fiddling around on his electric pianos, guitars and computers, he has spun the kind of insular magic you might expect from a Breton.  

Yet there is little doubt that Tiersen also had urban life in mind when he chose the name Skyline for his seventh album. The input of producer Ken Thomas (M83, Sigur Rós) along with musicians from Efterklang and Syd Matters, among others, has helped give meaning to this new deluge of sonic distortion, controlled saturation, games on the mixing console, and vocal collages pinned against a wallpaper of progressive, trippy instrumentals.

© natalie curtis Biography Discography

Like on some of the songs from his previous album, Dustlane, Tiersen plunges deep into melodic whirlpools in a style reminiscent of the Scots band Mogwai (Another shore), surfing between amplified guitars and clear, soaring acoustic guitar work. The Breton enjoys overlapping voices, harmonic pop vocals and playing the conductor waving his stick between powerful surges of rock and hard vocal blows that bounce against the sound barrier. Skyline is a brick by brick reconstruction of a sonic Tower of Babel, weaving hardcore indie elements together with silver thread, and stretching right up to the sky.

Yann Tiersen Skyline (Mute records) 2011
Touring France with a concert at the Trianon in Paris on 28 October

Translation by: Anne-Marie Harper