Yann Tiersen is living proof that as a composer you can sail an uncompromising course but still pick up the necessary listeners with it. Somehow he is the French counterpart of Spinvis, a man who plays his songs layer by layer and then (for the live shows) looks for a backing band. A difference is that Tiersen barely sings and that his compositions (you are French or you are not) are set up more
… grandly. As usual with Tiersen, the largely instrumental pieces are colored by unusual instruments (including a children's piano, bouzouki and mellotron). More than ever, his old love for indie rock from the late eighties has found a place. Intoxicating guitar parts á la My Bloody Valentine enhance the hallucinatory effect of Tiersen's cinematic compositions. And although there is not a single song on this album, Skyline is never bored. (PdK)more
