Tiersen has been honing his musical aesthetic since he could stand on two legs. He started learning piano at the age of four, taking up violin at the age of six and receiving classical training at musical academies in Rennes, Nantes and Boulogne. Then, at the age of 13, he chose to alter his destiny, breaking his violin into pieces, buying a guitar and forming a rock band.
Yann Tiersen has collaborated with vocal artists like Claire Pichet ("Le phare" and "Rue des cascades"), Elizabeth Fraser ("Les retrouvailles") and Shannon Wright ("Yann Tiersen and Shannon Wright"). Other musicians he has worked with include The Divine Comedy, Noir Désir, Dominique A., Francoiz Breut, Les Têtes Raides, The Married Monk and Sage Francis
Tiersen got a musical education from the city of Rennes' annual Transmusicales festival, seeing acts like Nirvana, Einstürzende Neubaten, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, The Cramps, Television and Suicide. When his band broke up a few years later, instead of hunting for some new musicians, he bought a cheap mixing desk, an eight-track reel, and started recording music solo with a synth, sampler and drum machine, poring over the grooves of old records on the hunt for loops and orchestral strings to plunder.
As it turned out, though, the key to his new approach lay in his own past. "One day I thought, instead of spending days on research and listening to tons of records to find the nearest sound of what I have in mind, why don't I fix this fucking violin and use it?" Through the summer of 1993, Tiersen stayed in his apartment, recording music alone with guitar, violin and accordion, guided not by the classical canon, but by intuition and his vision of "a musical anarchy".
By the end of the summer of 1993, Tiersen had recorded over 40 tracks, which would form the bulk of his first two albums. 1995's La Valse Des Monstres, inspired by Tod Browning's Freaks and Yukio Mishima's The Damask Drum was the second album to be released on Nancy-based label Ici, d'ailleurs. It would be followed six months later by Rue Des Cascades, a collection of short pieces recorded with toy piano, harpsichord, violin, accordion and mandolin. Six years later, the record would find a much larger audience when several tracks, along with a couple of Tiersen originals, would be used on the soundtrack to Jean-Pierre Jeunet's film Amelie (2001).
Tiersen's commercial breakthrough would come earlier, though, and off his own back. 1998's Le Phare (The Light House) was recorded in self-imposed seclusion on the isle of Ouessant, where Tiersen spent two months living in a rented house. At night, he watched the Creach'h, the most powerful lighthouse in Europe, as it illuminated the surrounding scenery. "I was amazed how the rays of lights from the lighthouse revealed some hidden details of the land, how we can rediscover something we have everyday, just in front of us, by a light pointing on it," says Tiersen.
Le Phare went on to sell over 160,000 copies, confirming Tiersen's status as one of the most pioneering and original artists of his generation and commencing a run of successful albums like 2001's L'Absente (featuring orchestral group Synaxis, Lisa Germano and the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon) and 2005's Les Retrouvailles (with guests Stuart Staples of Tindersticks, Jane Birkin and Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins). In this period, Tiersen also took his music out around the world, playing shows with a full orchestra and an amplified string quartet – a set-up captured on 2002's electrifying live album C'etait ici. And following the box-office success of Amelie, Tiersen's skills as a soundtracker were much in demand, leading to scores for the likes of Wolfgang Becker's tragicomedy Good Bye Lenin! (2003) and Tabarly (2008), a documentary about the French sailor Éric Tabarly, who ate his final meal on Ouessant Island before he meeting a watery end in the Irish sea.
Discography:
La valse des monstres (1995)
Rue des cascades (1996)
Le phare (1998)
Tout est calme (1999)
Black session (1999, radio concert)
L'absente (2001)
Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain (2001, Soundtrack)
C'était ici (2002, Live and Best Of)
Good Bye Lenin! (2003, Soundtrack)
Yann Tiersen and Shannon Wright (2004)
Les Retrouvailles (2005)
On Tour (2006, Live)
Tabarly (2008)
Dust Lane (2010)
Dust Lane
Yann Tiersen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Of the new world treading young.
We just want to find something.
We just want to lose control
The opening lines of Yann Tiersen's "Dust Lane" reflect the universal struggles of young people today. Both boys and girls alike, living in the new world, are described as "treading young," which could signify a sense of precariousness or uncertainty in their current situation. They are searching for something meaningful; something that could grant them a sense of purpose or identity. The lines "We just want to find something/ We just want to lose control" suggest there may be a desire for experimentation, for breaking free from the constraints of society, and for experiencing life on their own terms. It's almost as if they want to indulge in a sense of recklessness and abandon, even if it leads them astray. The repetition of the line "Of our thoughts...of our thoughts" highlights the internal conflict of young people and the pressure to figure out their own life paths.
Perhaps the last line in particular is the most poignant. It's no secret that young people today face an enormous amount of pressure to have their lives figured out, and to make sure they are living up to others' expectations. But Tiersen recognizes that sometimes, the best thing you can do is simply lose control over your own thoughts and surrender to something that feels true to you.
Line by Line Meaning
We are boys and girls
We are youthful and inexperienced individuals.
Of the new world treading young.
We are navigating through the modern world with vigor.
We just want to find something.
We yearn to discover a purpose or meaning in our lives.
We just want to lose control
We crave the thrill of letting go of our inhibitions.
Of our thoughts... of our thoughts....
We want to escape the confines of our own minds and the pressures that come with them.
Contributed by Ellie O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@n.c.lightning
I once saw Tiersen in concert. I remember going in not knowing what to expect... I wasn't expecting such pure beauty. There was no flashy lights, no alien clothes (in fact, I don't remember doing much other than playing music.) But one thing is for sure... I will never forget that memorable night. I wouldn't be who I am today if it wasn't for discovering Yann Tiersen. Forever live as Tiersen.
@jadonharper1493
N.C. Lightning same
@rosagarnica7421
Magnífico, hermoso, potente. Cómo me encanta esta música!!
@sebastiangastelum3737
Desde hace mas de 10 anios he escuchado esta cancion , no sabria aun despues de todo este tiempo describir con precision lo que esta cancion hace dentro mio cuando cierro los ojos y me dejo llevar
@maxpitchkites
I got this album shortly after it came out while I was still in high school. Each song on this album collected memories during those few months when I was listening to it on repeat and now the album acts as a time capsule. This song in particular is associated with my first date with my first girlfriend in Chicago, and I relive one of the happiest days of my life each time I hear it. Thank you Yann.
@yolitm
Le tengo que dar gracias a Yann por hacerme sentir cosas inexplicables, lo amo en verdad. Seré su eterna agradecida si regresa nuevamente a México pronto.
@MrCables
This is an amazing song, very different from what he ususally ceated. It's a step in a direction I like. The entire album is different, and I like it.
@adryalorena
Essa música me dá arrepios! No bom sentido, lindo!
@az091479
Essa música me leva à outra dimensão.
@lucasmonteiro1777
Adrya Lorena Realmente é linda!!! Andar pelas florestas da Europa escutando ela é como se teletransportar à outra dimensão