Watch: Yann Tiersen – Monuments (Best Fit Session)

Imbued with the same musical productivity and spirit for collaboration and experimentation as fellow Frenchman Serge Gainsbourg, Yann Tierson truly is something special.

Seven albums in nearly two decades, a handful of soundtracks, live albums and collaborations plus numerous contributions to tracks by the likes of The Divine Comedy – yet most have come to his music via the charming songs that punctuated Audrey Tatou’s exploits in Amelie. His background isn’t really classical at all thought and his lesser known records reveal greater riches. Tierson’s sparse, emotive compositions touch on the avant-garde in places but they’re ultimately comforting, and magical songs with hints of modern classic music and a strong European folk influence.

We took Yann to a London rooftop for a soul-nourishing rendition of ‘Monuments’ from new album Skyline, released in October on Mute.