Something Like Sound

Now that January has come and gone, the music industry is willing to release new albums, and for fans of Death Cab For Cutie, Chris Walla’s Field Manual is a must have. Walla currently plays guitar for Death Cab For Cutie, and has recorded and produced records with The Decemberists, Nada Surf, and Hot Hot Heat. The story behind the release of this album actually started last year when the laptop that contained the mastered tracks was seized by Homeland Security as Walla was crossing through the Canadian border. Apparently this confiscation was a mistake and he got his computer back soon after. As for the music itself, don’t be surprised to hear the ghosts of old Death Cab For Cutie albums show up on this disc.

The album begins with “Two-Fifty,” a mix of reverb laden vocals and computer sampled beats. This stands as a contrast to the pop melodies that drive “The Score” and Field Manual’s first single “Sing Again.” Walla, a current Portland resident, asks “Colorado are you listening? Do you hear me? Do you even care?” on “A Bird Is A Song,” a softer, stripped down tune. “Geometry & C” begins with an intro that almost sounds like “Crooked Teeth” from Death Cab For Cutie’s 2005 album Plans, but is distinctly a Walla original. Through the middle of the album Walla sticks to his pop-indie sound until “It’s Unsustainable,” which once again sounds like a b-side to Plans. Finally, “Holes” closes the album simply yet beautifully.

As far as lyrics go, Chris Walla is definitely not standing in Ben Gibbard’s, or anyone else’s, shadow. “Sing Again” is just catchy, yet so simple, but still manages to speak to human resolve with these lyrics: “Here’s to poison, you will hear the noises, you will fear the breaking, it’s all yours for the taking.” Walla’s questions about Colorado listening and caring really hit home, especially for residents of the Centennial State, because he poses his question in a poetic way.

Taken all together, Field Manual is a breath of fresh air for a year that hasn’t heard much in the area of decent new music releases. Chris Walla is innovative, yet still true to the sounds he has developed through years of playing and producing.