The release of Chris Walla's first solo venture was anticipated and for good reason. Walla, known for his work as guitarist, producer, and co-lyricist for Death Cab for Cutie, embraces his political side for Field Manual, which was released on January 29, 2008. For Walla, this was a chance to step to the front after playing a secondary role to that of Ben Gibbard, and with 12 explosive tracks, he certainly did the job.
The albums first single, "Sing Again" is the third cut off of Field Manual, and has a seemingly light hearted pop-ish feel to it while employing darker lyrics (We'd sing together with firey eyes/our anger alive in our chests). "Sing Again" was featured as NPR's Song of the Day on January 28, and has since then seen the release of a video produced by Nicholas Harmer and Bernadette Spear.
Follow suit with it's first single, there are some songs reminiscent of DCFC tracks off of Transatlanticism (2003), including "Two-Fifty", "The Score", "Everybody On" and "Geometry Et Cetera", which is a quirky love song that states: 'you don't need to speak just now/you should keep it down and let that ticker pound/let your heart keep the time.' However, the wholre album isn't all that light, in fact, one track in particular "Everybody Needs A Home", is a politically charged number in which Walla refers to FEMA railers and floods, and obvious referenceto the Hurricane Katrina tragedy that affected New Orleans in 2005. The most notable (and original title track until it was later changed) "It's Unsustainable" is Walla's attempt at an 'end of a relationship' song, and his attempt is well recieved. At nearly 6 minutes in length and with guitar riffs similar to that of DCFC's song "Stability" (The Stability EP, 2003) and lyrics that tell of his regret for how things have ended, the delivery couldn't be any better, and it pulls ever so slightly at your heartstings.
Overall, the record left me feeling quite satisfied. It was a mix of everything I had expected it to be, and then some, proving that even without his Death Cab For Cutie front man, Walla is quite capable of putting together some great and original songs that allow him to forge his own path of artistic expression.
1 comment:
Initially, my main concern was just to sort of "get my writing out there," but I intend to continue posting only a single article. I'm going to Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania, it's about a forty-five minutes from both PSU and Bloomsburg. I believe I'm doing a double major in Journalism and Dietics so that I can be a Nutritionist. NOW FOR YOU:
I freaking love this blog. I really love the mellow, raw tone of DCFC's music and I think their newest is some of their best. I used to think that it'd be hard to beat Transatlanticism, but I think they've proved me wrong.
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