Christopher Ryan Walla (born November 2, 1975) is an American musician,

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

, and film music composer, best known for being a former guitarist and songwriter for the band

Death Cab for Cutie Death Cab for Cutie is an American rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. The band is currently composed of Ben Gibbard (vocals, guitar, piano), Nick Harmer (bass), Dave Depper (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Zac Rae (keyboar ...

Musical career

Early bands

While at

Bothell High School Bothell High School is located in Bothell, Washington, United States, and is one of four high schools in the Northshore School District. Approximately 1,500 students in grades 9 through 12 attend the school, which is a member of the KingCo 4A ath ...

in the early 1990s, Walla started a program called Open Microphone with creative writing teacher Laura Drumheller, as a noon-time forum for the arts, which allowed any student to take the stage and perform. Walla regularly performed at these shows, as well as serving as MC. One performance by Walla included a song by PJ Harvey. These early Open Microphone shows proved popular and continued for over twenty years, moving from Bothell High School to

Inglemoor High School Inglemoor High School is a public high school located in Kenmore, Washington, United States. It is one of the largest high schools in the state of Washington and has an average of 30 students per teacher. As of 2017, the student population was ap ...

when teacher Drumheller transferred there. Walla was in a short-lived band called The Wallflowers (not to be confused with

The Wallflowers The Wallflowers is an American rock solo project of American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jakob Dylan. The Wallflowers were originally a roots rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1989 by Dylan and guitarist Tobi Miller. The band ...

of California). Later, in 2001, he was an early member of the

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

band

The Long Winters The Long Winters are an American indie rock band based in Seattle, Washington. History Singer-songwriter John Roderick was born in Seattle, Washington, and grew up in Anchorage, Alaska. He later returned to Seattle, where he formed the Bun Fa ...

Death Cab for Cutie

Walla joined

in 1997, while attending

Western Washington University Western Washington University (WWU or Western) is a public university in Bellingham, Washington. The northernmost university in the contiguous United States, WWU was founded in 1893 as the state-funded New Whatcom Normal School, succeeding a pri ...

Bellingham, Washington Bellingham ( ) is the most populous city in, and county seat of Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It lies south of the U.S.–Canada border in between two major cities of the Pacific Northwest: Vancouver, British Columbia (locat ...

. Eventually releasing seven albums, four EPs and two live EPs with the band, he co-wrote many of their hit songs, including "

Title and Registration "Title and Registration" is a song by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, the third single from their fourth studio album, ''Transatlanticism''. It was officially released in 2004, as an internet-only single that could be streamed through the b ...

" and "

I Will Possess Your Heart "I Will Possess Your Heart" is an alternative rock song recorded by the American band Death Cab for Cutie. The song depicts a one-sided obsessive relationship, which led '' Paste'' to name it one of the 25 creepiest songs about love. It is notabl ...

". On August 13, 2014, after 17 years with Death Cab for Cutie, Chris Walla decided to part ways with the band, stating that he plans to "...continue making music, producing records, and erring on the side of benevolence and beauty whenever possible." Walla's last performance with the band occurred on September 13, 2014 at the

Rifflandia Music Festival Rifflandia Music Festival is a four-day multi-venue music festival held at the Royal Athletic Park in Victoria, British Columbia. With no fixed date, the festival has occurred in the month-long span between the last weekend of August and the last ...

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. The ...

Solo projects

Walla has recorded a variety of solo material and released his debut solo album, ''

Field Manual ''Field Manual'' is the debut solo album by Death Cab for Cutie guitarist Chris Walla, released on January 29, 2008 on Barsuk Records. This is Walla's first album under his own name. It was previously speculated that Walla may use a moniker, mo ...

'', in 2008 on

Barsuk Records Barsuk Records ( ) is an independent record label based in Seattle, Washington, that was founded by the members of the band This Busy Monster, Christopher Possanza and Josh Rosenfeld, in 1998 to release their band's material. Its logo is a draw ...

. The song "Sing Again" became available for free download from Barsuk's website. Before the release of ''Field Manual'', it was reported that two tracks recorded for Death Cab for Cutie's 2005 album, ''

Plans A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a temporal set of intended actions through which one expects to achieve a goal. ...

'', would be featured, but this is unconfirmed. Some of Walla's solo work has been released using the name Martin Youth Auxiliary, such as a cassette was released in 1999 on Elsinor Records. A solo instrumental album, titled ''Tape Loops'', was released on October 16, 2015.

Production

In addition to being a musician Walla has a long career as a producer, earning production, engineering, and mixing credits on over thirty albums and EPs. His first credit was as the producer for Death Cab for Cutie's debut album, ''

Something About Airplanes ''Something About Airplanes'' is the debut studio album by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, released August 18, 1998 on Barsuk Records. A tenth-anniversary edition of the album was released November 25, 2008, featuring redesigned artwork, lin ...

'', released in 1998. Walla has produced all releases by Death Cab for Cutie to date, with the exceptions of Thank You For Today, Kintsugi and 1997's ''

You Can Play These Songs with Chords ''You Can Play These Songs with Chords'' is an early (1996-97) demo from the rock band Death Cab for Cutie, which at the time consisted entirely of founder Ben Gibbard. This demo was originally released on cassette by Elsinor Records. It proved ...

'' EP, which was produced by Ben Gibbard. However, Walla earned production credits on the 2002 re-release of ''You Can Play These Songs with Chords'', which featured 10 new songs. It was announced via Kelly Porter's Facebook Page Walla would be doing guitar work for her upcoming recording work.

Studios

Walla founded his own recording studio, located within his home in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, named the Alberta Court. Prior to moving to Portland, from 2000 to 2005, he was the owner/proprietor of

recording studio, the Hall of Justice, where Death Cab for Cutie and many

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Tho ...

bands recorded over the years. In 2012, Walla began rebuilding the Hall of Justice after moving back to Seattle.

Personal life

Walla married scholar, knitwear designer, and illustrator Dianna Potter in February 2013, at the

Swedish Cultural Center The Swedish Cultural Center is a meeting spot for Scandinavians in Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, i ...

in Seattle. Since leaving the band, Walla and his wife moved to

Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pe ...

before later settling in

Trondheim, Norway Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most pop ...

Discography

;Selected credits * Pinegrove, '' 11:11'' (2022) – Mixer *

Braids A braid (also referred to as a plait) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing two or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair. The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strande ...

, '' Shadow Offering'' (2020) – Producer *

Foxing Foxing is an age-related process of deterioration that causes spots and browning on old paper documents such as books, postage stamps, old paper money and certificates. The name may derive from the fox-like reddish-brown color of the stains, or ...

, '' Nearer My God'' (2018) – Producer * Lo Moon, '' Lo Moon'' (2018) – Producer * Gotch, ''Good New Times'' (2016) – Co-producer *

, ''

Kintsugi , also known as , is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum; the method is similar to the technique... As a philosophy, it treats bre ...

'' (2015) – Writer *

Rocky Votolato Rocky Votolato (born March 8, 1977 in Dallas, Texas, United States), is an American singer-songwriter. Biography He was raised in Frost, Texas, roughly 50 miles south of Dallas, until the age of 13. After his parents were divorced, his moth ...

, ''Hospital Handshakes'' (2015) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

Fences A fence is a barrier enclosing or bordering a field, yard, etc., usually made of posts and wire or wood, used to prevent entrance, to confine, or to mark a boundary. Fence or fences may also refer to: Entertainment Music * Fences (band), an Amer ...

, ''Lesser Oceans'' (2015) – Producer, engineer, writer, programming * William Fitzsimmons, ''Lions'' (2014) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

The Lonely Forest The Lonely Forest was an American indie rock band from Anacortes, Washington with two EPs and four studio albums. In 2011 lead singer, John Van Deusen, was selected for Seattle Weekly’s best male vocalist award and the band appeared on Jimmy ...

, ''Adding Up the Wasted Hours'' (2013) – Engineer, mixer *

, ''

Codes and Keys ''Codes and Keys'' is the seventh studio album by Death Cab for Cutie, released on May 31, 2011. Ben Gibbard and Nick Harmer have both been quoted as saying that the album will be "a much less guitar-centric album than we've ever made before". T ...

'' (2011) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

Telekinesis Psychokinesis (from grc, ψυχή, , soul and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), or telekinesis (from grc, τηλε, , far off and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), is a hypothetical psychic ability allowing a person ...

, ''12 Desperate Straight Lines'' (2011) – Engineer, mixer, writer *

, ''Arrows'' (2011) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

Ra Ra Riot Ra Ra Riot is an American indie rock band consisting of vocalist Wes Miles, bassist Mathieu Santos, guitarist Milo Bonacci, violinist Rebecca Zeller and drummer Kenny Bernard. History Ra Ra Riot formed in January 2006, playing at houses and ven ...

, '' The Orchard'' (2010) – Mixer *

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin (SSLYBY) is an American indie pop band from Springfield, Missouri. They are named after Boris Yeltsin, the first President of Russia after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Their first full-length album, ''Br ...

, '' Let It Sway'' (2010) – Co-producer, engineer *

The Thermals ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

, ''

Personal Life Personal life is the course or state of an individual's life, especially when viewed as the sum of personal choices contributing to one's personal identity. Apart from hunter-gatherers, most pre-modern peoples' time was limited by the need to ...

'' (2010) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

Gordon Downie Gordon Edgar Downie (February 6, 1964 – October 17, 2017) was a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, musician, writer and activist. He was the singer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip, which he fronted from its form ...

, ''

The Grand Bounce ''The Grand Bounce'' is the third solo album by Gord Downie, the lead singer of The Tragically Hip. It was released on 8 June 2010. Background Downie's backing band, "The Country of Miracles", is composed of established Canadian musicians Jul ...

'' (2010) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

, '' The Twilight Saga: New Moon (soundtrack)'' (2009) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

, '' The Open Door EP'' (2009) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

Tegan and Sara Tegan and Sara () are a Canadian indie pop duo formed in 1998 in Calgary, Alberta. The band is led by identical twin sisters Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Keirsten Quin (born September 19, 1980). Both musicians are songwriters and multi-instrumenta ...

, ''

Sainthood In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Orth ...

'' (2009) – Co-producer, engineer *

, ''

Telekinesis! ''Telekinesis!'' is the eponymous debut studio album by the alternative rock band Telekinesis (band), Telekinesis. Recorded in September 2008, the album was produced, mixed, and engineered with the help of Chris Walla (guitarist for Death Cab For ...

'' (2009) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

So Many Dynamos So Many Dynamos was a rock band from St. Louis, Missouri. Their music wa generally classified as indie rock, combining aspects of synthpop, electropop, math rock, and dance-punk. They took their name from a famous palindrome. History The band's ...

, ''The Loud Wars'' (2009) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

, ''

Narrow Stairs ''Narrow Stairs'' is the sixth studio album by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, released on May 12, 2008 in the United Kingdom and on May 13, 2008, in the United States, on Atlantic and Barsuk Records. Four singles were released for the album ...

'' (2008) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

Mates of State Mates of State are an American indie pop duo, active since 1997. The group is the husband-and-wife team of Kori Gardner (born June 16, 1974) (vocals, organ, synthesizer, piano, electric piano, and occasional guitar and drums) and Jason Hammel ...

, '' Re-Arrange Us'' (2008) – Producer, engineer, loops * Youth Group, '' The Night Is Ours'' (2008) – Guitar, vocals (background), mixer *

Nada Surf Nada Surf is a New York City-based American alternative rock band formed in the 1990s, consisting of Matthew Caws (guitar, vocals), Ira Elliot (drums), Doug Gillard (guitar, backing vocals), and Daniel Lorca (bass, backing vocals). History ...

, '' Lucky'' (2008) – Engineer * Chris Walla, ''

'' (2008) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

, '' The Con'' (2007) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

The Decemberists The Decemberists are an American indie rock band from Portland, Oregon. The band consists of Colin Meloy (lead vocals, guitar, principal songwriter), Chris Funk (guitar, multi-instrumentalist), Jenny Conlee (piano, keyboards, accordion), Nate ...

, '' The Crane Wife'' (2006) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

, ''

'' (2005) – Producer, engineer, Mixer, writer * Youth Group, '' Casino Twilight Dogs'' (2005) – Mixer * Youth Group, '' Forever Young'' (2005) – Mixer * Nada Surf, '' The Weight Is a Gift'' (2005) – Producer, engineer * The Decemberists, ''

Picaresque The picaresque novel ( Spanish: ''picaresca'', from ''pícaro'', for "rogue" or "rascal") is a genre of prose fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish, but "appealing hero", usually of low social class, who lives by his wits in a corru ...

'' (2005) – Producer, engineer, mixer * The Decemberists, '' The Tain'' (2005) – Producer, engineer, mixer * The Thermals, '' Fuckin A'' (2004) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

, ''

Transatlanticism ''Transatlanticism'' is the fourth studio album by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, released on October 7, 2003, by Barsuk Records. At this point in their career, the group had toured and recorded for nearly a half-decade. With tensions risin ...

'' (2003) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

, ''

When I Pretend to Fall ''When I Pretend to Fall'' is the second album by indie rock band The Long Winters. It was released on Barsuk Records in 2003. Track listing # "Blue Diamonds" – 3:49 # "Scared Straight" – 4:17 # "Shapes" – 4:03 # "Cinnamon"& ...

'' (2003) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

The Postal Service The Postal Service are an American indie pop supergroup from Seattle, Washington, consisting of singer Ben Gibbard, producer Jimmy Tamborello, and Jenny Lewis on background vocals. The band released their only album, '' Give Up'', in 2003 on S ...

, '' Give Up'' (2003) – Engineer, piano, drums, vocals * The Stratford 4, ''Love & Distortion'' (2003) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

, '' More Parts per Million'' (2003) – Mixer *

, '' Suicide Medicine'' (2003) – Producer, engineer, mixer * Rocky Votolato, ''Light and Sound EP'' (2003) – Producer, engineer, mixer *

, ''

The Stability EP ''The Stability EP'' is a limited edition EP by Indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, released February 19, 2002. The release marks the final appearance of drummer Michael Schorr. The tracks on ''The Stability EP'' were originally featured as bonu ...

'' (2002) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

, ''

'' (2002) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

David Cross David Cross (born April 4, 1964) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, director, and writer known for his stand-up performances, the HBO sketch comedy series '' Mr. Show'' (1995–1998), and his role as Tobias Fünke in the Fox/Netflix si ...

, '' Shut Up You Fucking Baby!'' (2002) – Engineer * Carissa's Wierd, ''Songs About Leaving'' (2002) – Engineer, mixer *

Hot Hot Heat Hot Hot Heat is a Canadian indie rock band from Victoria, British Columbia, formed in 1999. The band was signed by Seattle label Sub Pop in 2001 and released its first EP, ''Knock Knock Knock'', and first full-length album, '' Make Up the Break ...

, ''

Knock Knock Knock Hot Hot Heat is a Canadian indie rock band from Victoria, British Columbia, formed in 1999. The band was signed by Seattle label Sub Pop in 2001 and released its first EP, '' Knock Knock Knock'', and first full-length album, '' Make Up the Break ...

(EP)'' (2002) – Producer, engineer * Hot Hot Heat, ''

Make Up The Breakdown ''Make Up the Breakdown'' is the debut album by Hot Hot Heat, following the release of the ''Knock Knock Knock'' EP. It was released on October 8, 2002. It was ranked the 20th best album of the year on ''Pitchfork''s Top 50 Albums of 2002. Tra ...

'' (2002) – Additional recording, mixer * The Long Winters, ''

The Worst You Can Do Is Harm ''The Worst You Can Do Is Harm'' is the debut album by indie rock band The Long Winters. It was released by Barsuk Records Barsuk Records ( ) is an independent record label based in Seattle, Washington, that was founded by the members of the ...

'' (2002) – Producer, engineer, mixer * Nada Surf, '' Let Go'' (2002) – Engineer, mixer *

The Velvet Teen The Velvet Teen is an American independent rock trio from Sonoma County, California. History The Velvet Teen is originally the name of Judah Nagler's electronic solo project, whose official debut was made during a brief Icelandic tour that beg ...

, ''

Out of the Fierce Parade ''Out of the Fierce Parade'' is the full-length debut album from The Velvet Teen. It was released in the US on March 19, 2002 and on June 4, 2003 in Japan. The album's artwork was designed by Logan Whitehurst, and the album was co-produced by the ...

'' (2002) – Producer, engineer *

, ''

The Photo Album ''The Photo Album'' is the third studio album by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, released October 9, 2001 on Barsuk Records. The albums spawned three Singles (music), singles: "A Movie Script Ending", "I Was a Kaleidoscope", and "We Laugh I ...

'' (2001) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

, ''

The Forbidden Love EP ''The Forbidden Love EP'' is an EP by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, released October 24, 2000, on Barsuk Records. The songs "405 (Acoustic)" and "Company Calls Epilogue (Alternate Take)" are an acoustic version and remix, respectively, ...

'' (2000) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

, ''

We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes ''We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes'' is the second studio album by American rock band Death Cab for Cutie. It was released on March 21, 2000, through Barsuk Records. The band, which originally included singer-songwriter Ben Gibbard, guitaris ...

'' (2000) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer *

, ''

'' (1998) – Producer, engineer, mixer, writer * Mike Edel, Thresholds (2019) - Producer

References

External links

20 Questions to Christopher Walla
from 2000.
Hall of Justice Recording

Chris Walla interview, Jan. 2008
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walla, Chris 1975 births Living people Alternative rock guitarists Alternative rock singers American alternative rock musicians American indie rock musicians American male singers American rock guitarists American male guitarists American rock singers Death Cab for Cutie members Singers from Oregon Singers from Washington (state) Record producers from Washington (state) People from Bothell, Washington Musicians from Seattle The Long Winters members American film score composers Guitarists from Washington (state) Guitarists from Oregon 21st-century American singers American male film score composers Barsuk Records artists Atlantic Records artists