Walla

My name is Chris Walla. I am a musician, record producer, recording engineer, songwriter, and studio owner, perhaps best known as a founding member of Death Cab for Cutie, the band I was in for 17 years. I recorded and produced the first seven DCfC albums and mixed the first six. I’ve also made records with Tegan and Sara, The Decemberists, Lo Moon, Gord Downie, Nada Surf, The Thermals, S, William Fitzsimmons, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Your Heart Breaks, Telekinesis, and many others. In the studio I’m happiest capturing the sound of a live band, managing a mess of tape loops, or tying sequencers and drum machines together. I really, really love coffee.

Recording a live band to tape is a beautifully rewarding challenge — one I still believe yields results that can’t be found any other way. Rebuilding the Hall of Justice in 2010 provided me an opportunity to create a flexible, world-class, analog / digital studio environment, where both tape and DAW workflows feel ‘native’. It’s very easy to bounce between the two, transfer, or sync. I love working here, and it seems like others do too.

I’m endlessly curious about music, recording, and the process of record making. I love collaborating, and my favorite collaborations are increasingly the ones that blur the lines between titles. Please give me a shout if you have questions about any of these things, if you’d like to book the studio, or if you’d just like to say hello.

— Walla.