For those of you who don’t know who Chris Walla is, he is the lead guitarist of indie mega-band Death Cab for Cutie.  He also doubles as producer for the band, and he has also produced independent darlings The Decemberists and, more recently, Tegan and Sara’s “The Con”, which I named my favorite album of 2007.  With “Field Manual”, Walla steps out from behind the board and out from his bandmates’ spotlight to deliver his first solo album.

And right from the start, you know this will not be your typical debut album.  “Field Manual” is filled with the same beautiful, lush sounds that permeate any Death Cab for Cutie record.  Walla has, through the years, developed the sound of his band and even lent it to other artists he’s produced, and now it is front and center on this release.

This is very much a thinking man’s record.  The songs, which pretty much all dance around mid-tempo beats, feature Walla’s trademark complex yet melodic guitar lines.  His vocal work is nice, but Walla is wise enough to let it take a back seat to the music itself.  That being said, the lyrics, often political and always intelligent, deserve a second, third and fourth listen.  “These words are only structures when you choose to frame them in/and obviously, the framers would agree” he sings on “Archer V. Light”.  On “The Score”,  he aims his voice at the American Congress: “You’ve got the pen/We’ve done the typing/Why can’t you get us home now”, he sings, asking them to bring the troops home from Iraq.

If its lyrics are thoughtful, “The Score” is an even better song as a whole.  It stands out as the most direct, rockiest track on the record.  Another standout is “Everybody On”, which starts out as a quiet number, only to kick into gear about 25 seconds in, which a melody as catchy as I’ve heard in a while.  “A Bird is a Song” shows Walla can show a quieter side and do it very well too.  “Everybody Needs a Home” is typical Death Cab, and could as well have found itself on the band’s 2006 masterpiece, “Plans”.  “Two-Fifty”, “Our Plans, Collapsing” and “St.Modesto” are also all very strong numbers, as is album closer “Holes”.

All in all, this is a very good album.  It’s still early in 2008, but this stands as the best release so far.  The album has a constant quality to it, from beginning to end.  Walla doesn’t break any ground here, but he reaffirms himself as one of indie-rock’s most important figures of the present.

4 stars/5.