What do you expect from a Chris Walla studio album? The production genius behind The Decemberists, Nada Surf and Tegan & Sara whilst his day job consists of being the guitarist with indie troubadours Death Cab For Cutie. The sound of the album is already forming in your mind. You can practically hear the bright instruments, guitar licks and pained vocals before you’ve even pressed the play button. So the problem is this; have you already judged this album before you’ve heard it?Plenty has been made about its difficult production. Snatched by officials as the album was brought across the US-Canada border after it’s completion, sinister rumours abound about it’s overtly political content which was deemed too raw to be released. If that’s what you think Field Manual is going to be, then you’re going to be slightly disappointed. The lyrics contained within aren’t in your face, though there are plenty of references that you pick up on after repeated listens, but it’s not exactly like listening to Neil Young’s latest material.‘Archer V. Light’ is probably the most aggressive. Attacking the remoteness of the American political system and the distance between the few in control and the masses they’re supposed to be representing. Though, to be fair, the opening angelic chorus of “All hail an imminent collapse / you can fumble for your maps / but we’re exhausted by the facts” from ‘Two Fifty’ suggests something a bit darker, but it rarely revisits this depth.The music of Field Manual is wonderfully produced. The guitars are brilliantly multi-tracked, coming out of your speakers at acute angles. You get the feeling though that Walla isn’t exactly moving out of his comfort zone, but it’s so perfectly executed that you can’t attack him for it. The rock ‘n roll thrash of ‘The Score’ harks back to the earlier, harsher Death Cab records before they discovered their more sensitive side. ‘Geometry &C’ is proof positive of his involvement with Nada Surf featuring a great curving guitar riff that bounces along, occasionally thundering to the centre, but never straying from pure pop roots. The whole album is full of these little gems. The acoustic guitars of ‘Everyone Needs A Home’, the crumbling drum intro to ‘Saint Modesto’ and the guitar lick from ‘It’s Unsustainable’ which apes the arching lilt from Death Cab’s epic ‘Transatlanticism’.So back to the beginning then; what do you expect from a Chris Walla album? Well, if it’s a slightly polished, perfectly crafted and near perfect indie pop record, then you’re not going to be disappointed. This isn’t a departure from Death Cab For Cutie territory, but it proves that Walla isn’t just a pretty guitarist and producer. He can craft the entire thing from start to finish. In fact, this is just the thing to tide one over before the new Death Cab album later in the year. 80%mp3:> Chris Walla: 'Sing Again'Links Chris Walla [walla @ barsuk]