An Interview with The Walla Recovery

The first time I heard about The Walla Recovery was about 3 years ago.  My friend Sarah told me about her husband’s friend Zack who wrote good Christian acoustic music.  I listened and was instantly sold.  Zack’s music is well-written, honest, and full of his desire to love the Lord better.

I went to see the guys play a show at The House Coffee Bar in Fort Worth, and afterward got a chance to pick their brains.  Here is the result!

What’s the origin of the band name “The Walla Recovery”?

Zack grew up on a street called Walla Ave. These songs are a way for us to try to find some important things about our childhood that we have lost along the way of “growing up”, and to encourage others to do the same. The specifics may be different for everyone, but for us, two of the greatest we’d like to recover are innocence and faith. We used to be called “Alden”, but that didn’t last too long.

Who are your influences as musicians?

These vary greatly from band member to band member, so here’s an array of artists which resonate with two or more of us: Goo Goo Dolls, mewithoutYou, Counting Crows, The New Frontiers, Lifehouse, Derek Webb, Coldplay, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Collective Soul, Shane and Shane, Mat Kearney, Dave Matthews Band, As Cities Burn, Emery, Circa Survive, The Rocketboys, Manchester Orchestra, Hootie and the Blowfish, Jon Foreman.

How long have you all known each other? How did you meet and when did you decide to start making music together?

Since 2001. We were leading worship together at our church. After college, Zack was working with the others’ youth group while they were all still in high school. After nearly four years of that, our time there was over, but we decided to keep playing and start collaborating on some songs Zack had written during college and shortly thereafter. Most of those were just recently released on an EP called “With Trembling…”, virtually a decade in the making.

Who does the larger part of the writing?

Zack has written the majority of words and music, assisted with countless hours of priceless creativity on all the painstaking details of arrangement and production by Jonathan, Justin, and Brandon. The writing process up to now differs from what we’d like it to be in the future. Each of us has an aptitude to write and a unique outlook on life, and we’d like to take better advantage of that on future projects. We have already begun writing in a more collective fashion, and hopefully we’ll be able to share those new songs with you sometime in 2011.

What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs?

Our themes seem to center on grace and encouragement most of the time. We feel there are many people suffering both outwardly and intangibly, and unable to understand or enjoy their place in this life or the next. We all know what it’s like to lose our way, to lose ourselves. The joy of the Lord would be our strength, and theirs too. At the same time, there is nothing in and of ourselves that can carry us through all of life’s trials to our long-awaited home in eternity. So, we depend on Jesus, for everything we need has been promised and delivered in him. We try to point out these facts to as many people as possible. Though we continually fail to value the grace we’ve been given, hopefully some meaningful community and conversation will rise from our ashes when we are honest and vulnerable.

Do you think these topics will change over time?

Who knows how our inspiration will change? Every moment, we are growing. We will present our honest struggles and greatest joys along the way in hopes of connecting with others.

Could you describe the music-making process for you guys?

For the past few years, we have all lived in separate cities across Texas, so getting together has been sporadic, and, when it’s not, it’s due to some very hard work and discipline from each of us to maintain consistent meetings, and the various planets of our family lives and day jobs miraculously aligning. Normally one of us presents a song idea and the others chime in, adding suggestions until some new sounds come together. This takes place best when we just jump in and start playing around the initial idea, without worrying so much at the beginning what kind of shape it takes. Some songs take years to mature, whether or not their beginnings happen quickly. Most of the time, it feels more like fun than work, although it is a challenge, which is one aspect of it that keeps us interested. The exercise of creative collaboration should bring us closer to our creator, our community, and one another.

How has your music evolved since you first began playing music together?

We used to depend more on a singer-songwriter style, adding simple acoustic fundamentals like hand percussion (djembe, congas) and harmonizing guitars whenever the opportunity came up. Integration of the cello has always been a big priority; it evokes exclusive and rare emotions that we’ll try to hold onto as long as we can. Lately, the drum kit is much more important than it used to be, because we love creating a full band sound to house the songs. Intermingling the bass and cello to keep them respectful and complimentary to one another in tone and rhythm is fun as well. We love the shows where our friends Andrew and Jacob can join on piano and mandolin, because things sound most like they do on our newest record that way. In the future, we may add more instruments, like ambient electric guitar, viola, harmonizing vocals, or extra percussion. We’re not sure when we’ll get serious about any of that, but it should be exciting to find out.

What’s your ultimate direction for your band? Are you seeking fame and fortune?

To be honest, yes, at times. That pursuit is surely a sad and empty one to follow. We are to blame for circumventing Love’s greater, eternal plans to suit our own selfish motives and habits. Thankfully, our ultimate direction is defined by that person bigger than us which we strive to pour ourselves into, at the expense of our deepest evil, to gain the greatest good directly from the hand of the Lord. We don’t know how things will play out in the future, or how long we’ll be doing what we do. We just want to make some good art and care for the souls of the people we meet during our short time on planet Earth.

What are you guys reading and/or listening to currently?

Jonathan is reading “Marine Sniper” by Charles Henderson and “Desire” by John Eldredge; listening to Jimi Hendricks, Our Lady Peace, and The Supertones.

Justin is reading “A Year with C.S. Lewis”; listening to “Blue Sky Noise” by Circa Survive.

Brandon is reading “The Irresistible Revolution” by Shane Claiborne; listening to “Plunder, Beg, and Curse” by Colour Revolt, “Brother, Sister” by mewithoutYou, and “Storyboards” by Sleeping at Last.

Zack is reading “The Reason for God” by Tim Keller, “Making Shapely Fiction” by Jerome Stern, and “The Problem of Life with God” by Tommy Nelson; listening to “Storyboards” by Sleeping at Last, “20,000 Ghosts” by The Rocketboys, “Mending” by The New Frontiers, and “Go” by Jonsi (check out more of Zack’s listening habits at http://last.fm/user/wallarecovery).

I know that at least two of the members of your band are married, how has that affected how you play together as a band?  How do your wives feel about you being in a band?  Do any of the band wives play an active role in the band?

Yes, two of us are married. Our wives are central to who we are as individuals; we aren’t who we are without them. And it’s a good thing, too, because they are the most supportive people we’ve met. Brandon’s wife Sarah and Zack’s wife Brittany have filled many roles in The Walla Recovery, including (but not limited to) graphic designer, photographer, nutritionist, promoter, merch enthusiast, travel agent, vocalist, manager, distributor, chef, roadie, psychotherapist, and band mom. Not to mention the fact that they’ve put up with endless hours of practices and shows where the nights are late, the music is too loud, the venues are dirty, and the highway does not relent. We wouldn’t be able to do this without their encouragement.

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The Walla Recovery is:

Jonathan Kaylor – cello/guitar
Justin Luningham – bass/cello/guitar
Brandon Reynolds – drums/percussion
Zack Smith – vocals/guitar/piano

Pick up their new album, “With Trembling”, along with other merch at http://thewallarecovery.storenvy.com/

“Thanks for wanting to get to know us! Please take some free music at http://rcvr.me/free and reach out to us on Twitter (http://rcvr.me/tw) and Facebook (http://rcvr.me/fb). Blessings…” – Zack