NPR Music Project Song: Chris Walla and J. Robbins

Not everyone can write and record a song in two days, but that's the Project Song challenge faced by Chris Walla (of Death Cab for Cutie), J. Robbins (of Jawbox and Burning Airlines) and Darren Zentek on drums. What made this project especially difficult was that the two had never even met before they stepped into NPR's performance studio. But it didn't take long for Robbins to pick up his bass guitar, for Walla to pick up a guitar, and for the two to begin their musical friendship. Some inspiration was supplied as the pair were given photo collages created by artist Tom Chambers. They chose a photograph of a house in a canyon filled with water, tilted and flooded. Not far from the house is a dog on a boat, floating either toward or away from the house. From this image, the two were able to create a song they call "Mercury." You can hear the music and watch a video documenting the creative process