Jack Wall on Scoring Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Jack Wall on Scoring Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Words by Loren Sunderland
Jack Wall’s Return to Call of Duty thrilled fans and critics alike. The iconic composer brings a fresh approach to Black Ops 6 and since its release, the game has been met with overwhelmingly positive reviews, with Wall's score being widely praised.
When Treyarch released the Multiplayer Theme, Raining the Fire, featuring ROMES and Big Giant Circles, fans responded with comments like, "Heard this in the multiplayer menu and immediately went to search for it. Now I can't stop listening!" and “this is a masterpiece.” Wall’s research into capturing the 1990s sound and infusing the score with fresh energy has added a powerful layer to the gameplay—equally compelling on its own as it is integral to the game’s narrative.
In this interview, Wall reflects on his journey with Call of Duty, sharing insights shaped by changing circumstances, his commitment to supporting new talent, and the creative process behind this score. From capturing and modernising the sound of the early ’90s to recording at the legendary AIR Studios in London, Wall reveals what went into making this soundtrack a defining element of the game experience.
You have a long history with the Black Ops and Call of Duty franchises. For this latest project, what was your experience like? Was anything different from before, or was it more about returning to familiar territory?
Jack Wall: When I finished Cold War in 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic, it had taken a lot out of me, and I honestly wondered if I’d ever want to do it again. By that summer, though, production ramped up, and the title Cold War was confirmed. I hadn’t planned on using a choir, but when they confirmed the title, I thought, ‘I need a Russian choir.’ It was essential for the atmosphere.
The pandemic made recording a choir challenging. Bringing singers together in person was risky, so I reached out to Ayana Haviv in L.A., who assembled 32 singers, each recording individually from home. It required intense editing, piecing together each part. We also recorded the orchestra in sections, which created so many issues. The musicians in Nashville brought it all together and were incredible, but by the end, I was completely burnt out.
I decided to take a break and visit my daughter in London, where I learned that my agent, Cheryl Tiano, had passed away. It was devastating and made me question whether I wanted to keep working. Amid the chaos of the pandemic, my wife and I went to Portugal, hoping for a break. As restrictions increased, we were locked down, extending our stay by two months. We fell in love with Porto and eventually bought a place, planning to split time with L.A. Even without my usual equipment, I was able to take on small projects remotely and realised I could definitely work from here.
As I settled in Portugal, I began enjoying working from our beachside condo. Eventually, Brian Tuey the audio director from Treyarch reached out and asked if I’d be interested in scoring the next Call of Duty games. I couldn’t turn it down, how do you say no to that? I found a studio in Porto to work from, which has been a big change from my setup in L.A. where I used to step into my backyard studio. Now I had a 20-minute drive, which I wasn’t sure I’d like, but it turned out great. I was managing the project better, collaborating more, and enjoying the process. So that was the difference in this project. That's the huge long answer to your simple question!
“When the music subtly enhances the experience without pulling attention, that’s when you’re doing your best work.”
You've mentioned that when working on the Call of Duty games, you always ask for everything that they can give you. Out of all those assets, which ones are the most helpful for you when scoring? Or is it a bit of everything?
Jack Wall: Yeah, it's a bit of everything. First and foremost, it’s about the characters, who they are and whether any are returning. Sometimes we can reuse elements from the past, though usually not. But for some of the upcoming maps, they’re reusing older stuff we’ve done, which is pretty cool.
The most useful asset this time was a gameplay flowchart they gave me around April. It had all the levels, load movies, and what we call high-quality cinematic load movies—like, I think I scored eight of them. They look like real films, even though the characters aren’t real; it’s incredible. This game flow gives me a 30,000-foot view of the score, where things relate, where the peaks and important story beats are.
Equally important are the scripts. Reading them alongside the game flow helps me understand what's happening and when which guides me in creating themes. I need to know the heart and soul of the story before approaching the theme. For Black Ops, the theme is classic, it starts with a single horn line, and by the end, it’s the same theme with everyone playing. It’s very much that “one person or a small group against a shadowy, conspiracy-driven organisation” feel, which is what Black Ops is all about.
How long did it take you to compose the theme for Call of Duty Black Ops 6?
Jack Wall: From start to finish, it took about four or five days. I like to leave it and come back, leave and come back, kind of working through different things. I’ll wake up the next day, think, ‘Oh, I know what to do today,’ and go mess with it. The theme itself is pretty simple, like an action movie theme with a heart and soul to it. That’s something I like to bring to the Call of Duty scores, because a lot of the scores are really dark, this pastiche of sound. I try to bring a little humanity to it, some people love that, some don’t. But yeah, I’d say it was done in under a week.
It was challenging initially because I was finishing up a level without a theme in place. I didn’t know where the anchor points in the score were yet, so I was just writing music, hoping something would emerge. Usually, a theme surfaces when I start writing, but this time it didn’t. I finished the entire level, something they wanted me to do, because we started late, and they needed the music to program and implement a proof of concept to show the execs. After that, they wanted me to go right into another level, but I said, ‘You’ve got to give me more time to come up with a theme,’ and they agreed. We’d started a little late, around the end of March; usually, we start earlier in the year. But it worked out.
You wanted to modernise the grunge sound for COD Black Ops 6 given that the game is set in 1991. When it came to collaborating with the band ROMES, what were you looking for? What does modernising grunge mean to you? Or was it just something where you heard their music and thought, ‘That's it’?
Jack Wall: I can definitely describe it. One of the first things I did when I got materials from Brian was research the music scene around 1991. I looked at the charts from that year, Enter Sandman by Metallica was on top, and a few years later, Nevermind by Nirvana came out. You could feel a shift in music from the end of the '80s into the '90s. I remember that time well because I was a recording engineer and producer then. In the studio, we focused a lot on drum sounds, and I remember working with Andy Wallace at Platinum Island. He mixed Nevermind, and hearing that Dave Grohl drum fill on Smells Like Teen Spirit was life-changing music right there.
It’s similar to that iconic drum sound on Phil Collins' In the Air Tonight. Those powerful drum sounds had such an impact. I wanted that sound for this project but with a modern twist. I found Nick Bitove, ROMES' drummer, doing a video on Instagram where he was putting his drum kit through guitar effects, modulating and synthesising the sounds. It just sounded really cool to me. I told him, ‘I want that sound you’re getting in your videos.’ Sometimes he'd send a drum track, and I'd think, ‘Where’s the magic from the videos?’ But he kept working on it, and eventually, we nailed it.
The first thing we created was the ‘World Builder’ for the game’s opening credits, which I call Prelude on the soundtrack. Nick sent me a bunch of stuff, and I pieced it together into my composition. It added so much. Then I suggested they do a track together and send it to me, so we could collaborate on music for another level. That track became the multiplayer theme. We leaned into that over-modulated drum sound through effects, giving it a ‘synthetic Nirvana’ feel. ROMES has a song that sounds like Nirvana, but new, and that's when I knew we were on the right track with them.
“I promised myself I’d return to AIR Studios with my next project, which was this one. And it was a dream come true.”
When you’re searching for new sounds or collaborators, is Instagram a tool you often use? Or do you just casually browse lots of channels and sites when you have downtime, bookmarking things that catch your interest?
Jack Wall: It’s part of my process. Starting a new project is the most fun because I turn into a sponge. Normally, I tune out the world, don’t listen to much music, and don’t watch many movies. But when I’m preparing, I read scripts, look at the game flow, and think about the sound palette. I’ll casually browse online for inspiration, and one night, I was just on Instagram. I must have put in ‘drummer’ or something, and my feed filled with drummers, Instagram is creepy that way. ROMES popped up, and I was like, ‘What am I seeing? These guys are so cool.’ I love taking someone from relative obscurity and working with them. Talking about them and helping them gain exposure is what it’s all about.
You recorded this score at the infamous Air Studios was that studio always your first choice for recording? What it is about that space in particular that makes soundtracks special?
Jack Wall: I had mostly worked at Abbey Road and sometimes in Nashville, or Budapest, depending on the project’s budget and timing. But in 2019, I was working on a TV show for my friend Trevor Morris, a composer known for The Tudors and Vikings. He asked me to write some additional music for his show Emerald City, a unique take on The Wizard of Oz. We had the budget to record, and Trevor loves Air Studios. He knew it well from his time as Hans Zimmer’s assistant, so he asked me to join him there. I agreed and took on the role of ‘booth person,’ sitting in the control room, reading the score, and giving feedback on each take.
Trevor was conducting while I was sitting next to Geoff Foster in the control room, and I was blown away by how good it sounded. The space, Geoff’s expertise, the musicians, it was the perfect combination. It ended up being the best recording experience I’d ever had. I promised myself I’d return to Air Studios with my next project, which was this one. And it was a dream come true. If I could work there for the rest of my life, I would. It really is the best.
Jack Wall at AIR Studios
Could you share some moments in your previous projects where freedom was limited, and how did you handle that as a composer?
Jack Wall: To be honest, most of my projects have been pretty stress-free. Not all, but most. Years ago, I did a project with a developer where I had to leave because I just couldn’t sync with the game’s producer. The studio head loved my work on another game I’d done and wanted that same vibe, but it was the wrong approach for this game. They wanted an epic soundtrack, which I didn’t think fit. It got even harder when the creative team had different visions: one wanted one genre, another wanted something else. It became too confusing, and I ended up bowing out. I think I wrote about 45 minutes of music, but none of it felt right to me or the team, so we just ended things.
Mass Effect was another challenge. Jade Empire had gone relatively smoothly, but Mass Effect 1 and 2 were tough. Mostly because the game director and I didn’t get to communicate often. Whenever we did talk, I felt like I could get closer to what he wanted, but he was usually unavailable. I think they wanted me to be a 'black box,' delivering the music without much back-and-forth. But then there’d be a lot of critique at the end, which was difficult to address. The schedule was tight, so I just did my best. In the end, Mass Effect got a BAFTA nomination, and I think it’s one of my best scores. But the process itself was challenging.
“For me, composing will always be about storytelling. It’s about enhancing the narrative, being that unseen character that the player hears and feels, but doesn’t focus on directly.”
Most of my other projects have been much smoother. Generally, my tastes align well with my clients. Call of Duty has been especially enjoyable because they rarely give me notes! Once the music is in the game, they often say, 'It’s working great. We love it!' On this last one, the biggest note I received was about a specific level where I’d used ethnic, Middle Eastern scales and percussion. Initially, they were concerned it was too 'ethnic,' but after hearing it in the game, they felt it worked well. They asked me not to add more of that style, but they were pleased with the result. Part of it is that game development is a massive undertaking, so they don’t want to slow me down. I think they trust my work to be good enough and know it’s important to keep things moving.
This time around, I received great feedback from the head writer and the game director, saying how much they loved the score. So, I feel we’re in a good place.
I’d love to hear your take on the future of game composition and the landscape for composers. What would you hope to see, and what should stay the same in the industry?
Jack Wall: I do think AI is going to play a significant role in the future. I hope that it takes on more of a creative, supportive role rather than replacing composers. I could see AI as a great tool to provide a starting point for compositions. You know, having AI generate an initial idea or sketch that a human composer could then refine—adjusting chords, changing melodies, making it uniquely their own. It could really speed things up and even make the creative process more enjoyable, especially when you’re staring at a daunting blank page.
It’s funny, though, because after 30 years, the core process hasn’t changed that much. Sure, we have better sounds, libraries, and techniques now, which help us produce and integrate music more efficiently. For instance, the way Reaper was used in this latest project, where the Raven team could quickly replace mock-ups with live recordings was incredibly efficient. Those developments make things smoother, and I’m all for that.
But for me, composing will always be about storytelling. It’s about enhancing the narrative, being that unseen character that the player hears and feels, but doesn’t focus on directly. When the music subtly enhances the experience without pulling attention, that’s when you’re doing your best work. I hope that element remains constant, while the tools and workflows keep getting more efficient and easier to use.
