Walls & Birds is formed in 2012 as an experimental music collective by Tillie Bedeau, releasing a self-titled debut EP before quickly dissolving. On the verge of their first tour across Germany, Tillie was introduced to Leo Hilsheimer by Nicolas Fehr. The two completed the tour as a duo, beginning a long-running collaboration.
Their first recording - what would become the Atlantic Bar EP - began in a gas station at night where they were stranded while hitchhiking. They later finished the EP at HfG Karlsruhe's Soundstudios with Frank Halbig. In 2014, joined by Hilsheimer’s long-time drummer colleague Jannis Kleiss, they moved away from their electronic setup and continued as a trio.
Living in Berlin, they record their first full-length album Daytona Beach in a basement rehearsal space. Additional vocals by Tillie’s sister, Rosi, were recorded in the family’s living room. Rosi eventually joined the group on stage, particularly for concerts in Berlin and touring throughout Germany. Regular shows at Villa Neukölln make them an inside tip in the undergorund music scene.
In 2017, they release the Fitness Lady Wellness EP - five songs and a full lenght B-Side featuring seven instrumental tracks. After an intense period, the group paused in 2018. Though they started recording another album with producer Daniel Nentwig in 2019, creative disagreements left the project unfinished.
During the pandemic, the group performed sporadically while Bedeau and Hilsheimer composed a set of instrumental pieces for two acoustic guitars and bass, released in 2022 as Sun Island. In 2023, the group reconnected, issuing parts of the unfinished album as a single Less than a kilometer away through Beatbude Records, a Berlin-based label run by old friends.
By 2024 and 2025 Walls & Birds have returned to stages across Europe, performing at festivals and releasing new music.