Stéphane Schück’s Salt Collective Assembles R.E.M., XTC, and Nada Surf Members for New Album

Transmission 287: Salt Collective

The Salt Collective is a transatlantic band founded by Stéphane Schück, a French physician and guitarist from Caen, Normandy. Schück writes the music with Chris Stamey (the dB’s), then sends it to singers who create melodies and lyrics freely, a method he likens to the exquisite corpse.

Title: A Brief History of Blindness
Artist: Salt Collective
Release Date: 2025-11-21
Genres: Art Rock, Indie Rock, Power Pop
Label: Propeller Sound Recordings
Description: Salt Collective's A Brief History of Blindness features Mike Mills, Aimee Mann, Andy Partridge. Out Nov 21 via Propeller Sound Recordings.

Their 2023 debut Life was recorded remotely. The new album, A Brief History of Blindness, was tracked live at Mitch Easter’s studio in North Carolina, featuring Aimee Mann, Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Andy Partridge (XTC), Matthew Caws (Nada Surf), and others. Schück’s work as a doctor and his recovery from serious illness inform the album’s concerns with perception and mortality.

How did the core members of the Collective first meet, and what started the decision to make music together?

At first, there were three of us French guys. We met in the 1980s and lived in the same neighborhood in Caen (Normandy). I met Fred Quentin, our French bassist, at medical school (we are both doctors), and Benoit Lautridou, our French drummer, was my neighbor. We were and still are big fans of rock and pop music, and it was this mutual and boundless love of music that brought us together. Very naturally, we decided to play together.

What artists first inspired you to become musicians? And what were you listening to during the sessions for this new album?

The Beatles, of course, whom my mother listened to all the time, and then I had this incredible encounter with the album Repercussion by the Db’s when I was a teenager. It was definitely that album that inspired me to become a musician. And now I play with them… it’s pretty mind-blowing, to be honest… I listen to music all the time, I have tons of playlists everywhere, and I always have my headphones with me. At the time of recording, I was listening to our own songs a lot so I could play them correctly! But otherwise, I can give you a few names off the top of my head: Nada Surf, Pernice Brothers, Super Furry Animals, The Aliens, Elliott Smith, Idlewild, Grass Show, Eggstone, and many others!

What is the core philosophy of “The Salt Collective,” and how do you choose your collaborators?

The philosophy is based on collaboration; we are not a typical band… I write the music and work on it extensively with Chris Stamey, and when we are satisfied, we send it to singers who have complete freedom to add their melodies, lyrics, and emotion. We don’t give them any instructions, total freedom. This produces some very interesting and sometimes very surprising results. It’s a bit like the exquisite corpse method. For some tracks, Chris writes the melodies too. Our collaboration is a great source of pride for me. He’s one of my heroes!

Your first album was remote, this one was in-person. How did that live-band energy change the music’s DNA?

Yes, we recorded live in Mitch Easter’s studio and it was really great. We were very close to each other and we exchanged a lot. You can feel that energy in the songs. But even though the previous album was recorded remotely, we kept the same feeling. The DNA hasn’t undergone any major changes! It’s all based on enjoyment, the enjoyment of being together, playing together, creating together.

You recorded the core tracks at the Fidelitorium. What was the day-to-day atmosphere like? Was it a focused 9-to-5, or more of a loose, creative hangout?

I’m 57, so I can’t jam all night and I can’t get up very early! We were more like 10am to 10pm, with lunch breaks that were really nice and where we talked a lot. The atmosphere was very relaxed and very focused at the same time. We had a hard time coordinating everyone’s schedules for this session, so we savored every moment. I want to do it again so badly that I’m working on a dozen new songs for the next album!

What does the title, A Brief History of Blindness, mean in the context of this album? Does the theme of “blindness” also refer to a wider cultural or political disconnection?

I explain this in a later question, but the idea is that the very dark period the world is going through is just a blip, and that later we will say it was a brief episode of blindness. It’s very naive and utopian, but it warms the heart to think so!

Was “In the Shadow of the Moon” always intended as a duet for Mike Mills and Lynn Blakey?

When I wrote this song, it was obvious to me that Lynn Blakey had to collaborate on it, and she added this wonderful vocal line, and her voice is fantastic, I love it! When we had that, there was an “Athens” feeling in the song, and Chris suggested we ask Mike Mills if he was interested in singing with Lynn. He listened to the song, loved it, and sang on it. The result is just great!

Why did you intentionally use generative AI to create “uncanny valley” cover art?

It’s related to the title: A Brief History of Blindness. I like to believe that the obscurantist period the world is currently experiencing is just parenthesis and that later we will be able to say, it was a brief history of blindness. To illustrate this, I would like to show you something that is obviously artificial but related to reality. So I started with one of my photos, which I enlarged using generative AI. This is the result, and I’m happy with it because it illustrates the point well.

Will this new “core band” be the foundation for future Salt Collective albums?

Not necessarily. Our collective now consists of about twenty people. It depends mainly on the general feeling of the songs, everyone’s availability, and the overall configuration of the album. We’ll see, but always with the same intensity!

Photo courtesy of Salt Collective

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