The Salt Collective: "A Brief History Of Blindness" (2025) CD Review

The Salt Collective began as Salt, the band releasing its first album, The Loneliness of Clouds, in 2019. Then the band's core members (Stéphane Schück, Fred Quentin and Benoit Lautridou) invited other musicians to contribute lyrics for the second album, 2023's Life, a fantastic collaborative effort that was produced by Chris Stamey, who wrote several of the tracks. Peter Holsapple, Juliana Hatfield, Matthew Sweet and Susan Cowsill, among others, all contributed to that album. Chris Stamey has returned to produce the group's new album, A Brief History Of Blindness, and he co-wrote several of its tracks. This album, like Life, features the work of many excellent musicians and songwriters, including Aimee Mann, Jason Faulkner, Mitch Easter and Mike Mills.

The album opens with its title track, "A Brief History Of Blindness," a lively pop gem featuring the vocal work of Lynn Blakey, who co-wrote the song with Stéphane Schück.  "You don't see me, I'm not looking at you/You only see what you're looking for." The line "Another step towards darkness" stands out in these questionable times when each day seems like another step toward oblivion. There is also a cool bass line from Fred Quentin that keeps things popping, and a delicious groove on drums by Benoit Lautridou. Stéphane Schück is on guitar and keys, and Wes Lachot is on organ and piano. Chris Stamey provides some additional guitar work, and Mitch Easter provides additional work on keys. Jason Falkner then sings lead on "Waiting For The End Of Time," with Lynn Blakey now providing some backing vocal work. Jason tells us, "We were circling the drain." Yup, that sounds about right these days. There is a compelling and rather dark intensity to this song, much of it coming from the intriguing rhythm. Rob Ladd is on drums, and Gene Holder (of The dB's) is on bass. That intensity is also present in Jason's vocal approach. Matt Douglas adds some good stuff on saxophone. We are all on the edge, and this music meets us there. A great rock song for how we are feeling. This song was written by Stéphane Schück, Chris Stamey, and Andy Partridge.

Matthew Caws sings lead on "Cloud To Cloud," and also plays rhythm guitar. He also wrote the song with Stéphane Schück. There is an interesting energy to this song, part of it due to the excellent string work. Jennifer Curtis is on violin, and Leah Webster is on cello, and the string arrangement is by Chris Stamey. Chris Stamey and Lynn Blakey provide backing vocals. "The whole frame around this moment is fiction/Each way I see it is a scene that I've just written/I get good questions, but don't answer/I hope I think about the ones that really matter." There is a surprising beauty to this song, and a joy. "I love to drive, when you're sitting by my side/Even when we're saying nothing/What a sky, it's a neverending show/It's reminding me of something." This track has really made a home for itself in my head, and ends up being one of my favorites of the album. Another of the disc's highlights is "You Swallowed The Sun," a song Chris Stamey wrote with Andy Partridge. Chris sings lead on it. "You swallowed the sun/You took it down whole/Now I'm the king of a world made from coal." It is a song of an ending, delivered in that special way that only Chris Stamey can do. There are lots of fascinating touches here too, like Jeff Herrick's work on trumpet. This song was also released as a single. "And all you did was put your coat on/All you did was click the door/All you did was say you're leaving." Ah, yes, that would do it.

Aimee Mann, one of my favorite songwriters, sings lead on "The Waiting Game," and of course does a phenomenal job. She is so adept at creating strong moods, the tone of her voice telling us so much in addition to the lyrics themselves. Interestingly, this song was not written or co-written by Aimee Mann; rather it was written by Stéphane Schück and Chris Stamey. The style might be a bit different from what we've heard from her in the past, but it works perfectly. "You hope to find/A crack in time/And all the while/You hide behind your smile." Fred Quentin provides some wonderful work on woodwinds, and Mitch Easter delivers a good lead on guitar. "Why do we play/The waiting game." Then Lynn Blakey and Mike Mills sing on "In The Shadow Of The Moon" "Where do you go when you want to hide, when you want to hide?" Lynn asks at the beginning of this song. Yet this song has a positive vibe and spin, apparent as soon as it kicks in. "I will hold your hand/And tell you everything's all right/Until you understand/We're turning shadows into light." Oh yes! This song works to make us all feel a bit better about the world, about our chances, about the near future. Jeff Herrick delivers some nice stuff on trumpet. I love this song. It was written by Stéphane Schück and Lynn Blakey. It was the first single released from the album.

The opening line of "So Sad (Don't Let Go)" caught me off guard and made me laugh aloud, mainly because of the truth of it: "Every day is a new disaster." This song was written by Stéphane Schück and Chris Stamey. Matthew Caws sings lead on it, with Chris and Lynn providing harmonies. "Can't let go of a thousand memories/That take root in your head/Take it slow, close your eyes as you breathe/Replay all the things you said/You're so sad, so sad." And yet this song is positive, encouraging, and it features some beautiful work on strings. Leah Webster is on cello, and Jennifer Curtis is on violin. The string arrangement is by Chris Stamey, who also plays acoustic guitar on this track. This song reminds those of us struggling with despair and dread, "You are loved." That's followed by "Ex Post Facto Kids," which was written by Stéphane Schück and Mitch Easter. Mitch sings lead on it. There is a great energy to this song. You feel it moving from that opening moment on drums. "Somehow that got me thinking about history/And if I really see what I think I see/Gotta fix it yesterday." This is such a cool song. Well, what else would we expect from the man behind Let's Active?

"How We Breathe" was written by Stéphane Schück and Lynn Blakey, and Lynn sings lead on it, with Matthew Caws providing backing vocals. It's an interesting song, with a cheerful pop sound during the verses, then getting a bit darker for the chorus. "It's really quite astounding how we breathe/I never was so sure/Why we have to take the bitter with the sweet/The problem is the cure." After the chorus, it bounces right back. "Yeah, I'm spinning miracles tonight." Kimberley Rew is on rhythm guitar for this track. Then, with "The Quickening Sky," a darker, more contemplative vibe is established during the instrumental section at the beginning. Django Haskins (of The Old Ceremony) sings lead on this one, and when he sings "Escape from the undertow," I can't help but hear "undertoad" (thanks, John Irving). This song was written by Stéphane Schück and Chris Stamey. There is a certain power to the chorus. Faith Jones provides some good backing vocal work. The album concludes with "All The Rage," which was written by Stéphane Schück and Chris Stamey. Chris sings lead on it, and Aimee Mann joins him on vocals. It's such a treat to hear two of my favorite singer/songwriters singing together. "There you are/The famous star/On center stage/You're all the rage/But that was long ago/Now memories are all you know." Jennifer Curtis delivers some excellent stuff on violin, and it is that work that helps to mark the different sections, to create the different feelings, such as the sadder moment when we are lost in memories, before the next verse starts. "You bow, but no one's there/The lights go out, the clapping fades."

CD Track List

1. A Brief History Of Blindness
2. Waiting For The End Of Time
3. Cloud To Cloud
4. You Swallowed The Sun
5. The Waiting Game
6. In The Shadow Of The Moon
7. So Sad (Don't Let Go)
8. Ex Post Facto Kids
9. How We Breathe
10. The Quickening Sky
11. All The Rage

A Brief History Of Blindness was released on November 21, 2025 through Propeller Sound Recordings.