Minus Story

  “Stitch Me Up” by Minus Story, from My Ion Truss (Jagjaguwar):

So maybe our verdict on Minus Story's new one, My Ion Truss, was a little harsh. Instrumentally strong, we said, but vocally and lyrically weak. Well, we hold bitches to a high standard here at the Pitch. But we still think you should go see the band live. Onstage, Minus Story is abashedly charismatic yet also scientifically dedicated to bringing the rock noise. It's like one of those chemistry-circus things that college students put on for elementary school kids — charming nerds in white coats making chemicals flash and explode. And if Ion Truss is any indication, this Lawrence band has really stepped up the pyrotechnics from previous albums, favoring the plunk and the boom over the toot and the whistle, to paraphrase that old educational Disney cartoon. But then the band will play a song like its lovely new track "Stitch Me Up" — an ascending trip of lilting dulcimerlike sounds, pummeling drums and Jordan Geiger's boyish keen — and show that the Story can be poetic, too.