When fire engulfs a small town, does the minuscule metropolis vanish in an ashy flash? Based on clandestine tests conducted on unwitting outposts, current wisdom holds that Small Towns Burn a Little Slower, which also is the name of a Minneapolis band. It's unclear how five residents of a city with a population of nearly 3 million became experts on the conflagration tendencies of cozy communities, but it's substantially less mysterious how a group from a traditional power-pop breeding ground became so adept at the genre. With its hyperactive drumming, choppy riffs and tartly sweetened hooks, Small Towns suggests what might have happened had the Replacements devoured Nerds candies the way they guzzled alcohol. Additional research might be required on the how-towns-burn issue (it's time to get flame retardant, Rulo, Nebraska!), but it's a fact that tightly packed small clubs get much toastier than cavernous venues, so fans should leave their coats in the car for this hot-ticket concert.
