EDMONTON -- Psykoblast turned out to be a long ordeal of bubblegum for a short payoff of flash - if you were a guy, that is.

"I was dragged here by my girlfriend," one bored young fellow shrugged. Hey, get used to it, man.

Most of the 7,000 people who screamed their lungs out and waved glowsticks in Skyreach Centre last night were young girls, pleased as only young girls can be with the opening quartet of boy bands, topped by the one and only Christina Aguilera.

It was a long night. From McMaster & James "rocking the house" to the first appearance of the 19-year-old queen of teen pop, it was nearly four hours, long enough for those aforementioned glowsticks to lose much of their glow. I was determined to sit through every note of M&J, souLDecision, mytown and the Moffatts - every dance move, every pelvic thrust, every utterance of the word "girl" or "love," and every high-pitched wave of screams that inevitably followed. Was it worth it? Almost.

Aguilera proved to be no ordinary pop tart.

In both material and vocals, she's superior to her best friend/rival Britney Spears, even if she doesn't draw the same numbers. Isn't that the way it always is?

Aguilera opened with the hit that put her where she is, Genie in a Bottle, dressed like - you guessed it - a junior Barbara Eden. A six-piece band pumped out the big, slick sound typical in the big, slick teen production number industry, while the 19-year-old star cavorted with her dancers without missing a note. She seems to be from the Mariah-Whitney school of vocals. Hardly a note was left unembellished. Sometimes even the embellishments had embellishments. This was especially evident in the ballads, like I Turn To You - dedicated to "all of you" (cue screaming) - and a version of Etta James' At Last, where she swooped and swirled around the melody like a butterfly that hasn't found a mate and only has an hour to live.

Aguilera didn't earn the nickname "little diva" by accident. While her stage patter was plagued by giggles, her skills as an entertainer were obvious. Problem is, she often fell into the trap of showing off for its own sake - "listen to me sing," instead of "listen to this song." It's really too early to tell which way she'll go. Points for picking Etta James, at least. It's only been a year and one album - a real "roller-coaster ride," as she put it - and she's already won a Grammy. Her new material will be the true test. We don't need another diva, but a powerful new voice in a stale pop industry would be welcome.

As for the opening acts, I present the first (and last) annual Psykoblast Awards:

BEST FASHION TRAGEDY: Power 92 announcer Chad "the Pog" Martin, in full pimp regalia.

MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT: Some poor girl's drunk mom getting kicked out of the concert.

BEST LINE: "You can put that sign away 'cause I'm not going to get naked," said souLDecision's Trevor Guthrie, to a particularly ardent fan. Aww, she spent all that time making it.

SAPPIEST MOMENT: No One Does It Better Than You, by souLDecision. "As with many of our songs," the said, "it's about a girl."

BEST VERSION OF A BRYAN ADAMS SONG: SouLDecision again, playing Summer of '69.

BEST IMPERSONATION OF 'NSYNC: Irish foursome mytown.

BEST SYNCHRONIZED JACKET DOFFING: Mytown

BEST DANCING: Mytown. Shame about their music, though.

MOST IMPROVED: The Moffatts. Moving to a "heavier" sound is no joke. While the band's new rock tunes have that same happy, lovey-dovey feel as the pop stuff, they seem less like a lame clone of the Partridge Family with every concert. Don't bother saving a spot on Edgefest 2001, however. (Runner-up: McMaster & James, which sounded a whole lot better with a live band behind them.)

BEST USE OF FACIAL HAIR: The Moffatts.

BEST SCREAM: When Scott Moffatt (speaking on behalf of brother Bob) said, "I'm looking for a girlfriend from Edmonton!"

What a coincidence. Several thousand screaming girls were looking to make a boyfriend out of a Moffatt.