TORONTO -- Macy Gray's forthcoming new album is called The Trouble With Being Myself.

And after witnessing her hour-and-40-minute concert at The Guvernment on Tuesday night, the new disc seems somewhat appropriately named.

Gray's in-your-face, verging on abrasive, stage persona often got in the way of the jam-filled funky-soul set performed by the raspy-voiced singer and her spirited seven piece band.

Just when she would get really going, during the freewheeling disco number Sexual Revolution from The Id, for instance, she'd interrupt with long-winded ramblings, mainly of the sexual variety.

In this particular case, she wanted "all the sexy people in the house" to take some clothes off, and several of her own male band members complied by going shirtless.

At one point in the song, Gray even pulled her own pants down before eventually pulling them back up, but the gesture seemed forced rather than spontaneous. Gray, in a typically flamboyant outfit of brown velvet coat, sequined plaid top and turquoise pants, kicked off the evening with Relating To A Psychopath, also from her 2001 release, The Id.

Her Grammy award-winning 1999 debut, On How Life Is, was represented by her breakthrough song, I Try, and other set standouts Why Didn't You Call Me, I Can't Wait To Meetchu, I've Committed Murder, Do Something, and Sex-O-Matic.

The Id's highlights turned out to be Sweet Baby and Gimme All Your Lovin' Or I Will Kill You.

The Trouble With Being Myself doesn't hit stores until May 13, but the Toronto audience got a preview of a couple of new songs, including the winning first single, When I See You.

Maybe by the album's release, Gray will have toned things down as a performer and realized that her talent lies in her unique voice and groove-filled songs and not in wacky stage antics.

The concert hit a major low when the guitarist went out into the audience with cue cards bearing the lyrics to Oblivion, the silly and worst song on The Id.

The band only redeemed themselves when, during the encore while Gray was offstage going through her "haberdashery," they covered Blondie's Rapture.

Gray did get serious once, when she introduced The Id song, Hey Young World Part 2.

"When the war breaks out," Gray told the crowd of about 800, "we'll just move here to Canada. I mean, where else are we going to go?" Wednesday night's performance was part of a 24-date club tour with Toronto the only Canadian stop. (More on Macy Gray)

JAM! Rating: 3 out of 5