Six months after opening his mouth to sing to audiences for the first time in three years, Hayden says he's finally ready to open his mouth to talk about himself.

For the time being.

Earmarked for greatness in the mid '90s, the Toronto singer-songwriter pulled off one of Canadian rock's great disappearing acts when he dropped out of sight after his second album and major label debut, 1998's The Closer I Get.

That silence was finally broken, albeit quietly, with the release of last year's return-to-form CD Skyscraper National Park. A mini-tour of "the smallest clubs in each city" in Canada put Paul Hayden Desser back on stage. A current string of theatre dates brings him to Convocation Hall tomorrow night.

DESPERATE TO ESCAPE

"There was a point when I started playing again where I wouldn't do press," Hayden, 30, says. "Partly because I didn't feel like talking about my music, and partly because I wanted to see -- to know -- how much press had to do with people coming to shows."

All part, he says, of wading back into a music scene he was once desperate to escape.

Anyone who followed the rock press between his 1995 indie debut Everything I Long For and The Closer I Get will remember the strong impression left by Hayden's intimate, lo-fi acoustic song sketches and whispery delivery, the faithful cult following that continues, the next-big-thing fuss and subsequent record deal with Geffen's short-lived Outpost imprint.

Then there was the backlash: The lukewarm reviews and gruelling tour schedule. Then nothing.

Rumours had Hayden living the life of a recluse, though he remained quite visible around town. More accurate were reports that he was regrouping, waiting out the expectations that tripped him up in the first place.

'BIG STAR'

"I'd be lying if I said it didn't affect me," Hayden says now. "Because my goal wasn't to be this big star and live the life or whatever, I came the realization, 'Why am I releasing my music?' I can make music at home for myself. I'll never stop doing that."

Which is how Skyscraper National Park came together.

Recorded and pieced together gradually over three years, it's the sound of creative confidence restored.

"It was a series of steps, right up to hand-making 100 wooden covers (for the initial release of Skyscraper National Park) for friends. I didn't think beyond each step. It was different from having a year of my life booked in front of me, as it was on the last album.

"I like having no expectations and being able to surprise people. This time I was, like, 'Everyone's forgotten.' It felt good because of that."

He adds with a laugh: "Luckily people liked it. But if they didn't I was fully prepared to stay home and record more."