Hayden fans must have noticed something was up as the singer-songwriter took the stage for a sold-out show at the Trinity-St.Paul Centre Saturday night.

The famously low-key local hero's usual concert traits were intact -- the awkward stoop, the lowered eyes, the bashful grin.

Only one thing was missing: Hayden's trademark wooden chair.

Playing a show standing instead of seated isn't a big step for most angst-ridden young songsmiths. For Thornhill's Paul Hayden Desser, it's a veritable act of aggression.

And, while the muted strains of opening tune Hardly hardly hinted at the rock-heavy concert to follow, an aggressive-sounding set was exactly what Hayden delivered.

Working in his favor was the pristine sound and holiness of the venue.

"I haven't been inside a church since my bar mitzvah," he joked, before launching into Between Us To Hold, from his new album The Closer I Get. "I guess that doesn't make much sense."

His set, however, did.

Hayden's simple, universal tales of loneliness, despair and unrequited love tapped directly into the emotions of his young fans.

The Closer I Get did suffer some heavy criticism for being too narrow and self-absorbed a record.

Helping Hayden fly above that flak for Saturday's show were multi-instrumentalists Joshua Malinsky, Mitch Roth -- formerly of the band Poledo -- and erstwhile Change Of Heart drummer John Damon Richardson, who built a cohesive trio around the singer.

As Bad As They Seem, from 1995's Everything I Long For, new instrumental Instrumental With Mellotron, and the title-theme to Steve Buscemi's film Trees Lounge -- arguably Hayden's best song -- were kicked out to perfection. The group also reached low levels of rage on a keyboard-fueled tune, current single The Hazards Of Sitting Beneath Palm Trees, and an encore version of early hit In September.

Ever the reluctant rocker, Hayden did get a chance sit down after all, at the piano for I'm To Blame and Nights Like These.

JAM! Rating: 3 out of 5