Moist is a relative newcomer to the Canadian music scene, with only two albums on its resume.

Yet judging from its performance last night at the Max Bell Centre, the group has already mastered arena-rock methodology: There was the between-song banter, the rock concert vernacular and all the tried-and-true cliches.

Like a '90s version of Loverboy, these Juno Award winners are not a socially conscious or intellectual band, but they do play to the collective libido of their fans.

And Moist captivated them with an engaging brand of accessible, high-volume alterna-rock, which had the intriguing visual effect of transforming the front of the stage into a churning mass of bodies.

Slowing down for only a moment, Moist served up an acoustic version of Gasoline that was met warmly.

But it was the performance of Leave It Alone that truly struck a chord, as the 4,000 fans hung on every word and note the band produced. Egged on by svelte vocalist David Usher, most concertgoers contributed to the vocal delivery of songs such as Silver and Resurrection.

But Moist was only one of three fine Canadian bands on the bill.

Taking the stage with an initially subdued presence, I Mother Earth soon launched into a crushing version of One More Astronaut, during which singer Edwin delivered the lyrics with gripping power.

Meanwhile, Edwin's bandmates displayed a musicianship beyond reproach.

Guitarist Jagori Tanna fused his obvious influences into a solid rock-guitar statement. He filled the Max Bell with searing Hendrix-like solos, which melted into hard-rock riffing, only to give way to Santana-esque chording.

Incorporating an additional percussionist to complement drummer Christian Tannas' unrelenting rhythmic barrage and Bruce Gordon's quaking bass lines served to hold down the band's big bottom end.

And I Mother Earth served up one hard-edged, progressive number after another, including the well received Levitate and the crushing Rain Will Fall.

Mudgirl -- also known as Kim Bingham of Me, Mom and Morgantaler -- delivered a solid but short set that fell somewhere between Veruca Salt and Joan Jett.