British pop singer Kate Nash is touring behind her new album My Best Friend Is You. Nash played Toronto's Phoenix Concert Theatre Nov. 13. (Mark O'Neill/QMI Agency)

Early on in her concert Saturday night at Toronto's Phoenix Concert Theatre, British pop singer Kate Nash wasn't sure if the piano bench she was sitting on would hold.

"I think my seat's going to break," she said with a grin. "If I disappear don't worry I'll be back."

But like most of the quirky, catchy material that bounced around the 17-song set, Nash was able to bounce on her stool while playing without any troubles. The same could be said for the crowd filling about half the venue who also did a fair share of bouncing up and down.

Touring behind this year's sophomore effort My Best Friend Is You, Nash and her road-tested three piece supporting cast opened with the retro-flavored Do-Wah-Doo as light bulbs placed around her keyboard lit up (apparently dimmer according to Nash due to the different voltages overseas). From there the first of a handful of sing-alongs began with Mouthwash from her 2007 smash debut Made Of Bricks.

Although without the rather crude statement which decorated the front of her keyboard on her last North American trek this spring, Nash brought along a lamp which caused everyone to playfully marvel over once she turned it on. It almost seemed like a cue for the band shortly thereafter once the rockabilly, rave-up vibe of Take Me To A Higher Plane soared.

That's not to say that everything Nash played went over big. A stream-of-conscious spoken word piece entitled Mansion Song hardly worked on any level while the sparse I Hate Seagulls took a while to warm to as Nash waited and waited for the audience to quiet down a bit.

Had she waited for complete silence, chances are she'd still be there.

Regardless, Nash's simple piano chops and drummer Elliott Andrews' precision fuelled most of the numbers like the galloping Skeleton Song and Do You Want To Share The Guilt?, the latter with Nash leading the clapping while the bassist strummed a ukulele.

After accidentally unplugging her acoustic guitar from the amp, the singer nailed the light but terribly melodic Birds which earned a loud reaction as did Mariella and the somewhat folksy Early Christmas Present. And not wanting to alienate those unfamiliar with the term "wanker," Nash translated the North American equivalent before singing R 'N B Side, a b-side number which contained the phrase in the chorus.

While placing a lot of lyrical content in many of the songs, Nash and company hit the homestretch with all knowing every word. Returning to her keyboard, Nash had many dancing to Paris as well as Foundations, the latter kicking off with Nash and the audience doing an impromptu arm stretching exercise.

Following Merry Happy - which left many very happy - the singer returned for a quick encore featuring Pumpkin Soup. But unlike the slower groove found in the album version, Nash - perhaps tired of the same format - revved things up, concluding with a rowdy, punk-ish feel.

For fans of infectious Brit-pop, it was an early Christmas present indeed.