VANCOUVER -- The evening before The Tragically Hip kicked off their Canadian tour in Vancouver for their latest album Music @ Work, they were anxious to get things going.

And not, as you would assume, because the five-piece rock band are eager to play in front of decidedly partisan and patriotic crowds.

It's rather because of the size of those audiences and, maybe even more importantly, the size of the venues, such as Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum, the Saddledome in Calgary and Toronto's Air Canada Centre.

"It's still really exciting for us," said Hip bassist Gord Sinclair. "It's great being on a bigger stage -- it's easier to play off of each other because, overall, it's not as loud.

"Musically, it's kind of fun. We've been working towards making the bigger rooms as intimate as we can, duplicating what we're trying to do in the smaller theatres. It's going to be fun. I'm looking forward to it."

Last night at a sold-out Pacific Coliseum, Sinclair and the rest of The Tragically Hip returned to the comfort zone.

Stepping onstage to thunderous applause, enigmatic vocalist Gord Downie kicked off their 2 1/2 hour show and their cross-Canada tour by uttering the words: "It's time to get to work."

At least, that's what it sounded like -- with Downie mumbling like a well-dressed though still crazed street preacher, it's often hard to tell.

Nonetheless, get to work the quintet did.

Supplemented by keyboardist Chris Brown and tambourine player-backup singer Kate Fenner (both formerly of The Bourbon Tabernacle Choir), and in the middle of a crop semicircle etched into a prairie wheat-field stage set, the band launched into an evening of hits with the lead-off single, My Music at Work, from Music @ Work.

From there it was a Hip-trip through the band's eight-album, 15-year career, yielding few surprises and instead sticking mainly to the established theme of work.

Tight, full-sounding and competent, the band hunched over songs like Fully Completely, Tiger the Lion and Ahead By a Century and delivered them on time and with no hassles.

And maybe that's how people like the job done these days, because even though there was little or no connection made between band and audience -- save for the songs themselves, which most could sing word-for-word -- there were no complaints and no refunds demanded.

The Tragically Hip did what their fans expected: Musically, the band played well, while Downie sung and gesticulated to himself like a lobotomized cross between Hunter S. Thompson and David Byrne.

With the first show of their Canadian tour, all the Hip did was prove that preaching, even if it's on a street-corner, is always easy when it's to the converted.

Set List

Music @ Work Grace, Too Fully Completely Tiger The Lion Twist My Arm Putting Down Giftshop Titanic Terrarium Fireworks The Completist Springtime In Vienna Greasy Jungle Ahead By A Century Something On Wheat Kings Train Overnight Boots Or Hearts Emporer Penguin Courage Lake Fever Daredevil At The Hundedth Meridian Long Time Running Poets Flamenco Nautical Disaster Stay New Orleans Is Sinking Fire In The Hole Inch An Hour Bob Caygeon Little Bones