TORONTO -- Scottish pop band Travis, in town for their third visit here in the last year, seemed genuinely blown away by the hearty reception they got at the Warehouse on Tuesday night.

 "We should be cheering them!" commented engaging frontman Fran Healy to bass player Dougie Payne, who immediately obliged. "This is the loudest audience in some time!"

 Make that a Guinness-swilling, Scottish flag-waving audience.

 It seems that despite the Glasgow group's repeated visits, Toronto's love affair with Travis continues, due in no small part to their seven-month-old album of pretty, heartfelt, melancholy pop, The Man Who, and breakout hit, Why Does It Always Rain On Me?

 On top of providing the Warehouse crowd with a singalong-worthy, 80-minute set of material from both The Man Who and 1997's Good Feeling, with a couple of newer songs thrown in, Healy and company once again demonstrated their passion as performers, even overcoming the venue's less than hospitable acoustics.

 That energy earlier registered when Travis opened for Oasis at Maple Leaf Gardens in April. At the time I wrote that Travis could teach the Gallagher brothers a thing or two about entertaining the audience. (Please, Oasis fans everywhere, don't e-mail me again. We agree to disagree.)

 Interestingly, the compact, intense and animated Healy often adopted the "eating the microphone" stance made famous by Liam Gallagher, particularly when he was belting out a sustained note during such strong new songs as Writing To Reach You, As You Are and Driftwood, which were played in glorious succession on Tuesday night.

 It's Healy's gift of the gab, though, and genuine desire to connect with his audience that separates him from so many of the ultra-cool U.K. imports.

 For example, he shared a little tidbit about Travis filming the video for their next single, Turn, earlier in the week at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton.

 "Apparently the first one was too abstract for MTV," he explained. "Keep your eyes on that video we shot in Canada!"

 Travis, currently the biggest band going in Britain, possess other endearing qualities: For instance, their choice of covers, which on Tuesday night included The Weight by beloved Canadian group The Band.

 And the encore was hardly weak, as Travis trotted out Slide Show, yet another thrilling tune from The Man Who, plus the album's hidden rock track, Blue Flashing Light.

JAM! Rating: 4 out of 5