Sam Roberts didn't think the audience at his band's first big New York concert was energetic enough. So the Montreal-born singer gave them some Big Apple attitude.

"Put your f---in' hands in the air!" Roberts roared at the mellow Webster Hall crowd, which exchanged confused glances before abandoning their apathy and, well, rocking out.

Successfully commanding a New York crowd to get excited about a show by any band, let alone one they don't know, is no small feat. But having spent the last few years building an impressive following in Canada, the singer knows what he's doing.

Roberts won three 2004 Juno Awards (Canada's equivalent of a Grammy), including Artist of the Year and Album of the Year, and swept the 2004 MuchMusic Awards, taking home seven trophies. His hipster style, sweetly unkempt mane and steely gaze have graced the covers of many Canadian music magazines, and earned him the dubious distinction of being "Most Desirable Male" and "Best Dressed Montrealer" in the Montreal Mirror.

South of the border, however, it's a different story. On his first major U.S. tour, opening for Canadian rock icons the Tragically Hip, Roberts is going through the introduction process again, this time with the considerably more jaded American audience.

"You take a crowd who, at the beginning, has this sort of look on their face where they have no idea why they're listening to you," Roberts said, "and by the end, hopefully, you see this dawning of some sort of recognition that they're into what you have to say."

As Roberts surged through his set at Webster Hall, he worked hard to spark that reaction: Drenched in sweat, he leaped onto the monitors, ran and danced, keeping nonstop eye contact with the crowd. Finally, they seemed to absorb his energy and pressed towards the stage.

Roberts' major-label debut, We Were Born in a Flame (released in Canada last year and stateside in August), is a straight-up rock record loaded with pop hooks that are conspicuous without being saccharine. Intricate, often melancholy lyrics are propped up by upbeat bass lines, which suggests a conscious move on Roberts' part to make his introspection palatable to a mainstream audience.

To see them for the first time, you'd expect Roberts and his band (guitarists Eric Fares and Dave Nugent, bassist James Hall and drummer Corey Zadorozny) to be just another shaggy-haired, irreverent indie-rock band. But having emerged from a music community that has a tendency to pull bands into a cycle of playing the same venues for years without getting much of anywhere, Roberts has worked too hard to play the role of disenchanted indie-rocker.

"We play as hard as we can for whoever shows up for the gig," Roberts said, "and it seems to be working, because every time we come back there are more people in the crowd.

"When you're down here [in the U.S.], there's no choice," he continued. "You have to be up for it every night."

Sam Roberts/Tragically Hip tour dates, according to Roberts' publicist:

  • 10/1 - Dallas, TX @ Gypsy Ballroom
  • 10/2 - Austin, TX @ La Zona Rosa
  • 10/4 - Tempe, AZ @ Marquee
  • 10/5 - San Diego, CA @ 4th & B
  • 10/6 - Los Angeles, CA @ Avalon
  • 10/7 - San Francisco, CA @ Fillmore
  • 10/9 - Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theatre
  • 10/10 - Seattle, WA @ Showbox
  • 10/11 - Spokane, WA @ Big Easy
  • 10/13 - Denver, CO @ Gothic
  • 10/15 - Minneapolis, MN @ Quest
  • 10/16 - Chicago, IL @ Riviera
  • 10/19 - Rochester, NY @ Auditorium Theatre
  • 10/20 - Burlington, VT @ Memorial Auditorium
  • 10/21 - Clifton Park, NY @ Northern Lights
  • 10/25 - Baltimore, MD @ Recher Theatre
  • 10/26 - N. Myrtle Beach, SC @ House of Blues
  • 10/27 - Asherville, KS @ The Orange Peel
  • 10/29 - Toledo, OH @ Stranahan Theatre
  • 10/30 - Grand Rapids, MI @ Orbit Room