Canadians have been in love with Sarah McLachlan for years - ever since her lush, soaring, heart-wrenching pop was picked up by seemingly 95% of radio stations as a way of fulfilling the national government's rigorous Canadian-content quotas in the early 1990s. Now, in the wake of Dido's rocket trajectory, the Vancouver singer-songwriter may well seduce the rest of the world.
In the UK for a rare visit, McLachlan kicks off a generous set with Fallen, from her new album, Afterglow. Given the ease and grace with which she and her band deliver the song, they could have had it on the playlist for all of the 16 years they've been touring together. McLachlan launches into her trademark half-dance, flexing her arms but never quite letting herself go. The pent-up energy all goes into her singing, which, as ever, is extraordinary: effortless and pure, with its characteristic flip between her lower and upper registers. She has perfected the art of writing for herself to such a point that you never once notice her pausing to take a breath.
Aged 36, and with a new baby in tow, McLachlan seems a less tormented soul than the writer of, say, 1993's Possession. She introduces Push, "my first really happy love song", as an ode to her husband - "my rock". And of her earlier hits, which she doesn't stint on tonight, very few get the full, tragic treatment, despite their rather overwrought lyrics. Fumbling Towards Ecstasy starts out low-key and sad, with McLachlan accompanying herself solo on piano, but before long she tosses the instrument aside (figuratively speaking) and starts rocking out, even grabbing an electric guitar at one point. Silence, the 1997 dance track she did with labelmates Delirium, sits oddly among the torch songs, but McLachlan carries it all the same through sheer vocal skill.
As she winds up with two extended encores, what comes across most strongly is her joy in being here, doing what she most loves: "What an incredible place. You guys are amazing. Wow." And, with truly Canadian manners - having apologised several times for mentioning her bleeding nipples, post-baby - she thanks the audience over and over again.
· At the Corn Exchange, Cambridge, tonight. Box office: 01223 357851. Then touring.
