Avril danced around the stage like a self-conscious teen watching MTV, her over-bleached hair contrasted against tight black jeans and T-shirt.

She leaned back, her tummy stuck out like she was slouching on the counter at McDonalds.

Her smiles were brief and strained, her utterances to the audience only the blandest of insights. I'm With You was, "one of my favourites"; Don't Tell Me was, "a song about being strong and standing up for yourself".

If Avril was cheesed off, her band looked like they were practising in their Nan's front room. Avril has said she's tired of singing her old hits, and tonight felt like a contractual obligation.

Even Green Day's American Idiot halfway through the set was stripped of its vitriol, the lyrics "mindf**k America" and "paranoia and tension" dribbled rather than spat.

It was only when a piano was wheeled on for Together, or when she sang accompanied by acoustic guitar towards the end of the set, that the ennui melted away and the 21-year-old Canadian finally looked happy. Live, her voice was less punk-pop, closer in style to Alanis Morrisette and Tori Amos' tortured lilt.

She finished with Sk8r Boi, a cover of Blur's Song 2 and a lacklustre Complicated, but it's clear that Avril was dropping heavy hints about her future direction.