There are two ways to view the One Direction phenomenon.

For a large chunk of the global population they are merely the latest in a long line of inexplicably successful boy bands.

However, if you’re a tween or teenage girl (or perhaps their mom), there’s a fair chance that you view the Anglo-Irish quintet as, at the risk of hyperbole, the best thing ever.

IN PICTURES: One Direction elicits tears, screams at Vancouver show

Last night the One Direction Take Me Home Tour arrived at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena, where the copious weeping at the box office was merely the first indication that this wasn’t going to be a run of the mill concert.

And so it proved, as the lights dimmed, the screaming volume rocketed, and a video introduced the lads (for those of you unfamiliar with the biggest boy band on the planet, that’s Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson) scattered around a wild but essentially well-behaved house party somewhere in English suburbia.

The screaming took another step towards deafening when they emerged in the flesh and launched into “Up All Night,” an arrival greeted by an eruption of dancing that stretched to the very back row and the stands (no exaggeration) shaking under all the excitement.

One Direction is a distinctly modern boy band. They don’t do dance routines, preferring to fill their songs by running around the stage and chirpily interacting with each other. It’s a relaxed form of performance that succeeds in making the group appear approachable with their normality.

“Good evening, we are One Direction,” smiled Harry Styles, five songs into the set. “Nice to meet you.”

It was the band’s first direct address to the crowd and its delayed arrival produced probably the biggest screams of the entire night. Although Zayn and Louis were able to generate squeals of excitement just by putting their mics to their lips, it’s Harry who’s the natural star. The group’s best vocalist, blessed with an effortless charisma, performed with the swagger of a young man who knows he has a Justin Timberlake-like career doing whatever he likes ahead of him.

Syrupy ballad “Change My Mind” saw Harry and his cohorts stand on a platform and float over the crowd, touching down on a second stage to deliver enthusiastic but toothless versions of Blondie’s “One Way Or Another” and The Undertones’ “Teenage Kicks”.

Interrupting the music with a Twitter-based Q&A session let the boys’ ad lib with mixed results. A demand to hear their Canadian accents produced nothing funnier than “Michael Bublé, eh!” although a request to see their best Baywatch runs gave the four musicians back on the main stage a chance to shine, improvising the show’s theme as the boys sprinted in mock slow motion.

While the majority of the on-stage dialogue was generic gibberish (repeated inquiries into whether the crowd and each other were having a good time), and many of their songs have little chance of standing the test of time, One Direction still demonstrated an ability to connect with their audience that any band would envy.

The entire crowd echoed the harmonious “Summer Love,” while the request for cell phone light to accompany “Little Things” easily illuminated the arena. The fact that they’re inviting grumpy old music writers to their concerts (unlike Canada’s Justin Bieber, who declined media review requests when he visited Vancouver last year) suggests that they’re confident in what they’re putting on the stage.

And why wouldn’t they be? Even One Direction’s harshest critics would have to concede that they do not dial in their performances. Every song was delivered with unwavering commitment, whether it demanded exuberance or sensitivity, and every opportunity was taken to thank the fans for making the five young men’s remarkable lives possible. It’s easy to be cynical about the One Direction business machine, but in the flesh there’s nothing disingenuous about the show they put on.

The big finish arrived with a deluge of hits, “Kiss You” leading into an encore of “Live While We’re Young” and “What Makes You Beautiful,” sending the young fans back to their waiting parents outside Rogers Arena, convinced that One Direction’s appearance in Vancouver was worth the wait.

The best thing ever? Not quite. But there are 18,000 kids (and some of their moms) in the Lower Mainland today who probably say differently.