Thee Oh Sees @ Leeds University Stylus, 3 Sep

It’s no surprise that Thee Oh Sees’ show at the 1000-capacity Leeds Uni Stylus is a sell-out tonight. Of course, with persistence comes success, and they're highly prolific, but their reputation for playing incredible live shows might have something to do with it.

Despite a few technical difficulties at the start, the band are on admirable form, playing songs spanning their extensive back catalogue. They launch into a wonderfully disorientating version of The Dream, complete with John Dwyer’s faint, echoing yelps (a quality that’s become a trademark). The bulk of the set is culled from their most recent LP A Weird Exits, but while their newer material triumphs even more in a live setting than on record, nothing quite matches the dizzying heights of all-round favourite Toe Cutter Thumb Buster.

Thee Oh Sees' hybrid of frenzied punk and woozy psychedelia is a winning concoction, though their aptitude for melody is often amiss tonight, replaced with prolonged acid jams, which – while sonically astounding – run the risk of wandering into stereotypical wig-out territory. Still, their live shows are always a captivatingly special experience – the sight of numerous flailing crowd-surfers is testament to that – reiterating that Thee Oh Sees are one of the best bands around.