Seeing Thee Oh Sees did nothing to diminish their unique mystique. Yes, they are regular folks and not the underwater dwelling subhumans I may have made them out to be in my review for Help. Even so, the combination of John Dwyer’s spastic antics (think Crispin Glover having an epileptic seizure) and Brigid Dawson’s cool, ladylike demeanor creates its own, different strangeness than what you get from their records.

Their set at Schubas on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009, was short and sweet and, right from the start, full of an almost religious revival amount of energy. This energy was amazingly matched by the crowd’s which made even a modest fellow, like myself, get going.

The whole night Dwyer played his guitar as if it were shapeless, or had many shapes. At times, Dwyer aimed it like a rifle at drummer Mike Shoun while strumming it from many seemingly impossible angles, often resting it somewhere near his neck (I used to think George Harrison played his guitar comically high, but Dwyer takes it to a whole new level).

Dwyer also has an unfortunate habit of sticking the mic halfway down his throat, which made my own gag reflex kick in. Meanwhile, from across the stage, Dawson calmly sang along often with a smile on her face. She came across as the girl you’d love to take home to meet your parents, while Dwyer felt like a guy you’d be afraid to let into your apartment for fear of him breaking everything.

Their set was brief, but eclectic. But that should be no surprise considering Dwyer’s proficiency. The set sprinkled with new tunes which included a long, sprawling, surging, repetitive one that felt like it took up 15 minutes of the no more than 35 minute set. However, the unrelenting power of the show was probably better served in this small dose.

As much effort as Thee Oh Sees put into each and every song, and as much energy as the crowd gave back, anything more might have been detrimental to our health.