Audio = Ground Zero

A deep dive into JBL’s headphone range

When it comes to running or more vigorous types of exercise, there are few things that are more of a buzzkill than ill-fitting earbuds that will not stay out of your way or cause more distraction than sonic motivation. 

An ideal pair of workout earbuds fits firmly yet comfortably, is resistant to water and sweat, has easy to use controls and can also be used to take the occasional ill-timed call.

After quite a bit of trial of error, I found a pair that ticks quite a few of the aforementioned boxes, i.e. JBL’s Endurance Peak II, which not only comes with hooks to ensure a secure fit but has comprehensive touch controls. Despite being located in an affordable price bracket, they do not lack in the sound performance department either – au contraire, they add a welcome hint of bass without running danger of muddying the mid-range.

Sturdy in appearance and with a solidly compact and slightly oversized case, which is bisected with a seam, this set of IPX7 rated earphones comes equipped with JBL’s Power Hook technology, i.e. by separating the hook tails from the core unit, the buds are activated and triggered to pair with your device of choice. Once the connection has been established, going forward the same process will establish an immediate connection.

A definite plus of the JBL Endurance Peak 2 and one of the many reasons that make them a formidable workout buddy is the fact that they do not necessitate a whole lot of fiddling around to work the controls as well as their reliability when it comes to faithfully maintaining a connection via Bluetooth, supporting both AAC and SBC,  without getting confused by the plethora of other peripherals that are usually present in a gym context

As far as battery performance is concerned, the JBL Endurance Peak 2 lasted me over six hours per single charge and once the accompanying USB-C case is fully charged after two hours, provides an additional four charge cycles, making it a total of more than thirty hours of playtime without the need for an electric outlet.

With its oblong shaped ear tips, the JBL Endurance Peak 2 isolates nicely, effortlessly managing to keep undesired noises at bay and with its microphone system, calls can be taken in both mono and stereo modes. While I would not necessarily use them for business calls due to their average intelligibility, they do an okay job.

Summa summarum, the JBL Endurance Peak 2 is a smart, well performing and -  priced below $100 - a very affordable choice in the workout focussed earbuds range with all the features needed and most importantly the stability, water / sweat resistance, intuitive touch controls and secure fit I have been looking for the longest time.

Aight, let’s leave the confinements of workout earbuds and enter high fidelity territory, shall we?

If you are a dedicated music afficionado, your criteria pertaining to Bluetooth headphones will certainly be bit more sophisticated, which is where JBL’s new Tour One come into play. 

Having used my over-the-ear Bose headphones for international travel for the last decade accumulated a fair bit of wear and tear, it was high time for a replacement and upgrade in terms of functionality.

Housed in a hard-shell zipper case with utensils like an airplane adapter, a flat USB-C cable, and a 2.5mm to 3.5mm headphone cable, the feathery light and symmetrical shaped Tour Ones come with a subtle, slightly understated design.

Featuring volume, on/off, Bluetooth buttons, the audio input jack, and a tiny microphone grille on the right and customizable function buttons and the USB-C charging port correspondingly on the last side, things are arranged in an intuitive manner.

The headband, which is metal and sandwiched in a melange of faux leather and memory foam, can be fitted to both large and delicate gullivers, with the ability for the earcups to swivel inward if need be.

Now, how do the Tour Ones sound?

Stating that they sound “balanced” would be an understatement par excellence, as they do a fantastic job – both, wired and connected via Bluetooth – with exceptional clarity and sound layering / separation giving prominence to finer nuances with an emphasis on the mid-range with the option to customized EQ settings via the easy-to-navigate JBL Headphones app.

The fact that the earcups are slightly bigger than comparable models, makes the Tour Ones comfortable to wear from the get go and the ability to intuitively switch between multiple audio source devices by simply toggling the Bluetooth button downward is a welcome feature. 

As far as the touch sensitive controls are concerned, it could not be easier to summon voice assistance and again seamlessly move between truly adaptive noise cancellation, Ambient Aware and Talk Thru level modes.

What I love about the Tour Ones is the lightning fast charge time and the extended battery life: Charging for fifteen minutes gives you close to four hours of audio pleasure and if you go for the full round of two hours, it will result in keeping you immersed in sound for more than two days, given that True Adaptive Noise Cancelling is not activated as otherwise it is halved to a respectable twenty-five hours, with the automatic off function ensuring that they won’t be drained when not in use.

Essentially, the Tour Ones are more than a worthy investment if you are in the market for a comfortable, high performing, superior noise-cancelling model with enhanced audio fidelity that is easy on the eye with its classy vibe.

Yet another example of how JBL caters to the whole claviature of audio products.

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images from company website

Thus Let Us Drink Beer – Stoic Brewing

Per definitionem, being stoic means being in congruence with the truthfulness of one’s world view and accepting it as a guideline for arranging one’s life, irrespective of how it makes one feel.

Applying and transferring this ancient Greek philosophical approach to the brewing of craft beers, it’d mean that time and effort is invested into researching each stage of the process before creating envelope pushing new styles based on new as well as tested and tried quality ingredients in a bid to achieve perfection with each emission, while embracing each facet of the process.

Enter Stoic Brewing, an operation founded four years ago by a father and son duo in the idyllic little town of Gerringong, New South Wales. 

What started out with the vision to create a community space centered around the appreciation of locally brewed craft beers, has evolved to a veritable brewery with a team united by the vision to the creation of handcrafted, quality craft beer.

My first exposure to Stoic Brewing’s range was via their hazy Oat Cream IPA, which upon approach tickles the nostrils with ripe banana and vanilla aromas, followed by a tad bit of oats, however, well calibrated and not as oaty as I would have expected. 

On the top of the mouth, the cereal creaminess of this little number materializes via sugary sweetness, hints of caramel and a delicate bitterness, which makes it a sweet and creamy brew that proves easy to drink.

Taking things to the next level is Stoic Brewing’s big, citrussy IIPA. 

On the nose I got pine, resin and orange peel, with malt taking on a supporting role rather than centre stage.

The well harmonized flavour profile is led by fruity hop of citrus and comes with a nice layer of soft effervescence and mild to moderate carbonation. The feeling is crisp and well-rounded with a pleasantly dry, slightly bitter finish that makes it dangerously moreish with its ABV of 8%.

Things get interesting and a bit more exotic with Stoic’s Mexican Hot Chocolate Stout.

While I am usually not the biggest fan of stouts, there are few better scenarios than the current rainy winter season to treat oneself with a dram of Octomore 10.2 and a warming brew with a velvety mouthfeel, offering chocolate and vanilla bean aromas before subtle spices derived from from ancho and pasilla peppers aid in building up the flavour experience with each sip.

Welcome back to another playlist.

As usual when I'm the one behind this piece, this list contains 10 songs that have hit me in various ways, all connected to working at Scene Point Blank.

The majority were things I've reviewed, but some it's not just that. We're currently transcribing an interview with one of these bands. A couple others simply sent us their records but we never formally covered them because time is limited but we enjoyed what we heard.

So give a listen and maybe find something new to enjoy (or complain about).

Liam Gallagher
Aware Super Theatre
Sydney, Australia
23 July 2022

Other than the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, there are few British bands that have altered my perception of music and felt instinctively empowering like the Gallagher brothers’ approach to channelling their art. 

With their musical emissions, meaningful gibberish and overall outlook on the world they managed to instantaneously establish themselves as one of my favourite bands as a juvenile delinquent. 

The cultural significance and strength of what was created by them in the mid-1990s not only pervaded my world but hogging the airwaves with their tunes, also every facet of music and fashion agnostic of boundaries and classes, with the implications of their legacy still reverberating to this day.

Having recently pulled off a triumphant return to Knebworth by himself and with a new album under his belt, it was about time to witness parka clad Liam Gallagher again swaggering around on stage to deliver the goods. 

With a setlist dominated by timeless, generationally loved escapist Oasis classics, the tested and tried was complemented by an eclectic melange known from his solo work, including an unearthed Beady Eye song and tracks from his lyrically more positively centred, vulnerable and empathetic third album, i.e. C’mon You Know.

Framed and set in scene against a backdrop of bombastic visuals and backed by a duo of gospel singers along with a tight six piece band, LG sounded better than ever as he effortlessly and vocally in finest form meandered through a powerful and focussed set that apart from the usual abrasive, insouciant bravado and display of playful arrogance felt like a cathartic and life-affirming jubilation, rather than an exercise in nostalgia.
 
As Liam lingered on stage after the band had left as the anthemic “Give the people what they want” by The O’Jays came on, there could have not been a more fitting outro to bookend an evening that saw one of the more enduring figures in British music do exactly that with a flawless victory lap of classics that only deepened the pleasure that was had the first time around.

The Formative Years - Bolt Thrower

Claiming that Bolt Thrower is an influential death metal band would be an understatement par excellence as with their own brand of  their uncompromising, grim sound, there is a myriad of bands that have been influenced by them.

Bolt Thrower was one of the metal bands that instantaneously clicked with me due to them being as much inspired by early crust punk as by Bay Area thrash and Black Sabbath, thereby seamlessly bridging the divide between scenes with their hectic, refreshingly chaotic energy and confrontational onslaughts.

Their early emissions on Earache Records differed from the other cliché-ridden apolitical death metal acts on the label’s roster as Bolt Thrower lyrically focussed on politics and frustrations with the status quo, along with thinly hidden Warhammer fantasy worship, rather than gory and satanic themes that started to become en vogue.

Apart from their punk mentality and ethos, especially their early recordings from their Peel Sessions sound like they started off as band in the vein of Discharge, before they evolved with their classic and unique sounding album In Battle There Is No Law from 1988, which constituted a release that still honoured their punk roots but infused them with the frenzy and speed that should later on become the trademark of grind core without ever running danger of losing their groove.

Realm Of Chaos from 1989 is an album that saw Bolt Thrower getting darker, dirtier and tighter – in essence more deliberate and clearly defined – as they seem to have grown comfortable with their own style and pace and it is an album that will always stand the test of time.