What Maketh A Great Barber?

In less enlightened times, there used to be an outworn paradigm where male grooming was perceived to be effeminate, bougie or high maintenance and barbershops were associated with being located in backstreets with the clientele being mainly middle-aged men.

Thankfully this has fundamentally changed over the last decade, as the last ten years have seen an emergence and reinvigoration of quality male grooming options rich in both variety, quality and affordability. The fact that the updated generation of barbershops are not merely offering services but proffer veritable comprehensive experiences, including inclusive gender neutral services to cater to a diverse clientele, does not hurt either. This does not mean that one necessarily has to venture into full-blown dapper dandy territory but has more to do with the fact that good grooming is essentially about showing respect not just to others but mainly to oneself.

While I have acquaintances that claim that what one gets at a barbershop can also be obtained at a regular hair salon, I do not agree that this is strictly true as I have yet to find a hairdresser that offers exquisite experiences like a beard and moustache trims, scalp massages, line-up, and a traditional hot lather shave with a straight razor. While skin fades are traditional male styles within the confines of barbershops, newer incarnations have gotten more experimental with styles of all lengths.

Apart from more recently established barbershops, which seem to mushroom in city centres,  there are ones like Truefitt and Hill, which is not only certified to be the oldest barbershop in the world but widely known because of its iconic shaving line, which is being endorsed by the royal family of England. Needless to say, there is quite a bit of gravitas there and based on it, each constituent of the operation takes their craft very serious.

In a bid to experience if there was a tangible difference in Truefitt & Hills’ offerings, I ventured out to experience it for myself as what is fit for the Royal Family, cannot be bad for me and boy, what an experience it was.

Apart from the stylishly themed outfit of the barbershop, which was neat and clean to a fault despite being quite busy, and complementary beverages on offer (Glenfiddich seems to have cornered the market in the whisky department), what became instantaneously obvious was how inobtrusive the male and female barbers were along with refreshing lack of a need to show off. 

After indicating that I’d rely on my barber’s expertise as to nature of the cut and shave, it was obvious that he was not only familiar with a range of techniques but his approach was also informed by a keen attention to detail, displaying an enormous amount of effortless confidence in communicating feedback on how his suggestions work with the canvas he has been presented with, asking patiently the right questions without sacrificing adaptability or making assumptions.

What I value in such situations are people skills, which is not nearly as often found as I would hope for along with the right level of engagement to make quick yet not overreaching connections and a barber’s sensitivity to acknowledge that while you are happy to chat, you are also perfectly fine just keeping your trap shut to enjoy the experience. 

Essentially, it felt like my barber had my best interest in mind and it certainly is an accomplished skill if being portrayed within mere minutes of meeting without being superficial.

Once the cut commenced, it felt like the barber turned into a surgeon with his tools and every piece of equipment being meticulously organised and every expert move having become second nature.

After the cut, I treated myself to what I was informed is Truefitt and Hill’s  signature offering, i.e. Royal Shave, which is quite an extravagant treatment yet totally worth it as it literally transported me into another dimension. Apart from the hot and cold towel treatments, it was specifically the Truefitt & Hill range of moisturizing and shaving potions and lotions that not only made it a sensual but also olfactorily experience, with T &H’ No.10 skin care range being a particular pleasant component. Having something work on your face for a prolonged time is a pretty intimate experience and given the fact that I not only felt exposed for a single second was due to the masterful technique applied, which has been clearly honed over years of practice.

The Formative Years - Atari Teenage Riot 

I have always loved my first Atari ST computer, so even if Atari Teenage Riot had not fused anarchist and radically socialist views with screamed vocals and gabba techno to create their idiosyncratic melange of what became known as digital hardcore, I would have probably purchased their debut 1995.

Having recorded their album 1995 with fairly simple simplistic tools, sonically it was a wonderfully assault on all senses ranging from drawing on looped metal guitar riffs, all out noise, skits based on excerpts from cartoons and a focus firmly centered around unambiguous sloganeering to unapologetically get their political points across.

While one could argue that beneath all the hullaballoo and rage there was not necessarily a clearly defined concept, the nihilism, desperation, aggression and conviction it was delivered with, left an indelible impact, was fun and after tours with a range of big alternative acts saw their debut album eventually being released in the US by Grand Royal Records under the title “Delete Yourself”.

Apart from their musical output, Atari Teenage Riot managed to exert their version of the Rock’n Roll Swindle by setting up their own label by channelling a handsome advance they had secured from a major label without delivering something commercially viable in return.

Atari Teenage Riot’s live performances were never not a memorable event, with a performance at a protest march in Berlin being a particular standout as it resulted in them igniting and providing the soundtrack to a full blown riot.

Following a reunion, Atari Teenage Riot refined its approach and was able to excite huge festival crowds, especially in Japan which cemented their status as a powerful, volatile futuristic outfit which continued to proudly wave the flag of their punk rock roots and DIY ethics.

The Umbilical Brothers

Opera House

Sydney, Australia

February 18, 2022 

The entity known as The Umbilical Brothers have become an internationally acclaimed tour de force, having performed in close to fifty countries with their idiosyncratic brand of humours that is based in equal parts on physical feats, clever use of props, technology, lightning and silliness.

Having honed their craft since they started channelling their alchemy in 1988, The Umbilical Brothers’ delivery is meticulously timed and the chemistry between the pair is flawless, allowing for their seemingly effortless show to be enhanced and accentuated via the use of green screen backdrops and cameras. The fact that not a single aspect of their performance feels contrived or gimmicky speaks volumes about their abilities in a genre that largely dabbles in territory wedged between reliance on facial expressions, special effects, childish curiosity, improvised parts, puppetry and audience interaction.

With their current show they accomplish what seems like an oxymoron, i.e. the feat to entertain both on screen and stage independently yet simultaneously.

In essence, experiencing The Umbilical Brothers’ cleverly executed comedy show in the third dimension means entering a theatrical microcosm, which is a light-hearted, fun experience that has its focus firmly set on evoking carefree laughter with their sketches, digital ventriloquism and physical humour. 

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image courtesy of Sydney Opera House

The Formative Years – Queen

There are few bands that had a tangible impact on me to the extent that Queen did with their dramatic and anthemic songs, before I fell prey to the allure of punk rock, which is many ways is no less dramatic and decidingly less anthemic.

The way Queen as a musical outfit seamlessly and confidently transitioned between a myriad of different styles based on a line-up of four accomplished musicians, each of which contributed an idiosyncratic facet in their own realm, created a creative total the legacy of which remains timeless and constitutes much more than the mere sum of the individual components would suggest. 

As a prepubescent I loved the fact that no matter who I met in even far flung places and started to engage with in terms of musical preferences, Queen was almost always the common denominator as they were one of the most recognisable and accessible acts on this earthround.

It was fantastic to witness how Queen’s music evolved over time, constantly reinventing itself with a perpetual forward move towards innovations while still retaining their DNA. The fact that they were fronted by lightning in a bottle as far as the showmanship and exuberance of their exceptional frontman was concerned, only added to the appeal.

Queen changed the face of rock and roll with not only their talent but imagination and boundary pushing songwriting, resulting in songs that are immensely rich, intricate and multi-layered to ensure that the attentive listener was rewarded with something new to discover even after numerous listens without ever feeling forced.

Lyrically, Queen’s themes had a universal quality and I loved the fuck-you attitude that was the inspiration for some of the more sarcastic elaborations, the delivery of which was accentuated by Freddie’s particularly colourful vocal abilities, adding another layer of authenticity to the frontman paradigm that effortlessly shifted sensibilities from sentimental to raw assault mode.

An inimitable band that upped the ante of what was thought possible to be achieved through pop music.

Thus Let Us Drink Beer

Stomping Ground and Heaps Normal

Traditionally, the Collingwood region in Victoria has always been a hotbed for craft breweries, a fact that had a tangible impact on the nomenclature of Stomping Ground Brewery, which not only gave the region an innovative boundary pushing new brewery but also paid homage to its heritage by adding a new chapter in the realm of brewing to it.

Classifying Stomping Ground’s portfolio of brews as “comprehensive” would be an understatement par excellence as the array of their creations encompasses dozens of beer styles, ranging from easy-to-drink via intermediate to challenging styles like their take on the Teutonic Rauchbier, all of which are imbued with their dedication to nailing the quintessence of the respective style while staying faithful to their DNA.

My first exposure to Stomping Ground’s emissions was via their Hop Stomper IPA, which is located at the lean and subtle end of the sweet and grapefruity spectrum, counterpointed by a prominent bitterness.

Clocking in at 6.2% ABV, the Hop Stomper constitutes a beautifully sessionable IPA and ideal gateway to Stomping Ground’s more challenging creations, parts of which are released as their own barrel-aged Into the Wood series: Based on partnerships with an eclectic range of reputable Victorian distillers like one of my favourite whiskey distillers on terra australis, which we have covered quite a few times as part of our Water of Life series, i.e. Bakery Hill, barrel exchanges result in the creation of unique flavour experiences.

The result of Stamping Ground’s collaboration with Bakery Hill is a veritable flavour bomb: Amber in appearance and fuelled by an alcoholic punch of 10% ABV, it is nice to experience subtle nuances in this barley wine in the way piney highlights cast their resinous shadow against a backdrop of fruity molasses and heavier port wine notes. Needless to say, it goes beautifully with a dram of my favourite Bakery Hill expression, i.e. Sovereign Smoke.

On the lighter end of the Stomping Ground spectrum of diversity, the Raspberry Smash convinced me. As both the name and the pink hue suggests, fruity notes take centre stage and while this could have ended up with an overly sweet novelty beer with lesser breweries, Stomping Ground pulls it off and creates a crisp, berry-centric brew that only offers hints of sour notes, thereby making an instant favourite for any beer fiend with a sweet tooth.

Given that I have yet to taste a Stomping Ground release that does not tick all the boxes for the respective style, I cannot wait to taste the brewery’s other current and future releases and can only hope that they will be looking into releasing double and triple IPAs.

Heaps Normal

Arguably, I like beer and the warmth and other contributions that can be attributed to alcohol certainly plays a role in the equation. However, with the deluge of non-alcoholic beers having entered the scene over the last few years, I endeavoured to find out what the craze was all about and more importantly, if they delivered on the flavour front.

While the bigger players have entered the non-alcoholic beer market early on with questionable and non-enjoyable attempts, it was interesting to see craft brewers enter the game of creating brews with less than 0.5% ABV with innovate new ways to extract alcohol out of the brews. A feat that is usually achieved by brewing in higher temperatures in a bid to literally make the alcohol evaporate based on the fact that alcohol has a much lower boiling point than water. An approach does more often than not come at the cost of flavour.

Enter Heaps Normal based out of Canberra, which has made quite a significant splash on the scene with its well defined marketing campaigns and classic yet iconographic branding, with their credo of being “too good to be wasted” capturing the essence of what they set out to achieve. 

Based on a well calibrated melange of Kohatu, Simcoe and Cascade hops, Heaps Normal’s flagship expression, i.e. the New World hop based Quiet XPA is an accomplished example for a flavourful ale on the citrus and tropical side of things, elegantly counterpointed by biscuity and bitter nuances, which are pierced by a delicate sweetness. 

A wonderfully flavourful little number that is the result of the expertise and technical prowess of Heaps Normal’s head brewer, who has honed his craft through stints at 4 Pines and Grifter and a veritable alternative for real beer aficionados who are dedicated to mindful drinking and looking to cut back on their alcohol intake without feeling like making sacrifices at the flavour front.

With the unique recipe and brewing method that Heaps Normal has refined, I hope that they will endeavour to create a non-alcoholic hopped out IPA. 

The fact that Heaps Normal has finetuned its brand personality with the subtle yet impactful deliberate merchandise they design with meticulous attention to detail and quality without becoming too salesy and drab for recipients to actually want to use, only adds further to the appeal of their offerings.

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images form company websites