Rmf1112

I am not usually one for uninspiring aquatics- I don't care for Aqua de Gio much, but heavy watery frags like the original Bvlgari Aqva are enjoyable to me. I like the deep sea feel and dark aquatic notes that make it stand out.

This Aqva Amara is not at all like the original Aqva, however. This is almost the opposite of that heavy blue aquatic- this feels light, but the resins and maybe the intense orange actually give it some weight and substance. Even still, it dances around gracefully, leaving beatutiful wafts of aquatic orange with a slight resin to it, and occasionally the mineral note that is recognizable from the original. Perhaps perfectly planned, but these mineral notes only are apparent when the temperature really heats up, and helps keep it feeling light and airy. The aquatic mineral note lasts forever on clothes, and the performance is about whats expected for a fragrance in this category.

This is ideal for those looking for an aquatic thats different from the usual and a real delight to wear. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I don't know how anyone could think this smells bad. It is just such a pleasant orange aquatic that is different enough to be noticed and appreciated.

I love it. I have a decent, but not huge collection, but I've been thinking/reaching for this one the most since I got it. I will be buying a bigger bottle, and maybe a backup as well.

I also look forward to wearing this in the cooler months, I think the scent is versatile enough for it.
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Lalique Encre Noire a l'Extreme

This is obviously a more powerful version of the original Encre Noire, and is also EdP strength. It does have a similar scent, yet it is different. Where the original was all about the vetiver, with the almost menthol-esque cypress propping it up, this version is the opposite. I think this is all about the cypress the whole way, with the vetiver providing fullness in the background.

To be honest, i don't get too much outside the cypress, vetiver, and a little frankincense. The cypress is very assertive and to me, covers up most of the other notes. As such, this is very linear on me, cypress and vetiver all day, and that's about it. I do very much enjoy it, but wish it was a little more balanced, and overall I'd say I prefer the original EN.

Performance wise, I get about 6 hours of projection where i can smell it in wafts without trying. After that, it's slightly beyond a skin scent. I'm a one spray on each arm and one under the shirt type, so your milage may vary. I feel more than a few sprays will isolate you from humanity, however, because this juice is very strong for the first hour or so.

Scent- 7
Sillage- 8
Longevity- 7

Fan di Fendi pour homme Assoluto

This is a very surprising frag for me, as it wasn't what I anticipated, but blew me away with the quality and lovely scent. The initial spray is very spicy with sharp pink pepper a la the start of Gucci Pour Homme I, with cardamom instead of cedar. However, this opening as a whole is very reminiscent of Opium pour homme, very spicy and warm. While Opium has galangal-pepper, this has cardamom-pepper, but they are definitely spicy-oriental cousins.

The mid notes become apparent slowly, with the vetiver and oud taking center stage. Neither note is overpowering, and in fact perfectly intertwines with the base of opoponax and the cardamom top to make a rich and beautiful, but not overly heavy, scent. The addition of citrus (orange?) and tonka absolute helps to brighten and smooth the final product, imo. This phase lasts for a while, and is a definite wrist-sniffer when nobody's looking.

So, I got a sample of M7 Oud Absolu recently, and found it to be too stuffy, kind of old perfume powdery type. Now, i do not like powdery frags, so maybe thats whats not doing it for me. I'm sure some will have different opinions, as rabid as the M7 fans are, but I feel FdFA is similar in the drydown but far more wearable than M7OA. There are similar notes in both (Oud, Citrus, patchouli), but M7OA is seemingly linear, while FdFA develops into a non powdery version of the former- after a spicy introduction- which I believe works perfectly.

I thought this would be very heavy, but I feel its light for the notes it carries, enough to be worn year round. I must say, however, that I consider myself a light sprayer, rarely if ever going over 3 sprays, and 1-2 for reapply 6+ hours later.

I love it and bought a large bottle after sampling. It's definitely in my top 10, take that for what its worth.

Scent- 9/10
Longevity- 7/10
Sillage- 7/10

I recently purchased Marc Jacobs Bang at a nearby discount store for a good price. That place is great for cheap frag finds. So, I see this gets good and bad reviews, but I always try to see why a frag is liked/not liked to see if it lines up with my tastes personally, even if there aren't many favorable reviews. Such was the case with this one- what turns some off in this fragrance seems to be much of the same things that are favorable to others. The huge pepper note in the beginning is certainly one of the major discernible elements here. So it stands to reason, If you don't like pepper, you won't like this either. Myself, on the other hand, am a very big fan of pepper- I've gone so far as to acquire Demeter Black Pepper fragrance and wear it by itself or layer it with others to add some peppery notes into the mix. I am more of a fan of black and white pepper than of pink, however, I find it to be a bit more sharp and astringent perhaps than warming, spicy and full like its monochrome cousins- although pink peppercorn isn't the same family as black, white or even green which are just various preparations of the same fruit.

So, with the background in place as myself being a fan of pepper and spice, etc., I was ready to accept this with open arms into my fragrance life. After removing the paper sleeve, the box is matte black with chrome panels, the front appearing to be dented in with the impact of the word "BANG" itself centralized in capitol lettering. Retrieving the bottle from inside I was amused with the bottle, originally appearing to be a thin smoked black bottle with chrome front and back before "BANG" came by and again makes an impact, contorting the shape of the bottle this time- clever. As far as art goes, this flacon is definitely modern compared to some of the other classic bottle stylings offered by others such as John Varvatos or Tom Ford. It is also worth mentioning, however, that although some don't care for the style, it was awarded "Best Packaging Of The Year - Men's Luxe" for 2011, by The Fragrance Foundation.

Going past the imaginative bottle however, there was some disappointment when the time came to test the scent itself. I suppose I should have been clued in by the chrome front, but this is initially a very fresh fragrance, not so much the dark, warming black pepper I referenced earlier. Smelling it from the bottle, it initially reminds me of Oxygen by Lanvin, how the juniper berries played a prominent role in that offering, so too are the pink peppercorns here a major element. It is a punch to the face of mostly pink and white peppercorn, with a touch of fresh cracked black pepper hiding in the background, mingling with the other, more subtle woodsy notes- and the even less prominent but still somehow there vetyver and patchouli. I have tried this a couple times as a couple sprays to the chest, and haven't
been impressed, but I tried a nice spray on the arm and it smells very different and more full. I can also detect resin-y notes (benzoin and elemi perhaps?) that are fairly pleasant and smooth, like a yin and yang with the contradiction to the sharp pepper. These two combine nicely and form a very analogous relationship with the wood notes, which in turn, give way very nicely and subtly to the resins and patchouli/vetyver combination at the end. This
is very interesting to the nose- it seems to start of fresh and spicy, but changes to a nice resin-y incense like quality that doesn't smell like traditional incense, but more to church or religious type- sublime, really.

While the end is very nice, and it for the most part seems to be well constructed, transitioning smoothly from one phase to the next, the top is rough and doesn't seem to have much longevity or sillage after the initial peppery blast. However the perceived flaws, I think this may still be a bit
under appreciated- maybe its just my tastes or the way it combines with my skin, but this, especially the middle and bottom notes, is very pleasing to the nose and is a sexy skin scent, if only it would stay. If the pink pepper was replaced with the black, instead of merely playing a spicy support role, I feel this would have been very well balanced, warm and much more approachable- but maybe that's the point. Perhaps much like the bottle itself, it is not to be appreciated by all, but is in your face whether you like it or not- brash, loud and a bit hot-headed. Indeed, much like modern art, it is controversial and against conformity for some and for others is the very reason they embrace it.

Scent-
Top gets low rating, but I really dig the rest
4/5

Sillage-
nonexistent under clothes, maybe 12 inches on arm but I can see aspects of this traveling further.
2.5/5

Longevity-
Less than an hour under clothes, maybe twice that outside
2.5/5

Bottle- Very clever and original, not a classic but nice
4/5

Overall- Great idea, decent construction, falls short a bit for me however
3.5/5

If you like spicy, woody fragrances -and this is spicy- with a quick drydown, leading to a subtle skin scent, try it out.

It seems to be a majority opinion that love it or hate it, its a unique fragrance- so I have to try this! I found a great price online, and it arrived today, much to my delight.

On initial inspection, the package is very subtle, a matte black box with just the copper colored bottle shape and L'Anarchist in gloss black-
very sleek. The packaging inside is quite nice, with all black inside embellished with gloss black words (dictionary definitions of 'anarchist' in French), but still classy and not overdone. Venture further inside, and you are greeted with a note declaring how the bottle itself will develop a pitina in the copper (as others have mentioned), making each a unique work of art. The bottle itself I feel is perfect for everything this fragrance aims
to be- charming, very unique and a bit rough around
the edges. Everything about the packaging is very asethically pleasing, especially for my tastes and style. (Let it also be known that I'm a sucker for nice/interesting packaging). If I were to stop here, I would already consider this a worthy purchase.



However, this review is for the scent itself, not just the packaging. Ahh the scent, how very sharp and assertive it is while also warming and a bit smooth. I've been looking for a unique fragrance to be my signature scent, as I find most offerings too sweet, powdery, fruity or worst of all- forgettable. I have to admit, I'm not sure if this qualifies- although I had high hopes.

Let's start from the top- An inital smell from the bottle seemed very complex, many notes vying for your attention, yet none seem to speak out much except some mintish-musk. I feel the opinions of smelling 'blood', 'metal' etc, are from smelling from the bottle, as it can be difficult not to notice the prominent copper scent from the bottle itself. Even this first smell, not yet joined forces with heat or my body chemistry, was very heady while still being a bit dark, dirty perhaps. I try one spray on my chest, and throw a shirt on so
I can see how it translates into real wear. The first notes are definitely a minty-ness with dry orange, a bit toothpastey to reference some others- but its not off putting to me. Here is one of the interesting things to me- if i smell the skin (in my shirt)in this inital phase its very assertive in its toothpastey-ness, but to smell outside the shirt is where it really shines. It has a different feel to it through clothes, a definite smoothness with the
vetiver-sandlewood worked in. Its almost difficult to do at this point, but it smells better and more developed from a distance than up close. Very nice.

On to the middle notes, after maybe 40 min or so, the mintyness settles down slightly to reveal the other aspects of this scent- the sultry vetiver and sandlewood, tempered by the cedar and the almost floral notes of guaiac wood. I feel this is fairly well rounded, though the mint can still be a bit too persistent at times.

At the final phase, L'Anarchiste sheds its minty front, leaving dry orange (peel perhaps) with the vetyver and musk. These combine nicely and have an almost mulled orange smell (fall spices and such).

This phase is the best part for me. Its masculine, woodsy and a bit sharp- not for the timid, that's for sure. Imagine a man who is strong, confident and charming, but is a bit grizzly and can be scathing at times. This is that man.


So, this IS quite a unique scent, definitely not for everyone. I do wish it was a bit less minty and more musky/animalistic, then it would be perfect for me.

Sillage- 3/5 Seems to stay fairly close

Longevity- 4/5 has decent staying power, like it or not

Scent- 4.25/5 Feels fairly well constructed, but it can be a bit sharp. However it's probably smoother from a distance

Bottle- 4.5/5 I feel this bottle is everything the scent wants to be, but pulls it off a little better

Overall- 4/5 It's nice, but I was expecting a more bohemian type of fragrance, more patchouli or incense for example.

(Note, I almost submitted this before the final phase and would have been rather dissapointed. However, with a bit of patience, it develops magically into a very warming scent that I love more each time I smell it)