Splitter

Totally excited about the idea, I was hyped on this scent. But it was nowhere to be found, except at the manufacturer. And the price wasn't really that convincing...
When I got a good offer, I simply made a blind purchase.
Then came the really good thing about Nvrmind: the outer packaging, the futuristic-looking plastic shell of the bottle, and the bottle itself with its magnetic lid.

From there on, it gets reluctant. So basically exactly what this scent wants to be.
And as with all the Aether scents I have tried so far, Nvrmind is a very cool representative. And as I have already pointed out in a statement, I had to give him more time. Because my impressions when I first wore it were... mixed. But I'll leave that out at this point and rather explain how it is a bit later.

First of all: If you smell like this every day, you definitely have courage. Because even though I think the silage is underground, festival feeling is probably a good way to describe this smell. And, my goodness, I have seriously six (!) spray blasts on my arm right now...


Nvrmind smells like grunge. After nasty 90's pubs, with dirty floors, even dirtier toilets, lots of body contact, metal tables, counters and bar stools and somewhere someone left his used condom. It's cold outside though. The breeze of the big city keeps blowing through the constantly opening door, which also keeps blowing in a gush of new, laughing people.
In the course of time, the pub becomes cleaner and cleaner and the wind blows more and more into the cold city. Beer turns into vodka and the neon lights become dimmer.
And as strange and perhaps also strange or disgusting as it may seem now - the second time I read it, I feel reminded of my first sniff - it is coherent.

Nvrmind is not a charmer. Nothing for every wearer. Has the potential to be someone's everyday go for as well as to evoke WTF moments.
Nvrmind needs just that. The wearer has to be able to identify with the adherent lifestyle and just shit on everything. Then you can enjoy this fragrance. Maybe it's not so wrong then that the silage underground will, with a bit of luck, yield 20cm.

But good. Yesterday was the day the bombs fell in the fallout universe, and postatomare wasteland smells very similar in my head. I'm going to take the controller in my hand.

It's late autumn 2019 and I'm standing in my regular perfumery and my gaze falls on the beautifully designed Allsaints bottles. Minimalist lines, a concrete-like lid and monochrome photographs of plants. I am thrilled and my interest is aroused.
The names of the compositions evoke associations and only arouse more curiosity. I just want these fragrances to please me. And so I try them out.
But Metal Wave disappointed me a lot at first. Nothing metal. Nothing Wave. And not a metallic wave either. Whatever. I want to at least give a late night riot a chance with a rehearsal. If and which scent I took with me that day, will remain forever hidden in oblivion.

It is autumn 2020 and the brand has made it back into my memory, the sample taken last year is still half-full and I find a good offer in the souk.
Yeah, okay, I want to give the badge another chance. And somehow Metal Wave sounds really great in theory.
All right. So he's the third of his guild to join my collection.
One thing in advance: They have now proved to me several times that Allsaint's extraordinary fragrances are possible.

So Metal Wave.
Let's say goodbye for a moment to the idea that something metallic or wet has gone into this fragrance. Because it hasn't. Instead, the fragrance is warm and dry, not cool and moist.
And compared to tart scents, this is a candy store. Fortunately my interest in scents is very broad.

And may I just say a quick thank you for the great flacon design before I go full blast? It's simply great to add the photograph on the back of the label, which is also on the packaging, so that the flacon becomes your own little work of art when placed "wrong"

Come on, now. It's Friday night in a big city on a balmy summer day. A light, very pleasant wind is blowing and the riot does not seem to have taken place yet. Whether the first three fragrances of the brand are somehow connected or even have a dramaturgical sequence is of course pure speculation, but it fits into the image that this fragrance projects into my head.
Thus, we are at a café or a pub in the pedestrian area and some people drink coffee, others already wine or beer, some people leaf through their newspaper or a book that is already slightly yellowed. And now a breath of wind in the form of a wave carries this melange through the metal facades of the big city into my nose. Tadah, there is the wave of metal. Only without any wave or metal.

Yes, it's a very nice scent. Without any surprises or twists, but with one or two twists at the beginning that you wouldn't have expected. It's just that the expectations should maybe be less influenced by the name.
It annoys me a little that I haven't tried it before. On the other hand...

I find both the brand and especially this fragrance a little too little noticed and yet I would like to digress a little further to make the very brilliant visions from the house of Aether visible for many people at all.

It was a pleasant December day when I spontaneously moved into the perfumery and wanted to be more or less surprised. I had never heard of Aether before and the concept made me curious. So here we have high-quality compositions on a purely synthetic basis. Many big brands often use synthetics to reduce costs. So I took Carboneum with me and the principle of packaging already has something to offer. It's a very minimalist bottle with a metal lid, packed in a black foam that opens like a book but allows a view of the bottle from the front and back. All wrapped in black cardboard.

Well, what is CARBONEUM.
In my opinion, the familiar terms are not sufficient for this fragrance. It is indeed somehow citric, somehow fresh, somehow woody and clearly synthetic. But it is above all the following:
Cold, clean, mineral, metallic.
It awakens images in the mind and yet is not to be understood. It makes the wearer (the wearer*) somehow mysterious but also very interesting.

But now I'll try to unravel what the fascinating thing about this Aether fragrance is for me, or rather how this fragrance is for me. And with the marketing text I do not want to go.
CARBONEUM is the futuristic city that Blade Runner brought to the screen in the early 80s. It's cold steel, dry asphalt, nocturnal freshness and clean, empty streets in a megacity that is busy during the day. It's the wreck on the beach, freshly washed up, raising more questions than answers, and it's the pleasant feeling of letting in the clean air on the top floor of a high-rise building after a storm.
He's a cyborg, jetpack, time machine. Somehow dystopian cyberpunk and yet thoroughly aesthetic in a positive sense
Carboneum is for me the most interesting and complex scent of ether in round bottles.
But he's not pushy either. The sillage is quite close, the intensity leaves a lot to be desired, but with 8-10 hours, the shelf life is quite clear.

But for what character is this fragrance in my opinion.
I don't think I'm leaning out of the window when I say that for the average Douglas customer, it's certainly not. It must also be clear that there is nothing warm in Carboneum, but the ubiquitous coolness is not perceived as mint, menthol or citrus.
Yes, you have to be willing to experiment to get at Aether and accept that the notes in them have little or nothing to do with naturally occurring fragrances. Corduroy trousers and a jacket are probably less suited to this. But if you dare and have the opportunity to do so, I think you definitely have to try Carboneum

A fragrance that falls into the house with the door and makes it cosy. On a slightly rainy autumn afternoon.

Just a moment ago we took a leisurely walk and watched the leaves fall. The ground was dry and the air filled with spices. Must have been a city park and somewhere on the corner someone was apparently selling waffles and spicy tea.
But slowly the sun went down and you went home again. Once there, the stove was loaded with wood and a warming fire was lit.
Outside it suddenly began to rain lightly, yet unpleasantly, and just as suddenly a storm rang at the front door. There he is. Sam. Agitatedly brings the dry, warm spice from outside and apologizes for his unannounced visit. But Sam seems to be a friend from the old days. But he is also a bit rushed, because cumin and pepper are stirring and add to the autumnal serenity. Under his coat he brings out warm waffles. They fill the room with a cinnamon-spicy sweetness and merge smoothly into the warming living room, where a wonderful fire radiates comfort.
One sits comfortably together and enjoys the tender waffles and the company on this slightly rainy evening.

Even though Sam is described in the history of portraiture as being quite indignant, he comes across as a sensitive gentleman. Of course, there's nothing to say about the gracefulness of the flacons.
Sex of the wearer? It doesn't matter.
Occasion? All the time, actually.
Haven't tried it yet? Then it's about time

After a long time as a silent observer, it is finally time for my first comment. I have saved this one especially for this exceptional fragrance
Rhinoceros was my first zoologist and a blind purchase based on description and grades alone. And he sparked my great interest in this brand. Sure, the individual animals and their habitats are sometimes difficult to define, even more difficult is to get concrete pictures into your head, which are equally realistic. But I don't want to go into that at all.

Let's get to the rhino.
I wear perfume on my arms and dare to apply two sprays of it without any problems. Then it trots up, the rolling creature. Powerfully recognizable, the almost pungent note of rum, paired with the citric note of bergamot and almost so intense that I lose my breath. But not in a touch of disgust or other negative feelings, but in awe and with expectation of what is coming.

Yeah, I know what I'm doing.
No sooner has the first breeze passed by than an olfactory symbiosis starts, which is inconspicuous and, as it were, impossible to overlook. The scent sits dry on me and in the room. Heavy and sedate it remains there. Like a grater, tobacco, oud and softwood floats through the air, as it were agile, and knows how to please. Every now and then a wind seems to blow in the theatricality of the rhino in the savannah, whirling up smoky dust. Not too strong to cover everything and yet strong enough to be clearly present. Even the leather note from the base is always present and resonates for hours.
This symbiosis lasts for 8-10 hours, during which time the scent slowly dries out until the rhino lies down to sleep and only the base remains. Dry, dusty sand, smoky breath, large pachyderm.

Yes, I can understand that not everyone likes this composition. But to ascribe it to the heaviness and complexity - not in the form of phases, but components - because of a rather older audience, I can't understand at the end of 20. Rhinoceros is a fragrance for courageous people who either rely on a brilliant appearance followed by a calm presence, or like to try out how old familiar components can be combined in new ways. It is for people who like to experiment and those who do not shy away from dusty dry scents. Because what Rhinoceros does, it does right. It is by no means soft, supple and round, but plays skilfully with its edges, which cannot be sanded down, but which also do not rub off everywhere. In short: I like this exceptional scent.

Maybe it is indeed a fragrance that you love or hate, that does not come across as indifferent.
But one thing Rhinoceros taught me is that sometimes blind buying is the best decision you can make