forspecial_plate

It actually took a few months for the patchouli to settle down enough....for a long time, I didn't think I'd be liking this scent. The patchouli was just a little too sour and woody, and combined with the rose, kind of turned me off. But I tried Frederic today and found it to be a very pleasant ambery/woody/musky scent. It was the promise of amber musk that drew me to this scent in the first place, and I think it's a blend that overall is going to age well. My only complaint is that I have several other "masculine" (if you call this masculine, which I do) blends that stand out more, and have more originality. But this is nice enough to keep around, even if I end up decanting some out to swap.

I got to try this recently, and I think it's a real winner. Very golden, musky, amber....spicy. I get a big hit of pine, and not much cedar at all when I wore it. It's pretty strong, and lasted for hours on my skin, which eventually made me a little weary of it. I think applied more lightly it would be a perfect scent, and I wouldn't really need a big bottle. An imp would be just right.

Bolded the ones available as imps, straight from the lab: Bow And Crown Of Conquest Snake Oil (depending on who you ask) Pickled Imp (currently limited edition, in the Carnaval Diabolique section) Golden Priapus (doesn't get much more macho than that, at least as far as concept) Blood Kiss (dries down to a satisfying dude-fume) Voodoo (see Blood Kiss) Death Adder (also LE from the Carnaval) Mme. Moriarty, Misfortune Teller (not exactly macho, but not sweet by any means) Wulric The Wolfman (also from the Carnaval, looks like you might want to search for some decants) Snake Charmer (good luck) Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener (if you like root beer!) Crowley (not available as an imp, but an excellent masculine/not sweet scent....I forgot it had vanilla until I did a search) Hellhound On My Trail (again, good luck....but this is a good one) Quincey Morris (mostly leather, glorious, soft, not exactly sweet, and also good luck finding this one) Tombstone (haven't actually tried this myself, but it's legendary among the bpal dude-fumes) I mostly mentioned the ones I like, and I didn't even put tonka into the search, which is a vanilla-like note that would bring up more results. Anyway you might also check out Theodosius from the Carnaval, although I find this to be on the sweeter side. I'm sure others will have even more suggestions!

I only have the green Oblivion. However....I thought I was the only one that got sweetness out of it! After it has been on my skin for a while, this marshmallow-like note comes out, which I thought very odd. Not really fruity, but who knows.....

From the description and other reviews (especially tartchef's, since I sometimes feel that she's a scent twin!), I thought for sure I would like this, but not so. Hastur really, really didn't work for me at all. I found it very dark, oppressive and cloying, not in a sweet way but in a chemical way. It reminds me of some kind of harsh chemical cleaner......or something familiar, that I just couldn't pinpoint....but not good, either way. Usually I do like dark scents, but not in this case. I left it on for a long time, too, thinking it couldn't stay that horrible for the whole time, but it really didn't change at all. Just not a scent for me, I guess! Maybe I'll have better luck with Ligur.

I'm glad I got this, although it's a little hard to describe, and it changes as I wear it. It seems brighter and more tart than the older Blood Moon, with some sweetness, but also dry, if that makes sense at all. There is something floral deep in the mix that turns slightly soapy, but not so much that it ruins the scent. I also smell something that's in Sagittarius from last year, maybe they share an herbal note? But mostly it's musk, lunar oils, and I guess incense, but this doesn't strike me as an incense-focused blend. It's a bright red night-time scent, tinged with blood. It does fade kind of fast on my skin but overall, I like it! Oh and I agree that somehow it's similar to last year's Hunter Moon, but more red, and more of a night scent. I would call it neutral, not really masc. or feminine.

I had the exact opposite experience, with Samhain being very sweet, but Fearful Pleasure being balanced just right with the oakmoss and smokey notes! Really, Fearful Pleasure smells just like simmering spicy apple cider (which is one of my favorite smells in the world), and now that it's been on my skin for a while, I can pick out the oakmoss and woods just a little bit. A truly amazing scent, and I will need some of this! And thanks, moonarcana, for letting me try yours!

So now I'm kicking myself, because I just tried Brom Bones, and holy-mother-of-pearl......this is beyond sexy. I'm definitely going to need a whole bottle of this, rather than a puny decant. I already loved Quincey Morris, and this is close but even better. Just incredible. This should have been my bottle choice, rather than Chant D'Autumne (which I like, but nothing like B. Bones......).

This is just wonderful. Just the right balance between the different notes. Not too metallic, but it's there. I love vetiver, and it's there too. I smell the moss, too, but not so much the sandalwood. I was slightly worried that the white sandalwood would be papery, but it's not at all. I love this scent!!

The Shattered Pumpkin is another one of those uniquely odd scents. I've never smelled anything like it in a perfume! (unfortunately, this wasn't in a good way at all for me, but I can imagine others liking it a lot)

At first, I could smell the nice leather that reminded me of Quincey Morris. Then.....I don't know why, but it kept reminding me of Gunpowder.....carrots and breakfast cereal, kind of nutty.....I blame the pumpkin. Oh, no! This was one of the rare instances where I had to wash off bpal. The rotting dirt note was too much and the whole thing just rubbed me the wrong way, and made me a little sickly. Also I kept picturing the oozing shattered pumpkin on the label. I must say, this is a unique scent, and very much captures the concept, but I just don't think this one is for me!

Thanks, Deyja! Do you have a pic of the Goblin Rider? No, I don't...I just saw it in the East Cost Will Call photos.

The King reminded me of Havana and Intrigue, but I have a weird nose. Sorry this reply is so late, but Tiki King smells a lot like the Salon scent Satan and Death with Sin Intervening. They have the same lemony-resiny feel, but Tiki King has more coconut. I haven't tried Havana but I can see the Intrigue comparison, too. How funny....I just came here to post about Tiki King, and right at the top of the page I see someone asking about it! Anyway, I put on Incantation today, and realized it reminds me a lot of Tiki King, minus the coconut (and probably heavier on the lemon). When I tried Hellhound I immediately thought of the bay rum in Baron Samedi (without the almond in BS), plus the ginger and vanilla of Pickled Imp. The galangal in Hellhound tickles my nose like ginger, a sneezing smiley would be appropriate! [edit: I see now that Pickled Imp doesn't have ginger listed.....Shub-Niggurath might be a better ginger comparison, but Hellhound still reminds me of Pickled Imp too.....complicated enough??] And although I disagree with some of the comparisons, ivyandpeony's list is indeed impressive! (it really doesn't matter if I agree w/others' impressions, if it works for some people, it works!) To simplify: Tiki King: Incantation Hellhound On My Trail: Baron Samedi, Pickled Imp, Shub-Niggurath

I'd love to see the art for Hessian Of The Hollow, if anyone has a chance to share a pic! I absolutely love the Goblin Rider bottle.

biz4brent, how does it smell? Do you have any that's more recent, that you can compare it to? (not urgent, I'm just curious...)

This is light, sweet, and slightly powdery. I think the musk is what I smell, mostly. It's slightly green and pleasant, nothing offensive at all, but just not exciting to me. I am in the process of paring down my collection, and this doesn't compete with other scents that I love. It kind of reminds me of Buck Moon.

I have to say from a perfume standpoint, this is one of the strangest things I've smelled yet! It's light and sweet, with a bit of fruit. The apple stands out at the beginning, but backs off and then the carrot comes out. Later as it dries, it definitely smells like sweet carroty oats. Very, very unusual! If I wore this and a stranger stood next to me, I simply can't imagine what they would make of it. I agree that it's like a sweet, whole grain breakfast scent. For anyone who has wanted a carrot cake scent, this might be a close match, although it's not cakey or spicy. But I can't remember another perfume with this much carrot, ever.

As a habitual over-analyzer, I think that's what we're doing here. I understand why some people would really want to know the answers to these questions. Personally, I just trust the lab. When I think about my favorite bpal perfumes, I can honestly say I've never smelled or encountered any other perfume oil blends that evoke the feelings that they do. If someone handed me an unlabeled bottle of Djinn (before I tried it), and didn't give me any idea of what it was, the memory of that scent would still haunt me as it does, and I would go to great lengths to obtain it. Add the descriptions and inspirations for the scents, and how well they are conveyed through scent, and I'm sold. If I learned that Pumpkin Cheesecake was made up of some stock fragrance blends called pumpkin, cheesecake, spice, and graham cracker.....I would still love it. Beth is an artist. I don't question her media, I just indulge myself and find wonder and beauty in her creations. As for other perfume companies that I love (CBIHP is one of them), they are also wonderful, yet truly different in character from Black Phoenix. I call bullshit on that. People have tried to emulate the lab's scents, yet the sheer size of this very forum speaks for the high quality of Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and its following. If it were that easy, well......we would see more of it, wouldn't we? Maybe that's false reasoning, and I can only speak for myself, but the lab has truly won my heart, and it's not an exaggeration to say they changed my life. I've smelled other perfumes that remind me of Black Phoenix, but that doesn't make me run to their web sites buying more. In fact, it's just the opposite. Find your own voice! I apologize if I sound like a crazed fan-boy, and I'm not trying to stomp on questioning opinions. I'm just feeling more vocal than usual right now.

I'm glad I waited to review this. At first it is very spicy and fiery, and I wasn't sure I'd want to wear it. But after a while I noticed the spices backed off, and then it was wonderful. It's very close to being too butch and nearly turned into a sort of 'after-shave' scent. But the red-ness and spicy-ness give it just enough kick to keep it interesting. It reminds me a bit of Wild Men of Jezirat Al Tennyn.....except I like this even more! I don't know that I will wear this regularly, but definitely enough to keep my bottle. Oh and this bottle is at least 2 years old (it's a 10ml), and still very, very potent.

Bat-Woman......just look at the painting, that's what it smells like! Actually.....there are a couple from the Salon that could apply here. Silence could work. I've only tried Fox Fires On New Year's Eve briefly, one time, but looking at the art, I would call it a night scent. And possibly Bat.

MLVIII......1058 First applying, I smell candy, slightly fruity cotton candy. This smells nothing like when I first tried it, earlier today. I thought it was a light green floral but now it seems to be all cotton candy with fruits, maybe very sweet orange. As it dries, something lightly cake-y starts to emerge. Now it's almost like an orange creme-sicle scent. Very pretty, almost powdery, so not me! Edit 4/2009......now that this has aged a few months, I'm getting a better idea of what it smells like. I still would describe it as candy-orange, sweet but there is also a spice or herbal note, something almost peppery. After it dries for a while, it turns more powdery, and reminds me a lot of neroli or orange blossom. It's a little cloying for my taste, and it really lasts and lasts on my skin, so I end up sick of it before it comes close to fading away. Final edit......OMG I am so glad I kept this.....simply a light orangey fluffy slightly floral cologne-like scent with the lightest hint of white pepper. Simple, beautiful. I will hoard what's left!

CXXVII.... This was a frottle in a swap, a while back.... Sage! It's mostly sage, strong enough to seem like eucalyptus if you sniff up close. The throw is great though. There is a sweetness here, beyond that I can't say what the notes are. Resins? Maybe one of the lighter, sweet ones like copal. I'm really not sure, but it doesn't smell like anything else I can think of. So, sage and resins. Nice! Edit: previously reviewed by PersephonesChild........you were right, this is definitely a sage scent.....I recognize it from Corazon among others.

Sweet and golden hay, yes, but a big part of this is conventional woman's perfume to me.....unmistakably feminine. If I concentrate and pick it apart I start to smell the individual notes, and I like most of them. Maybe it's the honey that's putting me off, not exactly turning on me like it usually does, but still sweet and almost like powder. This scent is better off with those who love it, and I'm glad I trusted my decision to not get a whole bottle.

Okay, time to review this one. LXVIII.....I think most of you would consider this dude-fume. I smell big, big resins, very emphatic, lots of throw. I would guess opoponax (sweet myrrh, with that hint of 'bubbly cola'), for sure, and maybe even another myrrh (or two?). I'm almost positive this has galbanum, I recognize it because I have some of the essential oil. It's a resin but it's very odd for a resin....earthy and green, kind of plant-like. I can smell it in this, almost like a faint dirt note that drifts in and out of the mix. And I think there is a slight floral element, as well. I just know there is more going on in this blend that I can't pinpoint. Just notes I haven't learned to recognize yet. Ambergris? Maybe. And that floral....I just don't know. It's maddeningly familiar but I can't name it. Overall this reminds me strongly of Minotaur and Hades, if they mated and had a baby that turned into a monster super-hero. It shares a golden-glittery quality that I find in both of those scents. Turned up to 11.

I second Sudha Segara, whole-heartedly. To me it even smells a little bubbly, but more like lemon and lime soda than ginger ale. I remember thinking it was way less milky than I was expecting, and much lighter. I don't think I would call it fizzy either.