Mr. Edward Hyde

[Josh]

Hence it came about that I concealed my pleasures; and that when I reached years of reflection, and began to look round me, and take stock of my progress and position in the world, I stood already committed to a profound duplicity of life.

A discreet men’s cologne of juniper, cumin, verbena, bergamot, mint, and basil splattered with dregs from apothecary bottles.

That selfsame gentlemen’s cologne corrupted by base, dissolute musk, bitter tobacco, sour bourbon, sweat, and a splatter of blood.

I tried this one on earlier but it was so strange to me I couldn't come up with any kind of coherent review so I'm testing this one again tonight, maybe my brain and nose will have a better time making sense of it.

From the bottle, my initial impression was of something like Kabuki meets Count Dracula, which makes no sense given the notes of those two and this. I wish I had a bottle of Jeckyll here so I could see what the "stripped down" version of this is like, but alas I don't have that luxury.

On my wrist it smells like... sparkling, sour clay.. traces of mint and basil top notes that disappear within the first few minutes clearing the way for the tobacco and musk here, I'm guessing the 'sparkle/clay' type scent at first was a mixture of the musk and blood, and I swear I'm getting the faintest hint ever of cassia and something definitely sour. The lab note lists it as sour bourbon. To me it's sour clay (Which can smell like dirty skin, not B.O. -- there is a difference.)

This is really bizarre and complex. Whereas the other oil I received today (Erik) is a simple, well mixed and comforting skin scent, Mr. Hyde is a spiky juggernaut of grey/red/brown tinted notes jumping out from every which way, definitely fitting for the namesake.

The weird thing is the first time I wore this earlier today it seemed to last forever, but after showering and putting it back on (in the same place no less) the scent seems to fade from my skin very quickly so I'm not sure what's going on here.

While Hyde is no Erik (nor does it try to be), it's a very unique scent in its own right and proof the lab's scents keep getting better and more original with each new release/set/series.

Sparkling/cassia-ish clay/skin and sour musk. This one requires an adventurous personality for sure.

[twilighteyes]

In the bottle: Can make out the cumin but otherwise I would have to say it just smells like cologne.

 

On my skin: I can tell it has the same origins as Dr. Henry Jekyll but this is a lot darker and muskier. The blood note is a little sweet, or maybe that is the bourbon? That note reminds me a bit of John Barleycorn. I'm not getting any of the tobacco.

 

I think I like this one better than the Doc!!

 

Uh oh. As it dries it does get a little bit sour, perhaps the sweat note peaking out. But that interlude seemed brief and it went back to it's musky, cumin, sweet blood & barley scent.

 

edit: after a while this is starting to smell like leather! A beautiful dark suede leather jacket smell. *peers at notes, looking for leather and not finding any.* Leather and cumin.

 

It's FANTASTIC.

Edited February 12, 2009 by TwilightEyes

[Blood onmy hands]

I much prefer Mr. Edward Hyde over Dr. Henry Jekyll. They share a certain base smell at first, but the musk and darker notes save this one for me.

 

I was afraid that this would be too dark and bitter for me, because I don't tend to like musk, tobacco, or blood notes (or sweat :/). This isn't so bad on me, though.

 

I get a dark, spicy musk that reminds me of Old Spice at first. The tobacco adds a smoky haze and a wooden sweetness. This has the same feel that a lot of the Dogs Playing Poker scents had for me, especially in the drydown where the musk is softer and the tobacco is sweeter & more mellow.

 

Mr. Edward Hyde is pretty much all musk and tobacco on me, but in a a soft, sweet way that is actually rather nice. This one might be a bit too masculine for me, though, so I'll set it aside and see if my boy likes it.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Darkish golden-chartreuse colour. Sharp, sweet, herbal - and a little acidic. The herbal cologne, sourness, tobacco and 'sweaty man' smell come through.

 

Wet: An almost metallic tang - the blood? - and a whole ton of herbal-sweet cologne. Really lovely, rich, manly tobacco and some sexy musk, too. Reminds me a bit of Galvanic Goggles.

 

Dry: Still quite sharp and tangy, but also oddly spicy (carnation?). There's a strong cologne vibe, but the herbalness of Jekyll is faint. A slightly plastic note...

 

Summary: Sharp, sour, and bit of animalic as Jekyll's musky cumin note and the sweat emerge - maybe civet here, too? Dark and masculine, with loads of tobacco and musk. Good throw & longevity.

 

I can see the resemblance to John Barleycorn, too. Like others, I do prefer this to Dr. Henry Jekyll.

[rayvn1]

Eek! I am always nervous about trying cologne-based blends because my skin turns them sickly smelling and rank. This went even more horribly wrong than Toad. The blood and bourbon didn't help in the sickly-sweet area. I was really hoping to buck the odds with this one. Off to a new home!

[zankoku_zen]

Gah, leather and salty blood and whiskey gone sour.

 

It smells like a gentleman sociopath.

 

*runs away*

[Dark Alice]

Used leather and sour sweat with a smattering and tang of blood. Only Beth can put Edward Hyde in a bottle. And this is the perfume of a sociopath....it if you added a cold halloween night in the bottle this would be perfect for Michael Myers.

[Lethran]

In bottle: Oddly sweet, mostly blood, tobacco, musk, and bergamot. More androgynous than masculine. The medicinal edge, is interesting without being overwhelming. Wet: There’s the juniper. The medicinal/hrerbal elements strengthen. The musk is strong, but given my musk amping tendencies, not too strong so it will likely be light on most people. It all butches up on my skin, rather. It does smell faintly of sweat, but not in a bad way. It also smells faintly industrial. The mint is not strong enough to cause a skin reaction and is only noticeable as a sense of coolness to it, rather than as an independent note. This is all very well blended. Dry: Settles into a solid men’s cologne with a sharp edge to it. This and Jekyll are the only juniper scents, I’ve really taken to, so this could be considered a juniper for non-juniper lovers as well as a mint for non-mint lovers. It really is faintly wicked and faintly herbal all at once while maintaining a Victorian gentleman profile.

[Lamia]

Fresh, minty. Huh? Yep, minty and cologne.

 

Dries down fast and turns to leather, mint disappears. mmm I like leather. Wait, starting to turn to body. Back to damp leather, back to sour body. Wait, there is some fruit thrown in there.

 

Turns dusty and sharper, the sweat and skin smells are now gone. Tobacco and cumin underneath.

 

Quite a ride, fascinating.

[HatterRenoAxel]

In the bottle:Cologne, a something else a little musky with a hint of leather (assuming this is a mix of the tobacco and musk)

 

Wet: same but on my skin there's a metallic tinge with a hint of the bourbon in an alcohol type smell. its almost sweet

 

Dry: Doesn't morph much from the wet form, if anything it gets sweeter and less bitter then some people describe, more of the tobacco but my skin cancels out the musk almost completely

 

Summary: Unlike the character's personality, the smell is sweet but dark, and cool more like the beast hidden within the kind doctor. Last a long time as well even with sweating at work.

[heathercaley]

I received this as a frimp in a recent swap.

 

I'm really confused with this one. I don't know if I love it, or if it's too sour for me

 

I think that I don't like it. At first, when I sniffed it, I said "ohhh this is good!! Dark and scary. Kinda manly, sourly sweet, and smokey... but overall it's scary!" and then I kept sniffing it and I said "maybe it's a bit too scary..." So now I get it. It's totally Mr. Edward Hyde.

 

I can't pick the notes out, but it's a complex and smokey mans blend. I like it, and I hate it at the same time.

Edited September 13, 2009 by Purrsnikety

[sirensea]

This is one of the strongest blends I've ever smelled. To me, it's ridiculously potent musk and a man's cologne. For some reason, it also reminds me of the smell of the antique furniture in my grandparents' house... a mixture of tobacco, dust and flowers. Interesting!

[filigree_shadow]

I have no idea what the most prominent note in this is. Must be a combination of things because it doesn't smell like one thing in particular. A bit of tobacco and musk, but it's slightly sour. Not in a bad way, to be honest. It just smells a little off.

 

I don't dislike it, but there are other masculine scents I like better. Generally perfume oils smell different on my husband than they do on me, so I'll hand this one over to him and see whether he likes it.

[voorishsign]

A bottle I bought blindly just because all the notes sounded really interesting

 

In the bottle: musk, bourbon and salt.

 

On wet: very well blended, hard to pick out singular notes. Herbal and musky, very deep and slightly bitter, but not as sour as I was worried it would be after reading the other reviews.

 

Dry: an elegantly simple, herbal musk with the sweetness of the tobacco and the depth of the bourbon. A slightly dark but ever elegant English gentleman.

 

Good god, I love this blend. It's instantly become one of my favourites. I can't begin to say how much I adore it. Backup bottle, here I come!

[edenssixthday]

Mr. Edward Hyde - I hate it. I had to wash it off immediately. It opened up with the scent of tobacco and musk and a really strong smell of sweat and blood. At first, I thought it might work out nicely, but then it just became gamey and gross and began to smell like an unkempt dog kennel, kibble and all. On me, it just doesn't work at all. Blech.

[Voleuse]

I am testing this separately from its counterpart, and I don't know how I feel about it. While there's definitely a nice, gentlemanly cologne beneath this (juniper and mint, yum), it's overlaid with a sour note, as well as that hint of blood. Over time, the tobacco lends a smokiness that makes this all blend together, and the musk is nice, as well, but that sourness is...discomforting. Not overwhelming, but always there.

[forspecial_plate]

Smells like Mr. Hyde drooled on my arm while he was furtively trying to dry-hump me in a crowded subway. Not a keeper for me.

[theredkilt]

smells like spilled cologne over a biker's jacket reeking of tobacco smoke and booze

Edited April 20, 2014 by theredkilt

[Roogna]

in the imp- cologne. and immediate on my skin.

 

then...Sweet? Herbal? hard to place on top of the cologne

 

and then it turns to soapy musk which is a little sickly