The Rat Speakers

[angelicruin]

THE RAT SPEAKERS
For a moment, Richard was blinded by the sudden light. He was standing in a huge, vaulted room, and underground hall, filled with firelight and smoke. Small fires burned around the room. Shadowy people stood by the flames, roasting small animals on spits. People scurried from fire to fire. It reminded him of hell---or rather, the way that he had thought of Hell as a schoolboy. The smoke irritated his lungs, and he coughed. A hundred eyes turned, then, and stared at him; a hundred eyes, unblinking and unfriendly.

A snuffling, brown scent: earthy patchouli, sage, russet sandalwood, grimy leather, fig leaf, and lemongrass.

I wrote down "ugh" on my review. This smelled horrible on me. It was gritty dirt and patchouli on my skin. Definitely had to pass on this one.

[PersephonesChild]

Very evocative, rough patchouli smell. Yes, it definitely did remind me a rats. A little bit herbal on top of that, and incensy? Or am I just throwing shots in the dark here? I think it's the lemongrass combining with the leather that's making it smell so... sweaty.

It's definitely not for everyone, but I would guess there are some bpal-lovers out there who will dig this scent.

Edited April 21, 2010 by PersephonesChild

[ami226]

 

On the skin: Patchouli. Hmmmm, not sure if I can smell anything else. Maybe a bit of leather. Not bad. I don't normally like such earthy scents, but this one is already kind of growing on me. Might be a keeper.... Will definitely have to try again.

[voorishsign]

This one really surprised me straight from the get-go, in the imp, this is deep and dark, where I expected a lighter scent, along the lines of Brown Jenkins, but no - this is really dark and gritty, like something that crawled out of the walls . . .

 

On wet, just as dark. definite sage, sandalwood, leather, fig leaf.

 

Lightens on drydown, lemongrass cuts through the darkness and the fig and leather make this pleasant.

[edenssixthday]

The Rat Speakers - Gah! Oh me, this is pretty bad. It's incredibly earthy, and it seems the fig leaf, sandalwood, and sage are the strongest notes, but those are generally notes I would expect to enjoy, but in this blend, I really don't. It smells exactly the way my hands smell after I've been touching my mom's horses. I don't like it at all, and I'm glad I decided to try it right before hopping into the tub.

[GeorgeJr]

This just came in the mail today , so this will be a rare ( for me ) review as soon as I got it kind of thing . My initial impression is that it smells much darker in the bottle then on skin . The lemongrass & sandalwood lighten the scent up nicely upon application .

Dryer - Lemongrass has settled down & this is very much a " brown " kind of scent . But man , does it smell good . Just a fantastic mix of sage , sandalwood with a touch of patchouli hanging in the background . Patchouli may be listed first , but if it's the main note it's pretty subdued . I get the wood more then anything here . Maybe the fig & sage are keeping the patch under wraps ? Either way I really enjoy this .

[Lethran]

In bottle: Sharp, sharp as rat teeth. The patchouli and fig leaf do interesting things together. The sage gives it a wild edge that I didn’t expect. Leather is understated. It really does fit the brown fur concept it’s aiming for. Wt: Sandalwood and leather are much stronger on the skin. It’s complex and intriguingly strange. I’m not sure I like this patchouli. The sage and lemongrass mate and make a light outdoors sort of effect. Dry: The leather, sandalwood, and patchouli are strongest. I’m not sure this is a good thing. It retains a fig leaf sharpness. It’s still complex, but it may simply be too heavy for my skin chemistry. I’ll need to play with it some more, I think.

[sqwook]

In the bottle: Sage-patchouli-leather, kind of masculine. (Not the sweet-orangy-patchouli, the rich-spicy kind. Or maybe it's even the sandalwood & not the patchouli I'm smelling.)

 

On: Leather-sage-sandalwood. Yes, sage & leather, and a bit of spice from the patchouli and sandalwood. I think "earthy" is just an adjective here, because I don't get any earth/soil scent at all. And for once, I can't even detect the lemongrass - that's definitely a first! I don't know if I myself can pull this off (maybe too masculine or forceful? or just too not-me for a perfume oil to wear?) but it's not bad at all, and reminding me of something I think, if only I could hinge on what. Because I'm kind of drawn to it.

 

Smells like hard honest work. Like a brawny guy splitting pine logs in a hot dry forest. (Not that there's pine in this.)

 

You know, it's kind of foresty actually.

 

With all the less-than-positive reviews above mine, I hesitate to admit that I think this one really warrants a full test on me to see if this foresty-ness bears out. I think it reminds me of walking through the evergreen forests in Flagstaff.

[Venneh]

In the bottle, I'm getting patchouli, sage, and fig leaf, very dirty and brown. Probably not gonna work well. On my skin, it's that earthy dirty patchouli and the sage. Urgh. Not for me.

Edited May 19, 2010 by Venneh

[Dharklady]

In bottle: Green lemon and sage.

Wet: As this warms up, the patchouli blossoms.

Dry: Good throw and lasting power. The patchouli and sage take center with the fig and lemongrass adding a hint of bite.

Notes: All in all it definitely feels like a brown snuffling sort of scent. A very good match to the descriptor.

 

[saralaughs]

Holy dirt cakes.

 

This is really earthy/dirty. The patch is wildly strong upon application. The sandalwood springs out, making this a dry scent. The sage is there, giving this yet another edge that invokes the sort of dirty/gritty/wildness you may think of when the rat speakers come to mind. The leather is there, unclean and supporting the rest of the notes.

 

Glad I got to try it, not wearing it again...

 

[rayvn1]

Wonderful! Lovely lovely lovely Warm and earthy patchouli, warm leather and a gorgeous touch of fig. A favorite! I've reached for this one most this week even over my beloved Marquis.

[Dark Alice]

Earthy Patchouli and dirt. I imagine little brown rats burrowing in fresh dirt. The dirt fades and this becomes single note patchouli on my skin. no leather no nothin....just patchouli.

[EdenIris]

In vial/wet: Sweet and fresh, almost like pear; this must be the fig leaf. Not at all what I was expecting.

 

Drying: Something sharper, almost burnt like vetiver, and something plasticky. I always wondered what people meant when they said an oil smelled like bandaids, and now I know! (Don't give up now, it gets better.) Ten minutes in, there's the grimy leather, but it fades.

 

After about 15-20 minutes, the patchouli comes sauntering in, but the top is still quite fresh and sweet. I don't know if it's the fig alone or if the lemongrass is helping out. Maybe the drop on my ankle is finally wafting up, but I do get the odd sense of something ratty, but definitely not stinky -- sleek, brown creatures on the floor with shiny eyes and very sharp teeth.

 

Verdict: Since Neverwhere is part of the permanent collection (it is, right?), I'm going to set the decant aside for a few months to see how it ages. As of now, it's a pleasant enough, fresh patchouli blend, but it has the potential to become something really amazing.

 

Patchouli connoisseurs, you should check this one out.

[Blood onmy hands]

This scared me in the bottle, and I normally love most of the listed notes. It smells like damp, moldy earth and the sickly sweetness of rotting garbage. I smell it and feel sick to my stomach and kinda nervous. But I moved forward and put this on my skin, and it's actually not so bad once it's on, if you like dirt scents (which I actually do).

 

Once on, this scent is subtle and barely there on my skin. I get a cool, creamy sandalwood and what I'm guessing is the "earthy patchouli," but what really smells like dry, brown dirt on me. It has a slight sweetness to it and also smells cold (not minty or menthol or anything like that, but like cold, dry dirt)

 

I think that if you like Death Cap (or blends like Death Cap), you might really enjoy this as well. It also reminds me of Badger. I probably won't keep this one, because I have other earthy/dirt scents that I find more wearable, and I honestly can't get over how creepy and odd this smells in the bottle. This scent unsettles me :/

[Iceblink]

They're not kidding about the "earthy" in this...it smells absolutely grimy! There's something sharp floating on top that had me thinking ozone at first, but looking at the notes I'm seeing it must be a very sharp lemongrass. I'm not picking up any fig here to soften this dirty patchouli up at all.

This is very brown and ratty-feeling...if you like that patchouli note, you'll love it, but it's much too much for me.

[Xanon]

I love green earthy blends... but this is not my thing. I am totally sad because all I am getting from this is furry carmax lip balm. Sad Pandas.

[AnnieB]

With all the negative reviews I opened my decant with trepidation. I was pleasantly surprised to sniff a pure patchouli/sandalwood pas de deux. There's a tiny bit of soapy citrus which smells exactly like lemon balm (the herb) to me but by far it's just patchouli/sandalwood (mostly patchouli).

 

On my skin I suddenly get a leather smell coming along with the patchouli. Maybe I LOVE this scent (and love is the right word) because it smells -exactly- to me of warm comfortable broken in tack. There's a little bit of that neat's foot oil smell... such an earthy and wholesome scent of warm leather, well conditioned and used, healthy skin wearing patchouli with an underlying rounded fig and sandalwood.

 

It was funny because when the Husbandguy walked in today he immediately said 'Oh, you've been riding, how was it?'

 

This is earthy and pure and really wholesome and a little bit 'hippie' smelling. I -adore- it and in fact, have rushed off to buy a bottle. Definite LOVE.

 

If you love patchouli/earthy/wood/leather scents you must not miss this one. It's expertly blended top to bottom. If you've ever leaned your head against a horse and just *sniiiiiiiiffed* this is for you. If you're someone who can wear and likes earthy scents, this is definitely for you. I am going to test this on the Husbandguy tonight and plan to pour the wine light the candles and Stay Inside All Night Long. I will absolutely use it with carrier oils as a massage/bath oil scent also.

 

Pure pure pure unadulterated love. My favourite BPAL by far.

 

PS Forgot to add.. the throw is great, the lasting power is by far the best of any oils I've worn. I didn't slather last night, tested sparingly, and yet this morning I could still smell a lovely ghostly whiff of it.

 

PPS It might not be an extreme-summer scent for those of you in very hot climates. This is definitely a cooler weather scent. Beautiful, just beautiful.

Edited June 18, 2010 by AnnieB

[milo]

This is a very earthy, fuzzy, furry blend. Not really in the sense of dirt, but kind of dark and comforting. This kind of smells like it could be someone's natural skin scent, especially a guys. I really like this, but it's not really 'me', and probably not enough for a bottle. I'd love to smell this on a guy whoes chemistry works well with this blend.

[bluerose]

In the bottle: Earthy patchouli and lemongrass. It makes me think of dirt, grass, and stones by the woods.

 

On the skin: A tame earthy blend that's very comforting. I can't pinpoint individual notes any more.

[hereunto]

Imp: Earthy patchouli and only earthy patchouli. I wasn't sure I wanted to test this one but it had to be done.

 

Skin: I don't get any leather at all, just faint lemongrass, tang of sage, and LOTS of patchouli. It is very earthy and dirty, like a rat running through weed-infested gardens. I'm betting if there had been vanilla in this, it would have been right on par with Banshee Beat or pretty dang close. The scent quiets quickly and winds up sweetening a lot. It actually isn't as earthy as before at all. Well I'll be. I'm really loving this after all. Who would have thunk it?

[jencallisto]

In the decant: Dark, earthy, a bit bitter and icky.

Fresh on the skin: Earthy and bitter and rotten. Hideous.

5 minutes in: Still rather bitter and very herbal, but softer and warmer. I smell... mahogany.

15 minutes in: Sweetening up, but I still hate this. It's just... icky.

25 minutes in: It's gaining a bit of freshness to it, but the ick is still there.

40 minutes in: Spicy-sweet powdery woods. Longish throw, unfortunately. Still has that underlying ick.

1 hour in: Much the same. Green and brown.

11 hours in: Very faded, just the tiniest bit of green-brown sweetness.

 

Verdict: No.

 

One word: Brown.

 

[zankoku_zen]

I definitely get a bit hit of lemongrass on wet, and then it dries to this dusty, dirty patchouli and fig thing. Kinda furry actually. I'm sure part of that 'dirt' is coming from the sage, which isn't a note I tend to get along with. Very apropos, since well, it smells of a dark, furry, dirty little creature.

 

Ah well.

[whisperstilled]

Oh my, that is unappealing. I won't be skin testing this one. Filthy patchouli, pretty damn gross. This smells like a rotting thing. 0/5

[bloody sore]

Apparently brown scents are what I love.

I was a little afraid of how this would smell. I had a 'picture' of what I thought it would smell like in my brain, and thankfully I was quite wrong!

The leather stays down, the patchouli stays soft, and the verbena isn't obnoxious. It adds just enough green to the background to pick it up and keep it interesting. This is a scent that will be happy in the summer and winter and in between, as it is both snuggly and bright.

LOVE!