Ever wonder about those bottles of Windex at the drugstore that don't clean glass? Nah, me neither. But over the holidays a co-worker gave me three of them, the small ones, presumably from a set. I'll review the other two later, but I want to bring Parfums de Coeur's BOD-man "Fresh Blue Musk" into the spotlight first, as it's my favorite. The only PdC fragrance I was aware of prior to the recent appearance of BOD scents was Skin Musk, a cult classic with some years on it. I doubt I've ever smelled Skin Musk on anyone, and haven't sampled it myself, but it's readily available online.
So is "Fresh Blue Musk." One can consider this wacky-looking thing a body-spray and not a proper fine fragrance, but with such unpretentious packaging and an unimaginative name, PdC isn't exactly reaching for the stars. I don't fully understand the strategy behind their image here, and can only figure they're targeting teenage boys and girls as their core purchasing demographic. I'll be honest, I was expecting utter dreck, and was a bit surprised by what I got instead. This isn't great, (it's just barely good), but it's certainly not downright awful. I'd rather reach for this than, say, Preferred Stock.
The fragrance opens with a huge hairspray accord of nothing but bitter alcohol with bitter chemicals. It's bad news for seven or eight seconds, but then there's a gentle lemon note, very delicate and fresh, followed by that mythical creature of soda syrups and rocket-pops, "blue raspberry." I don't quite know how the wonderful whitebark raspberry endured metamorphosis into this sticky-sweet caricature of fruit, and I don't care - it smells as good as it tastes. Must be my inner eight year-old having his say. Eventually, as in ten minutes, there's a dry white musk of the cheapest variety, mated to laundry detergent lavender, all of which is gone shortly thereafter. "Fresh Blue Musk" is fun, and not bad after a shave, so if you happen to see it around, give it a try. Cheap thrills don't last, but then again neither does youth.
So is "Fresh Blue Musk." One can consider this wacky-looking thing a body-spray and not a proper fine fragrance, but with such unpretentious packaging and an unimaginative name, PdC isn't exactly reaching for the stars. I don't fully understand the strategy behind their image here, and can only figure they're targeting teenage boys and girls as their core purchasing demographic. I'll be honest, I was expecting utter dreck, and was a bit surprised by what I got instead. This isn't great, (it's just barely good), but it's certainly not downright awful. I'd rather reach for this than, say, Preferred Stock.
The fragrance opens with a huge hairspray accord of nothing but bitter alcohol with bitter chemicals. It's bad news for seven or eight seconds, but then there's a gentle lemon note, very delicate and fresh, followed by that mythical creature of soda syrups and rocket-pops, "blue raspberry." I don't quite know how the wonderful whitebark raspberry endured metamorphosis into this sticky-sweet caricature of fruit, and I don't care - it smells as good as it tastes. Must be my inner eight year-old having his say. Eventually, as in ten minutes, there's a dry white musk of the cheapest variety, mated to laundry detergent lavender, all of which is gone shortly thereafter. "Fresh Blue Musk" is fun, and not bad after a shave, so if you happen to see it around, give it a try. Cheap thrills don't last, but then again neither does youth.
Bryan: You are a brave man. You have gone where few perfumistas would dare to journey!
ReplyDeleteFor myself, the contrast class for these sorts of liquids is water, if only because of toxicological concerns. ;-)
Thanks, but don't lay the congrats down too thick, if these hadn't been gifted to me, the above would never have been written!
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