Dance of Death

[whitsunweddings]

A gloriously elegant representation of Lady Death. Dry, bone-white orris, black musk, serpentine patchouli and our murkiest myrrh.

In the imp: PATCHOULI OF DEATH!!
Wet: Patrchouli with myrrh coming through. Slightly soapy and spicy.
Dry: Sweet myrrh grounded in earthy patchouli. It later turned into a dirty, patchouli-scented soap. Not my thing!

[LightLikeKnives]

Dance of Death is a balmy, resiny, faintly incense kind of scent. It makes me think of the smell of Egypt; it is not nasty or musty -- it is ancient, warm, a little heady, and a little sorrowful. I think the main note here is petit grain, and it feels natural, wheat-like. There is a bit of the high-end cologne smell here, and about 6 hours in, it comes to the fore.

 

This is a keeper.

[impolight]

:::DANCE OF DEATH:::

 

As if the description for this one weren’t rendered eerily enough, then comes the trick of a freshly cracked bottle top laying waste to the nose. This potent little jewel joined the hoarded hordes thanks to a much anticipated expedition to Bat’s Day MMXII. Somehow, this was one of the formulas that had been unjustly breezed over during the countless and obsessive perusals of the General Catalogue. The likelihood is that because of there being a mere quartet of notes included in this particular formula, it was underestimated. The mistake was that simplicity does not equal a lack of sophistication. Dance of Death is a complex and richly layered aromatic adventure.

From the Bottle: This is very much like a focused spotlight being very slowly turned up on a pitch-black stage in an otherwise empty theater. Revealed in the beam is a gleaming skeleton. She wears a ruffled dress and dark, auburn ringlets cascade from beneath her Easter bonnet. In her lap, she clutches a bouquet of immortally fresh blooms. From the dark wood of the floorboards curls a ghostly plume of dust.

There is an exotic kind of bitterness present which would suggest either the Myrrh or the influence of a diabolically skilled poisoner. Complimenting this is a sticky, black sweetness that positively purrs in the nose… Black Musk is worth every second of unholy adoration in this formula. This is one of the best examples of highlighting the virtues of this particular note to date, certainly. The Patchouli is almost tropical; tautly muscled with a fine sheen of perspiration that has only now trickled, enticing the eye. This is a perverted picnic; a tangle of limbs in the hot, velvety shade behind glossy green leaves, a slow grind of a pubic bone on a sweat-slicked thigh, crushed berries passed from mouth to mouth…

On the Skin: Red, ripe reeling! Dance of Death waxes more intoxicating with every breath. At this phase, Dance of Death becomes strangely war-like, with the war happening between exotic eroticism and classical refinement. Dance of Death is a statue of some excruciatingly voluptuous Goddess carved from shining red wood, wearing garlands of lush, rare blooms, and guarded by a hive dripping with narcotic honey. Dance of Death is an immaculate chamber in a Victorian manse in which an ornate bronze bowl has been filled to overflowing with potpourri that is at once lascivious and holy.

If Dance of Death is the jewel-like crumbles of some faraway incense resin, then the epidermis is the smoldering coal. It is not at all difficult to imagine that wisps of smoke are almost visible with this fragrance. Walk into a room and watch heads rotate in your direction… Expressions on the faces of the inhabitants is sure to be priceless; “What on earth is that smell and why does it have to go away someday?”

On Her, Dance of Death is that slow, vampiric, hip-hypnosis belly-dance immortalized on celluloid. On Him, Dance of Death is climaxing to birdsong underneath the summery sky that’s rapidly phasing from lilac to violet.

Don’t let this one get away. Dance of Death gets a 5 out of 5.

[stellamaris]

Okay. Following Impolight's reviews is like getting two love notes, one containing a perfect and lyrical sonnet, akin to one written by one of the great bards of yore, let's say, Shakespeare for instance, and the second one just saying "Do you like me? Check one for yes, two for no."

Clearly I wrote the second one.

 

On to the review...

Lately all patchouli is smelling fruity to me. This is OK by me. I have had this imp of Dance of Death for quite some time, but for some reason, I did not really remark on it, but it never got tossed into the No Just No, Get Out box. Today I put it on and thought, wow! Hey! It's that great dirty patchouli of OWS fame, it's furry and fabulous! But there is something else there as well, something super fabulous, and it's my True Love, black musk, sigh.

 

I have checked one for yes.

[Scorianelle]

As per usual I had no idea what was in this when I tried it, but I wrote down all my perceptions as they happened. The word to describe this scent is 'Parched'.

 

First Sniff: Powdery, coke flavoured lollies.

 

Second Sniff: Light liquorice and almond scent. I know what the powdery aspect is; it's myrrh.

 

Wet: So dusty, there seems to be a dusky rose, but it's a little bitter. I had to apply more in order to properly record this stage - it dries so fast!

 

Dry (30 mins): Dust. Dry and dusty, with myrrh holding it up adding a little warmth and a hint of rose to sweeten. All together kind of malty. This is the driest scent I've tried. It feels like it's sucking the moisture out of the air when I smell it.

 

Dry (1.5 hours): The same. The dusty feeling in this makes me think I should need to sneeze when I smell it, but I don't. This isn't a dusty books smell, though. It's more of a closed room/dust motes in sunshine smell.

 

Dry (3 hours): It has all returned to my skin to become a mild vanilla.

 

Throw: Mild.

 

Colour association: Off-white.

 

I can't say if I like this or not. As a way I want myself to smell, it is nothing like what I would imagine, but as a scent that evokes images and feelings (which is a big part of what I want from a perfume) then it's great. I'll definitely keep the imp to use up.

[WidgetAlley]

Imp: A very sweet, resinous floral, with that slightly dusty component that can only come from orris. And some myrrh and patchouli. I thought I'd really dislike it since I don't usually like myrrh or orris, but it's nice and, indeed, very elegant.

 

Wet: Myrrh! Patchouli! Myrrh! And orris, which in this case smells almost like a white sandalwood-- very dry and dusty. And black musk, which almost never behaves on me. It's a little better than usual here, mixed with the resins, but it still has an overpoweringly sweet animal smell, almost like warm dog fur.

 

Dry: This becomes something close to black musk SN on me, with hints of orris and myrrh. If black musk works on you, I can see how this would be a gorgeous, resinous blend. On me, I just smell like happy dog in the summertime!

[elinox]

First Sniff: Something pungent, almost leather-like, and not what I was expecting at all!

 

Wet: Leather is coming through like how I get it from Tombstone. It quickly goes to light, faintness though as it begins to dry.

 

Dry: This wasn’t even completely dry yet and it was already fading away into nothingness. Unless this morphs dramatically it’s not looking good. Once it dried completely there was a dusty smell to it which I assume is the orris.

 

My Reaction: Once dried, it was way too light on me. I can still detect tiny hints of the leather smell, but it’s really just powdery and too light. I’m sure this will fade away within the hour.

 

Rating 1-5: 1

[mymymai]

In the Imp (ITI): Strong patchouli muddled with musky orris.

 

Wet: I get moist earth from the patchouli with subtle complexity from the orris root. The myrrh is rather faint here.

 

Dry: The myrrh really comes out over the patchouli as it dries down. The musk mingles with the orris root to provide an exotically alluring scent.

[JazzieCazzie]

RECEIVED as a frimp during an earlier purchase from the Lab and has been sitting in my imp box waiting for -- well, not sure how long. There's a slight stain on the label so I know it's not brand new. It's POSSIBLE I might have ordered it in an earlier impapalooza but it wasn't this last one.

The notes are all ones that would appeal to me ... I just can't quite remember its genesis.

 

IN THE IMP: It just smells a little musty and perfumey to me, not my usual first reaction to a combo of resiny/woodsy/incensey notes.

 

Dabbed a little on my left wrist (double-testing Danse Macabre on the other wrist as I work my way alphabetically through my imps and bottles).

 

WET: Sweeter once it hits my skin. Sweet and dark without my being able to really single out any of the notes. Pleasant but not captivating.

 

DRYDOWN: Oh. There's that funky smell. I have yet to figure out for SURE what it is but I think I may have finally narrowed it down to myrrh. (At some point I should probably see if I can find every review where I've singled it out and make sure this is the culprit). I have no word for it but funky. It's not awful, it's just not great, and it's only evident on drydown. Slightly medicinal but ickily sweet.

 

OVERALL: Yeah, this dances off in a two-step with Danse Macabre into the swap box. And I definitely need to read my old reviews again to see if it's myrrh, so I know not to order it anymore. I do love my frankincense though.

 

SCORE: On a scale of 1-5, a low 3.

[riddel]

I received a frimp of this in my latest Lab order and I can't for the life of me understand why this wasn't even on my list of things to try. The imagery of the scent alone should have secured a spot on that list (Death! Lady Death!), and both orris and patchouli make me a happy girl. Maybe the black musk and the myrrh scared me a bit. Black musk has a tendency to go baby powder on me, and while I like powder-y scents, I don't like when they smell exactly like a baby's bottom.

 

But this? This is lovely. It's soft and powder-y in a grown-up, vintage way and it smells very purple/black to me. But again, I'm proudly Team Floral/Team Powder, so the things I love about it may be the very things that turn others off. I'll have to test it a few more times, but if all goes well, this could be a new favorite.

 

Thank goodness for frimps!

Edited June 20, 2013 by riddel

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Soil and moss and a sharp, acidic floral note

 

Wet on me - Loamy soil with a slightly fruity sweetness on top

 

Dry on me - Grey loamy soil

 

Overall - Not my cup of tea at all

[welcometothefamily]

A kind frimp from the lovely Alainn!

 

In the Imp: First sniff - LUSH Tramp shower gel. Fortunately, I like patchouli . There's actually a sweetish but thick perfumey aspect to this that is reminding me a lot of Hay Moon. If it doesn't turn horrible on my skin, I might actually like this .

 

Wet: This is a very dry fragrance, and it's still reminding me of a less powdery Hay Moon. I can recognize patchouli and black musk. I don't know what orris root smells like, but there's something slightly sweet lurking in the background. Myrrh?

 

Drydown: Okay, I've been wearing this for a few hours now. This is definitely a less powdery Hay Moon! It has dried to a soft, slightly powdery, sweet musk. It's a strangely warm fragrance for the lady of death....

 

Verdict: This is quite nice, and I'll keep my frimp, but since I've already got a bottle of Hay Moon, I don't quite need this one . It's not quite an everyday /me/ anyway, but on occasion I do like wearing something a little darker than my usual foody fare . Oh! And I got a compliment on this tonight, seems like the muskies are a hit on me! =D.

 

3.5/5

[heyjjudette]

This started out as pure patchouli on me (YES!!!). The other notes start coming out on the dry down, and the patchouli goes away. I'm smelling the myrhh now. This is a very dark scent and very death like! Would definitely rec. this to patchouli and incense scents lovers.

[Circaea]

Wet, this reminded me a little of Cathedral (myrrh possibly being the note in common). Drying down, the lemony black musk, which I like so much from Playful Wooden Mallets, comes out. Unlike Mallets, though, Dance of Death has no playfulness. It's a soft, dry and gentle scent, definitely unisex, slightly spiritual. I really like it.

[inhumation]

on wet, there is a soft patchouli that gives it an almost spicy quality. it feels almost sly. as it dries, a earthy sweetness comes out, which smells like a very dark soil, which reminds me a little of the soil note in Jazz Funeral. dry, there is a dry floral scent. this definitely evokes rattling, stomping bones on cemetary grounds with overturned soil and half-dead floral wreaths strewn everywhere, haha.

[Veronica]

A surprisingly good patchouli blend (as someone who detests the note)--here, it is soft and watered down to just a hint of dark smokiness over a floral and musk background.

[LexieBlom]

Dance of Death imp

 

Wet/Bottle - Myrrh and Patchouli, my old friends! Thick, syrupy, and...chocolate? Not getting a lot of orris, though.

 

Wet/Skin (5 minutes) - No more chocolate, thank god. I don't even know where it came from to begin with. It's getting pretty floral, with the orris, and I really hope that is not a trend that continues as florals turn soapy on me. Sweet, thick myrrh is still present, but not much patchouli.

 

Dry/Skin (30 minutes) - Myrrh scented soap. Damn.

 

I really wanted to like this one, but the florals can not be trusted.

[Teamama]

This started out very promising for me, and I can totally understand all the praise for Dance of Death. In the imp and wet,there's wonderful interplay between the dark of the musk, myrrh and patchouli and the sweet dryness of the orris. I was preparing to add this to my bottle list for the first ten minutes.

 

Unfortunately, orris seems to be a note that my chemistry flattens out as it dries. By 20 minutes, all the magic was over. The orris was the dominant note, and it was flat and medicinal. It reminded me of a smell that's in Ben-Gay,

 

Obviously, I need a scent locket!

[aquazoo]

Definitely dry. The patchouli adds the dirt side, and there’s a funeral flower arrangement in there.

[LizziesLuck]

Love all the listed notes except for orris, hoping it doesn't ruin this!

 

 

Wet: Oh wow that's good. Musk and Myrrh, like what I had hoped Streets of Detroit would be. The patch is a nice addition, and the orris I think is just lending some sweetness at this point. This is dark and murky for sure, and I like it a lot so far.

 

 

Dry: This is so good. I think this is the first blend with orris in it that I have genuinely liked. That being said, I don't smell a whole lot of orris, mostly musk and Myrrh, two things I love, and just a hint of patch (which I also love) on dry-down. I need a full day test, but I may need more of this. It's dark, mysterious, and a little seductive.

[d0gbones]

In the imp: Hmm. Hard to describe. Dryish and sweet with a little spice.

 

Wet: Really sweet, smooth patchouli. I don't think I've tried anything with orris in it before but I have a feeling that's what's sweetening things.

 

Dry: Holy woah has this changed. It's very sweet, myrrh is all I can pick out and the rest is difficult to distinguish. I can just pick out the patchouli if I really think about it. Such a surprise, though, very wearable and I can't stop sniffing it.

[Convallaria]

I got a frimp with Lab purchase. I don't know if there might not have been some mislabeling going on because on me, this smells like a chypre. The kind that was popular before oakmoss was declared ingredient non grata. Then again, two of scent twins candidates contain patchouli too, so maybe there's something to that. Perhaps I'm a myrrh amper? Either way, it smells nothing like "pure" patchouli, which is my death note, so it's a bonus. But it's not one of my favorites, either. The drydown leans a bit more animalic with orris and musk, though myrrh is still adding a green note. I like this part much better, but not enough to go through the first phase.

 

ETA: I keep falling in and out of love with chypres. Today it was perfectly good.

Edited September 15, 2016 by Convallaria

[Casablanca]

Sniffy sniff. Powdery, pale orris and patchouli -- mostly the former. I pick up the lab's black musk with them, but no myrrh as yet.

About an hour later, I smell a little musk, but no myrrh, and no patchouli. All that remains is a faint powder-poof of orris -- the Ghost of Orris Past.

This isn't my thing.

[Coldfire]

Imp: ethereal, almost floral, glowing
Wet on Me: Powder
Drying Down: Powder-y patchouli is what I'm getting now
Dry: the patchouli disappeared and I get a powder-y pale faint incense. nice. Nice to have tried it but would probably be best to be re-homed to someone who would LOVE it!

[whisperstilled]

Imp: I smell orris. If I hadn't just smelled it in another scent I'm testing today, I wouldn't be able to identify it, but it's sharp and prominent, with the patch and musk right behind. The myrrh is just an incense wisp.

Wet: Myrrh and black musk. This is surprisingly nice. The patch is pretty up there, making this a little too dirty headshop for me, but this is much better than I was expecting.

Dry: Oh nooooo we're taking a hard right into powder town. That's a shame! This one had a lot of potential.