Iago

[tauntonlake]

Malevolent, dark and shadowy: sinuous black musk, wet leather and vetiver.

 

Holy hell. This is not for sissies! This is some serious leather and vetiver. Right where the burning hot rubber meets the road ... which means .. I need a few extra bottles socked away in a dark cupboard somewhere.

[doomsday_disco]

In the imp: Musky black leather and smoky vetiver. I am not looking forward to this at all, given that I prefer lighter musks, only enjoy some leathers, and never get along with vetiver. Well, here goes.

 

Wet: Still musky black leather and vetiver. The black musk and black leather are the strongest notes, but the vetiver is pretty strong, too, adding some smokiness to the leather.

 

Dry: Damn, this is strong. It's actually starting to make me feel sick, it's so strong. The black musk reigns, with the black leather right beside it. The vetiver has calmed down now, but continues to add some smoke to the leather.

 

Verdict: Definitely not for me, because the black musk and leather are just way too strong. I have various scents over different parts of my arm, and this one is by far the one with the most throw. I'm going to have to go wash it off.

[tauntonlake]

I'm 99% sure that this is the same leather note from The Red Rider. Which means, I need three bottles socked away in a drawer for the future, when Red Rider goes out of stock again... If you're a red leather fiend, this is the one you want to get. Absolutely love.

[Bamels]

Frimp. It contains my dreaded vetiver, I'll see what it does, but this is usually a note of death for me. Well, the leather is coming along but vetiver is still hanging around. It smells like a grunge club. But not in a great way. Pass.

[melandie]

Wow this one is powerful. I got an imp of this for my husband as he is getting into BPAL (yay!). He is not crazy about it so I've decided to sample for myself.

 

Soooo much leather. After a while the vetiver fades and it's musky leather on me. I'm not sure I want a whole bottle, but definitely hanging onto this imp for those days when I feel I need a confidence boost or kick some ass.

[monocainsheresy]

I used to love this one but we are not friends anymore - the "wet" part of the leather note combines in a nasty way with the vetiver. Smells like cat food to me.

[torischroeder9]

In the imp: Grassy vetiver, sharp leather, and slightly powdery black musk. The notes are fighting with each other, and I'm almost afraid to put it on my skin. 

 

On my skin:

 

Wet, it smells a lot like the fumes from very cheap plastic. As it dries and develops, I get whiffs of pleasant enough black musk and leather from afar. However, sniffing up close, it's still plasticky and kind of hellacious. 

 

After about half an hour, I can say that it has calmed down a bit, enough for me to pick out the vetiver and the wet leather. But to my nose, this is very sharp yet. 

 

Once an hour has passed, the scent has calmed down some more thought the scent profile hasn't changed. It's better now that it isn't screaming throw, but as this turns out on my skin, it's nothing I want to wear -- or that I want anyone else to wear while they're near me. 

[niffler]

In the bottle: Strongly WET shiny leather but not in an animalistic or musky way... Wet, to reiterate, not damp or moldering. A masculine scent. Interesting and also slightly concerning. 

On my skin: New tanned leather, still bitter with vetiver when wet but not musky. Crushed vetiver and squeaky clean new saddles, sharp even when dry. It's not unpleasant, might be nice to layer with Black Rider, but not one I think I'll be wearing on its own. 

[artisjok]

Iago, man, Iago is a masculine man. This leather is the type that I don’t really enjoy. Not sure if it’s because of the other notes, but it’s too... aquatic in a sense. Not actually aquatic, but in a way it’s a strong leather that is like the dark depths of the ocean. Very much a cologne vibe, and way too far on the masculine side for me. Nothing to warm it up, nothing to whisper in my ear, just an imposing force breathing down on my neck. 
This would pair well with the Strong in His Entreaty hair gloss. Now that I’m looking at that, it might be the combo of this leather & vetiver that makes such a masculine cologne scent. *shrugs* 

[rhonorv]

Iago smells like the 'new car smell' dealers spray in, well, new cars. Heavy duty new leather. It was unfortunately pretty headachey for me, and I had to wash it off after testing. Definitely very cologney, and a little goes a long way! 

[ajansuz]

I tried this one on with trepidation, because black musk turns to baby powder on my skin, and I hate that smell. However, I try all frimps unless they give me a headache when I open them or contain something my skin is sensitive to. I was not impressed with it wet. It was pungent and kind of a hot mess with the vetiver and leather duking it out for supremacy.

 

HOWEVER!

 

As it dried down, magic happened. This turned dead sexy on me, like a well worn, well loved leather jacket, earthy, musky in a "come closer" kind of way. Masculine leaning, but I'm not a girly girl, so I feel like that fits me just fine. It had medium throw and a really long staying power. This is the first black musk blend I have ever tried from BPAL that did not give me even a hint of the dreaded baby powder. It delivered on the promise it often has in the vials. I may very well go for a bottle of this. Iago is a very bad (wo)man, and I love them.

[Honey]

This is not a typical scent for me to try, way outside of my comfort zone.

Wet on this is dark and strong and, omg, leather and musk and vetiver, bam!

 

I think of leather armor, renaissance fairs, and old medieval castles that have a very heavy, dusty and masculine smell to them.

There is a medicinal element to the blend as well, like the sharpness of tea tree oil that could come from the leather or vetiver note.

It's also a bit spicy and balsamic, reminds me of cedar or another heavy wood (without any pencil shavings dryness).

 

Iago calms down during drydown, but it never behaves or submits.

It's heavy on the leather and vetiver, and the dark musk works as a binding agent of sorts.

It smells like a warm, worn-in saddle or like a loved pair of boots.

I wonder how it would layer with a rich buttery vanilla?

I don't see it as a scent that works for me although I don't mind the vetiver at all. It's way too masculine for my taste, but I wouldn't mind smelling this on a partner.

 

[whipwaif]

classically vintage and masculine scent. I would certainly want my man to wear this on a fancy cocktail date. 

 

it is also very evocative of, surprise, a worn leather jacket in the rain. the vetiver gives it a lush green smell which is simply irresistible, and I am not a huge fan of vetiver usually. 

 

probably won't be a bottle upgrade because it's simply too masculine for me. if you want a blend that smells like MAN though...go for it!

 

[skyturtles]

Eeeep, nuuuupe, this is not for me. I tried out this fresh lab frimp before knowing what notes were in it. I immediately picked up on the leather, which is nearly always a nope. Looks like there is also vetiver, another eeehhhh. I tried passing this off to my partner, who is more masculine than I, but they also scrunched up their nose in distaste. It's getting stronger the longer it dries, and I think I may wash it off... Someone mentioned it has the "new car smell" which is definitely on point and definitely something that historically makes me nauseous 😅

[Llanval]

Iago is not here to hang out. Iago is not here to braid your hair, or snuggle up in a onesie. Iago is here to *play*. Specifically if you would like to smell like you're at the leather ball in your newest, least broken in gear, or in the midst of a very intense leather session, please go buy iago immediately you will be very happy. 

 

However!!! If ur not here to smell like a sex dungeon, maybe give this a pass.

 

I put this on and the new car/black squeaky leather was so intense I had to wash it off. I left a leather scent trail through the house!! I had to put on some Rentless even after I washed iago off, just to get the leather note to shush. Then it became cotton candy sex dungeon and I LIKED IT A LOT. IDK the leather is too much for me, but balanced w cotton candy it became cheeky, fun, and a little enchanting. give it a try if the leather sex dungeon vibe doesn't scare u off. 

[edickerson88]

Did Iago get reformulated recently?   Last 2 times I had it it was a dark very strong/ good  leather scent right out of the mail box  (which I loved) . Just got a new bottle and it has almost a soda like scent to it..  just wondering if it's maybe just my skin changed or if others are smelling a difference as well.

 

[dancingchair]

Tons of black leather and grassy vetiver. It's a little bit smoky, too. There's a bitterness that reminds me of coffee or very dark chocolate. As it dries, it becomes more of a soft and cuddly leather, which I enjoy. Overall, I like it quite a bit!

[Lecter]

The first whiff from the imp was pure paint stripper. Underneath is a sexy masculine smell waiting to emerge but the paint stripper smell is too strong for me to put it on my skin. Sadly not for me

[The Magician's Apprentice]

I knew I would love this the moment I saw the description - vetiver and leather? Could there be anything more bespoke for my taste? Bordering on obsessed with the idea of this scent, I ordered a full bottle immediately. Fortunately, I did indeed love this scent, as Iago lived up to my all of my very high expectations.

 

In the bottle, the scent was almost acrid - something musty, something dark - almost like an old, dank attic. Not unpleasant, but not a beautiful scent by any means; pleasant in the same sense that plastic or wool might be. Definitely something that makes your nose wrinkle a little. I was in love already at this point.

 

On my skin, the vetiver came through strongly, shifting the tone slightly away from the dank darkness to a less decayed scent. The leather notes soon followed the vetiver, so much so that after a while the scent softened to be more like an old leather jacket than the entire attic. To my disappointment, this did seem to mellow out faster than some of the other reviewers relate, although that might be because I did not mind the initial strength too much in the first place.

[Jarek]

I got an imp of this with my 2022 men's imp pack order.

 

In the imp it's pretty smoky. Wet on my skin it's still pretty smoky but I can smell the musk, and especially the leather up close. As it dries the musk and smoky scents start to fade, and I get more leather and some vetiver without the smoke. But some black musk is still present.

 

I don't dislike it, but I don't think it's really for me, unfortunately because I do tend to like more masculine scents, and leather in a perfume can be good to my nose. I won't get a bottle and I won't finish wearing the imp.