Danse Macabre

[laochodia]

An allegorical expression of the ineffable, indisputable triumph of death, generally expressed in medieval artwork as a violin or flute-wielding skeleton leading a procession of dancers to their graves. Black cypress with oakmoss, frankincense, oude, and a sliver of toasted hazelnut.

Mossy and woodsy; a gorgeous scent, full of woods and earthy scents. Too masculine for me, this overpowered me and lingered for a good 3 hours after a thorough scrub. Yeek!

[Ajila]

This is a very 'whole' scent. What I mean by this is that it doesn't smell like a collection of notes, but rather a single entity. I think it's predominantly the cypress that I can smell, but it's a more creamy mellow cypress than any I've smelt before. The blend stays fairly true from the beginning to the end, although right at the end there was an aftershave tang to it. This is a pretty scent, but I don't think it's for me.

[JazzieCazzie]

Wow. Another scent from the surprisingly-long list of "I THOUGHT I had reviewed this when I first tried it" batch ... going through my keeper imps that hadn't been tried in awhile in an attempt to whittle them down to "LOVE this, why haven't I worn it more?" and "like this but I'll never wear it so I'll put it in the swap bin to share with people who really love it" (and the occasional "what was I THEENKING putting this in the keeper box"???) ...

 

This is definitely from that first category ... I do remember getting to a point where I felt I'd become pretty good about picking out the notes I would love and not love from BPAL, and going through the catalogue and ordering about 36 imps based on that ... this was from that list and I did very well percentage-wise on it (I am now on the "willing to get a little more daring after finding certain notes I didn't think I'd like that work for me" list) ...

 

BOTTLE: Sharp woods and incense.

WET: Not quite cedary (which makes sense since it doesn't have cedar, LOL) but that same comforting, grounding shavings type of vibe ... I've found that cypress has been a key note in several of my favorite scents.

DRYDOWN: I would never have placed it as hazelnut, but there is that background note of something sweet that makes this really unusual and wonderful rather than just another good woodsy scent. It's definitely a "can't stop sniffing my wrist" smell.

 

On a scale of 1-5, about a 4.5

 

REREVIEWING AND REVISITING MARCH 2, 2013:

 

Received this as lagniappe in a recent swap/purchase. Interesting how much my body chemistry has changed my response this time around.

 

IN THE IMP: Astringent, bright and citrussy ... still surprised to read the notes and not see anything lemony in there. I'm guessing it's the cypress?

 

Dabbed on one wrist as I'm double-testing this with, interestingly, Dance of Death (going alphabetically through the box).

 

WET: Green, fresh and outdoorsy, yes, but even wet there is a slightly bitter, musty scent lurking behind the green.

 

DRYDOWN: Not a lot of legs, and it dries to just something perfumey/cologney on me. I definitely CAN stop sniffing my wrist. But I still don't get any hazelnut so that's probably a good thing.

 

OVERALL: Not awful by any means, but certainly not the keeper I thought it was 7 years ago. This dances off into the swap box.

 

On a scale of 1-5: 3-ish.

Edited March 2, 2013 by JazzieCazzie

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 0/5

Summarised in a word or two: Woodsy.

 

In the imp/bottle: Thick, syrupy frankincense and dry cypress.

 

On skin, wet: This is a very heavy franincense-crypress on my skin. It's very woodsy, and very masculine.

 

On skin, dry: Cypress. The frankincense dies away within ten minutes, leaving thick, dry, chalky oakmoss. Something in this also vaguely reminds me of Zombi's earth/dirt note(s).

 

Conclusion: Not for me. I love some woodsy blends (eg, Black Forest), but others (eg, Danse) just don't work out.

Edited December 17, 2005 by Aredhel

[Alohasca]

My first belated review will be devoted to Danse Macabre, the divine. It’s so me, it’s the utmost sinister perfume hidden at the bottom of resinous coffers we dare to open at the other side of All Worlds, the specter of a door hidden in a painting and the feeling that there is more to it, always more, lemon peels freshly slaughtered on the deck of a starship that carries us away from all, at last, as we embrace a coffin.

[brownbear]

Wet, this seems very herby, almost like a medicinal smell. Kind of harsh.

As it dried it went a little softer. I get mostly oakmoss from this, but then I wouldn't be able to say what oude smells like. Not real certain about black cypress either. Anyway, didn't get a whole lot of wood type notes here like a lot of people mentioned. I get more of a forest floor. I still can't figure out if I like it or not. I wonder how this would smell on a man. hmmmm

[elphaba]

From the description, I expected this to be a much more raucous scent than it turned out to be. It's actually quite soothing, like breathing from a wooden box containing a chunk of resinous incense. It lasts forever on me, too. I put it on at 9:15 this morning and can still catch whiffs every now and then at 6:45.

 

Just on, the cypress is the most dominant note, although I wouldn't have known it was cypress without reading the description. It smells kind of like a cross between sandalwood and cedar. The resiny/incense note is there from the beginning too, but it becomes dominant later on.

 

Dry, Danse Macabre becomes a beautiful soft, resiny scent on me. In concept, I like it a lot, but it's not really making me fall in love. Sooner or later, I'm going to find an resiny blend that I adore, but this one isn't it. It's close, though.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Oakmoss and incense. The odd nutty afterthought must be the hazelnut.

On me: The cypress note is a bit greener - like newer wood, not green like grass - than I expected, and the way it blends with the incenses is fascinating. This is an intriguing, complicated scent - and I do believe that this is how Death smells. Mysterious and not at all unpleasant. This does, however, fall into the category of scents I won't wear. It is art to be sure, but just as I wouldn't hang a painting by Matisse in my bedroom I won't wear this when I go out, so off to swap it goes.

Edited July 15, 2005 by k00kaburra

[telesilla]

Why it was on my list: I'm looking at the notes and I don't know if this was on my wishlist or if I got it from a friend.

 

In the bottle and wet: Cedar. Yeah I know it says cypress but it smells like cedar to me. Very very sharp and woody.

 

Drying down: Still quite woody. It smells like really really good sawdust on a warm day when you're MacBeath Hardwood Company in Berkeley.

 

Dry: Still quite woody, but there's a faintly resinous quality from the frankincense. I'm not getting the hazelnut and I have no real idea what oakmoss smells like. I don't know about the oude because what exactly is that anyway?

 

Dry later: It's smoothed down and gotten a little sweeter. I'm still somewhat undecided on it. It's not a summer scent at all and, I think I need to test it against Cathedral, before I make the call.

 

Having done the test Cathedral still wins out. *tosses Danse Macabre into the swap pile*

[LiberAmoris]

Another shocker from the Funereal Oils! Looking at the notes for Danse Macabre, I thought: Um, probably not going to work on me. Frankincense and I don't usually love each other, with the exception of Ra. But I wanted to try it.

 

The frankincense was so strong when first applied that it made my eyes water. 10 minutes later, it has dried down to the most gorgeous blend of woods. I can smell the oakmoss at the bottom of it all, lending that perfect earthy quality.

 

Danse reminds me of the smell of woods and rich, moist, dark earth. It's a warm fire going in a fireplace and the window open to let in the mist and fog that has settled in the trees and is carrying the scent of the ground with it.

 

This one's going right into the boy's pile of imps for wearing when we go out...or when we stay in.

[tinyvulture]

because of the woodsy cypress and earthy oakmoss, this makes me think of a decaying garden where the green leaves are dying and blending into the soil. or the part of a forest that never gets any sunlight, so the earth is always moist. it doesn't smell like dirt, though (like zombi or nosferatu). it smells like moss.

 

what does oude smell like? i don’t know if i’m smelling it or not. over time, the frankincense takes over and now it’s like burning incense in the woods. it compliments the sharp cypress nicely. what a complex, carefully blended fragrance.

[donsixgun]

Im not sure what it is thats in it that made it do this, but it turned to a very strong scent that reminded me of B.O. No thank you.

[Monster]

I usually like all of the notes in this blend, but for some reason all of them mixed together smells like an old, wet towel to me. Maybe I just got a bad imp? It looks fresh.

This one stings my nostrils right away. This is another one I couldn't even put on my skin. :/

 

ETA (8.6.2009): Just revisiting this scent...I received another frimp from the Lab and 4 years later this still smells like an old, dirty towel to me. So odd.

Edited August 7, 2009 by Monster

[lookingglass]

Fresh cypress on first sniff, with the oakmoss, spices and resin whirling in the background. The cypress fades, and an earthy/spicyness remains. Very lovely, but masculine. DH has a cologne, Epices, from Paris that is very much like this, though not as clear and clean.

[Muppetk]

Wet: This starts out a yummy green. Very herbal. A pinch of resin softening it.

 

Drying: The oakmoss becomes a touch louder, making this a touch masculine.

 

Dry: The scent stays fairly true. A light, pretty herbal scented blend with an undertone of slight resin & powder. Really pretty, but fades quickly on me. Phoo.

[aedes]

I got a very "masculine" feel to this one, too. Smelled soapy, actually, which always reminds me of cologne. It's a very nice, woodsy cologne in my opinion, but just not lining up with my pH. I think it could be pretty sexy on a butch, lumberjack sort of guy. Perhaps an evil Brawny man? Heheh.

[Little Bird]

I haven't really liked any of the Funereal Oils, so my hopes weren't high for Danse Macabre. I think that it's my favorite blend in this category thus far though.

 

It's very heady and dark on me, like peppery pine resin and black soil. It stays pretty true to that first impression for hours too. Dark spicy earth and resins. I can actually picture this as the scent of "flute-wielding skeleton leading a procession of dancers to their graves". Unfortunately, that scent is very not me.

 

Danse Macabre has decent throw and lasted a good 6-7 hours. I'll probably end up swapping my imp though. It's just one of those perfumes that feel like they belong on someone else.

[Miss Lynx]

Not bad at all -- earthy, woodsy, incensey and dry. There's a sort of dustiness to it that does bring cemeteries and the dead to mind, but it's nicely aromatic and resinous at the same time. It's a very occult-shop type of smell -- the sort of scent you'd expect to get walking into someplace full of resin incenses, old books, and magical supplies. And that slightly tickly dryness puts me in mind of blowing the dust of the books in a place like that, or maybe in an old house that had been closed up for a long time after the death of its inhabitants. Maybe a long-abandoned magical workroom or temple...

 

Unlike a lot of reviewers thus far, I don't find it particularly masculine. Gender-neutral, maybe, but not masculine as such.

 

The first time I tried it, it seemed to fade away very quickly, but today I applied it more heavily -- pretty much slathered it, really -- and it seems to be doing a much better job of sticking around. It doesn't really quite have the multilayered complexity of the scents I tend to like best, but it's evocative and enjoyable, and I'll definitely use up the imp, even thought I don't think it’s really a big bottle candidate for me.

 

Grade: B

[urraca]

The piney notes come to the fore first, succeeded by the incense and resins. This evokes its name beautifully. It smells like the fifteenth-century, the rotting corpse covered with velvet and perfumed with frankincense. It's like an ancient church opened for the first time after centuries to find the bleached bones of its priest lying where he was stricken performing his last Mass.

[Freyja Lux]

Wow I like this one! On first sniff... very green and crisp. Once it dries it has an earthy, lush feel, very gentle. Probably not something I'd wear too much but it is a gorgeous scent.

[Eros]

In the imp, not sure what I'm smelling...Kind of a more on the masculine side cologne.

On skin, lightens a bit but retains the masculine edge. What I get is a slightly ozone-y, lightly toasted hazelnut. Eventually the frankincense peeks out but it's slight.

Nice enough, but not for me.

[silver_springs]

Very woods-y. Reminds me of walking through the woods at night just after it's rained.

 

Nice but a tad too masculine for me. I think I would really like this one on a man because it doesn't smell too much like your average men's cologne, which I generally don't like.

 

If I had a boyfriend, this would be the scent I'd want on him.

[pinkpoodle]

Mmmmm....this is one of my favorites so far. Wet on skin, Danse Macabre smells strongly of cypress and frankincense. As it dries, those two elements calm down, leaving a clean, fresh, woody scent. I'm not sure what oude (or aloewood) smells like, but I'm guessing that it's what's giving Danse Macabre that nice, clean smell. As time goes by, the hazelnut comes out, but it's so subtle that the blend ends up being perfect. It's so soothing and woody, yet cozy and warm. This scent is great for both genders and it could also be used as a room scent or bath oil. Very versatile.

[PurringPulsar]

Danse Macabre

 

In the imp: cypress and frankincense. A dark, woody, sharp and resinous scent.

Wet on skin: greenish, dry, almost pine like wood which I know is the cypress, along with the incense and maybe something nutty.

Dry: this smells like very dark, dry woods, shadowy and deathly. There’s something nutty that tries to take the edge off the scent, as well as the frankincense and moss, but overall, this is a very deep and dark scent, a black-green with deceptive gilded flashes in ‘colour’. It brings to mind medieval dungeons and crypts, and underground chambers that never see the light of day, that’s how dark this scent is. It’s gothic, that’s for sure!

After a while: the dark, woody aspect of this scent lingers. It’s quite masculine as well, I find, and though it isn’t unpleasant, I find it a bit too intense and masculine for me, maybe a tad morbid as well…it brings to mind dark shadowy spooky woods, and even the scent of a polished coffin!

After a few hours, the drydown is mossy and green, it’s now less deathly, it is now more like a sophisticated men’s perfume.

Verdict: this is one of the darkest BPAL scents I’ve ever tried. This stuff really does evoke death, whilst it doesn’t make me smell like a corpse, it does have this mix of incense and deep woody notes that seems to evoke this profound, almost disturbing darkness, the depths of the underworld, crypts and dungeons where skeletons lie covered in cobwebs, incredibly atmospheric…but it doesn’t help that I am already in a very morbid mood and currently have death on the brain (personal issues, very sad ones too) and this scent just rubs it in. The drydown after a few hours is more pleasant, a light green mossy scent reminiscent of a good quality men’s perfume. I like the actual scent but it’s too dark and intense-and masculine-for me. I’ll have to pass it on.

[sookster]

oakmoss and incense make this a sheer pleasure to wear....

extremely sharp and pungent upon application

this warms up to a gorgeously wearable scent ...

after 30 minutes or so, i get this twinge of honey mixing

with the incense fragrance.....i can't say it is "pretty"

but it sure is dreamy and i think this will be great for

layering with other "not so strong" bpal scents.....