Banshee Beat

[valnillarose]

A tousled, sexy mix of patchouli, vanilla, and hemp.

The smoothest patchouli, sweetened with vanilla that's not candyish or syrupy, with mild hemp to give it character. So good, and so addictive. A grown-up comfort scent with no sharp edges. Like has been said before, I believe I could wear Banshee Beat every day if I had to.

[porcelina]

ohhh damn. this is an awesome, earthy vanilla, right out of the bottle. it reminds me of the sexy vanilla in tombstone. i can't wait to try this on!

 

mmm! the patchouli is smooth and woodsy, and the vanilla is rich and intense. the hemp isn't super noticeable here, but that's ok, because this is some of the best damn patchouli and vanilla i've ever smelled. it's a simple blend, but it's so deep and rich and beautiful. it reminds me of snake oil, a little, but simpler (and maybe actually heavier). this is fantastic stuff!

[malibusunny]

goes on dirty, mellows to sweet vanilla patchouli. K smells chocolate, I smell marshmallow. the hemp disapears on me, which i expected and like -- i'm not a fan of hemp

[aleciarivas]

All the reviews and recommendations I've read pointed me in the direction of loving Banshee Beat, and I am absolutely in complete and utter love with it! Vanilla and patchouli, two of my favorite scents, blended so perfectly together!! Lovely, just lovely! :huff huff:

 

eta: Later today I kept getting a whiff of something familiar, and I kept thinking... I didn't wear Goblin today, I wore Banshee Beat! Strangely enough, this settled down to something VERY similar to Goblin! Considering the rareness of Banshee Beat, I think I'll stick to Goblin instead!

Edited August 23, 2011 by AleciaR

[aniemel]

.

Edited April 3, 2015 by aniemel

[Monster]

I was just adding bottles to my BPAL stash tracker and noticed I haven't reviewed this one. Crazy!

 

Banshee Beat is one of my favorite BPAL scents and the one scent (besides my beloved Urd) that illicits more compliments than anything else I wear. I love BPAL for their way of telling complex stories through scent and the way you have to sit and almost meditate with the perfume to really appreciate at all of it's complexities. Banshee Beat goes against all of that. This is a simple perfume. It was created to appeal to a large audience and is like the hippie/more pure cousin to the department store perfume, Angel (which...even through it's loud commercialism, is one of my all-time favorites). Banhsee Beat is nothing more than a soft, woody patchouli (I think the hemp is contributing to the woody quality) and a gourmand vanilla. Nothing fancy. It's like REALLY good Italian food cooked by someones sweet, old Grandma. There are only three ingredients and you CAN'T believe how it can possible taste SO DAMN GOOD! That is Banshee Beat

[Vega]

Sniffed: A fascinating and alluring blend of gently sweet vanilla, earthy patchouli, and a "ropey" fibre-like note that must be the hemp!

 

On skin: Banshee Beat really does live up to the rave reviews -- this combination of the three notes is like nothing I've smelled before. The patchouli and hemp combine to produce a scent that is earthy and fibrous, but the vanilla adds that contrasting flash of sweetness and femininity. Overall, it's smooth and laid-back, with a very Bohemian flair. I think the popularity of Banshee Beat comes from this very successful juxtaposition of scent notes, which together become something more than the sum total. It's fascinating and alluring, definitely playful and unpredictable. Colour impression is a bit jumbled, a messy yet somehow complementary mix of dark gold-brown and dark blue-green.

 

Verdict: Count me in the Banshee Beat fanclub! IMHO, it's one of the best specimens of BPAL artistry! I'm very glad that I have a bottle of this to enjoy.

[Honey]

I guess this does not really work for me.

It is the kind of vanilla that does not agree with my skin, and patchouli.. mostly miss than hit really. And the hemp.. well, this is very hippiesque indeed, but so not for me!

[WidgetAlley]

I had a chance to snag a bottle of this and, well, when you're a patchouli-lover like me, you just don't pass that up!

 

Bottle: Deep dark stanky delicious mellow black patchouli, and the green-and-brown smell of hemp. Oh, yeah, the other reason I had to have this is because that hemp smell has certain... associations... for me that are very pleasant. In a naughty kind of way. There's a little vanilla but it's not sweet at all, more the scent of vanilla beans. Dayum this is good!

 

Wet: Unf. Sticky vanilla, green-brown airy-earthy hemp, and blackest of the black patchouli. It's like I've died and gone to hippie heaven. It's like you poured a hippie patchouli fudge sauce all over a bowl of unsugared vanilla ice-cream.

 

Dry: By the beginning of the drydown this is the creamiest vanilla you can imagine backed by earthy patchouli and perfect hemp. Hellz yeah.

[mimieux]

Add me to the giant Banshee Beat fan club. This is right up my alley since I LOVE patchouli. And it smacks ya in the face with patchouli. The vanilla is in the background and the hemp is barely there. They make a fine combination, however and I adore this scent. I was really lucky to score an aged bottle on the forum thanks to HerbGirl. I am using it very sparingly cos it's THAT good! I love to layer it with other blends that are a little lacking. It's one of my perfect blends that just works with EVERYTHING! Banshee Beat, Beth...I love you!!

[Andalei]

I LOVE vanilla and the Lab has made me love patchouli, so it's no wonder that I love this scent!

 

If it matters, I swapped for my bottle a couple months ago, so this is an aged bottle I am reviewing.

 

In the bottle: Sweet, woodsy patchouli

 

On skin: While wet it's mostly an amazing rich, earthy patchouli (no stinky hippie here!) with a rich vanilla lurking in the background.

 

Dry: I can smell the patchouli when I sniff my wrist up close, but the throw is mainly the most amazing vanilla I have ever smelled. This isn't a foody vanilla, it's a dark, sexy vanilla. Something also slightly reminds me of white chocolate but unlike most chocolate scents, this one smells amazing.

 

I have no idea what hemp smells like, so I can't pick it out of the blend, but for a relatively simple blend, this one is in my top 3 BPALs of all time. I just managed to score a second bottle yesterday from a sales post, so now I can wear this more often like it deserves!

Edited March 4, 2012 by Andalei

[plainjean]

On me, it's super smooth: a sugary, sweet vanilla and medicinal patchouli (I think someone said old-books sort of patchouli above, and that's spot on). I only have a vague idea of what hemp smells like, and I'm not getting any of that. After about 30 minutes, it's dried down into a syrupy vanilla with a hint of patchouli. Honestly, it reminds me a lot of Snake Oil, but without the musk. And like Snake Oil, it is strong stuff. But wow, is it amazing.

Edited April 30, 2012 by plainjean

[sharkdiver]

I have dies and gone to Hippie/vanilla Heaven! This is so unbelievable awesome...I think this just sky rocketed into my top 3 of all time!

 

The vanilla is SOOO smooth...like just perfect. It doesn't go plasticky, it's not foody, but it is sweet and creamy. The patch is mellow, gritty, and woodsy, and just stunning mingled with the vanilla. So glad I got my hands on this!

[lookingglass]

I do SO wish this was GC!!! I love it so very, very much. It's DENSE, has TONS of throw, and wears on and on. It's a showstopper, a crowdpleaser, it fills the room, just like I love a rich fragrance to do. It is THE patchouli vanilla to forsake all others. It is the olfactory Boho Chic. It feels so right on me, any time of day or night, fresh out of the shower or day old skank, it still fits in. I CRAVE it. The vanilla is rich and black. The patchouli is both earthy and creamy, lifted by the hemp. Glorious. Perfection. Pleeeeeeease, WE WANT MORE!!!!

[KittyHawk]

Banshee Beat has officially made me a patchouli convert! It's really deep, a little gritty, and OH SO SMOOTH! Mixed with the black vanilla it's the sexiest, most decadent BPAL I've tried, yet it retains this casual, nonchalant "I naturally smell this good" quality. This is another one of those blends that everyone must try at least once, regardless of one's preconceptions. It's perfectly crafted and appropriate for any situation.

 

If this were more readily available, I would hoard; however, since it's not, I will cherish my bottle and use it wisely.

[Alethia]

Initial thoughts: I am normally stay far far away from patchouli, but when an incredibly amazing forumite ( ) gifted me a partial bottle, I had to try it.

 

Wet: Strong patchouli, but very very smooth. It's not rooty or particularly dirty smelling. Just very smooth and backed by a lovely creamy non-foody vanilla. Wow.

 

Dry down: Equal parts very smooth beautiful patchouli and sweet grownup vanilla. This is crazy good!

 

Dry: It stays this beautiful and smooth patchouli and vanilla for literally hours.

 

Final thoughts: Well, I can no longer say that I hate patchouli because I am in serious love with Banshee Beat. This has rocketed up to my top ten list. And the wear on this is amazing. I've had it on for almost 8 hours now and it's still going strong. The hunt for this one begins now and in earnest.

 

Verdict: Be vewy, vewy quiet; I'm hunting Banshee Beat.

[Ella LaRose]

I am with everyone else. This is amazing!! My new number 1!

I am a hippie, a deadhead, broomstick skirt, pagan hippie! And this scent is PERFECT! it is sweet, sexy, earthy and free! And it lasts, which is one of my favorite parts.

A dark vanilla bean, not foody, a rich patchouli, not as dirty as most that I know, and the hemp adds a woodiness, like sweet grass bundles. It feels like a dark orange with glitter, something a belly dancer would wear dancing around a bin fire at a drum circle! This is one of the rare scents that I want to wear everyday, slather, turn into hair gloss, the whole scent product line! I wish it would come back cause I would buy 20 bottles and put it in every beauty product I use!!!

[Evilina]

In the bottle, no surprise, Patchouli. Once I put it on, no surprise, patchouli. As it was drying however... ugh, dirty hippie. Absolute using-patchouli-to-"mask"-body-odor. Gross. But after a little while that faded to a patchouli and vanilla scent that's quite nice. Albeit with a tinge of something that some people would call spice, some earth, some BO. It's entirely subjective of course. But in its final phase I quite like it. Was it worth what I spent (ebay), no. But I will keep it... And I will wear it... Because of what I spent on it!!

[White_rabbit334]

Goodness gracious, now THIS is one I can complain about them not having in the GC---in this instance, the Lab isn't just shooting themselves in the foot. No, they're shooting themselves in both feet, kneecaps, femoral artery and genitals. I thought Antikythera Mechanism was addictive---which yes, yes it is ---however, this is addictive in a completely different way. A-M is addictive like alcoholism. Banshee Beat is like whatever drugs old Voodoo priests would blow into peoples faces to make them into zombies. It really blows me away that much, and good gods what I wouldn't give for a hundred bottles of this! It's a shame that this WOULD be the type to be my signature scent, but is so damn rare and hard to find.

 

In the bottle: The vanilla reminds me of an aged Snake Oil vanilla, sweet but with a lot of depth! The patchouli also reminds me of Voodoo---both have an almost soda-pop vibe to them at first. Incredibly spicy woods and vanilla!

 

on the skin: Someone must have laced this with meth. MUST have! x_X And possibly Gorilla Glue. This is the most AMAZING scent I have EVER had the fortune of trying, and I can't get my wrists off my nose. I'm practically huffing this. x_x Again, the most perfect spicy-sweet scent EVER, I don't know how anything could ever get better than this.

 

So far, it's long lasting and has AMAZING throw. I only put on a little from the imp I received, and I barely have to sniff myself at all. That, however, doesn't stop me from sniffing anyway. Obviously avoid this if you hate vanilla, but if you're ambiguous about patchouli, give this a try!

My old art teacher used to wear patchouli single note; it was so powerful and cloying that you could literally find him by following the scent-trail he left behind in his travels around the building. If you have similar memories of a friend, relative or acquaintance sporting overwhelmingly strong patch SN, have no fear! This patch isn't very high pitched, but slow developing, spicy and earthy. Think oozing magma compared to raging wildfires; the patchouli certainly adds a fiery... something to this mix.

 

Lab, if you read these notes regularly, seriously, what are you DOING. At the very least bring this back so I can stock up on 100 bottles. Even a quick resurrection! This scent is just too good to be so damn rare.

Okay, I guess just 50. I'd have to share with its other fans, who I have no doubt are as ravenous as I am for it. x_X

but really, you think I'm kidding when I say I want to wear this until I die, but I really do. I've never encountered a more mysterious, beautiful, brilliant scent in my life until today. A thousand thank yous to surlygurl for including this as a little frimp! I knew as soon as I saw the notes that this would be instant love(and lust) at first sniff!

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

since this bottle is moving on to a more appreciative home, i thought i'd post my notes to remind myself of why:

woodsy patchouli, maybe like the kind in #occupy? not the sweet, earthy kind. the vanilla is whichever kind it is that reminds me of coconuts, and the hemp, well, smells like burlap.

 

overall it's okay and i'm glad i got to try it, but it's not something i'll ever reach for.

[donkehpoo]

Wet: Helllllllo, sweet patchouli!

 

Dry: The vanilla has come out to play. This is a creamy, vanilla-based patchouli scent. Lovely.

 

 

4/5

[Poenari]

I was sure that I had already reviewed this long ago, but apparently not. Banshee Beat is every bit as amazing as expected. I adore patchouli, and this is the best patchouli scent that I've ever had. The vanilla sweetens and blends into the patchouli, and it wears so well. I'm glad I have a few bottles and wish that Beth would re-release this amazing scent.

 

GC comparison: I love Goblin, and for a substitute it is the closest thing I have found, but Goblin is no Banshee Beat.

[Fuhrankie]

Hippies.

 

Having sex.

 

In a swimming pool filled with icecream.

 

 

 

I can't explain the amazingness of this scent any more clearly than that.

[allinmyhead]

*sigh* I've had this bottle of Banshee Beat for ... three years now? A while at any rate. I mean, vanilla? patchouli? How could things get much better than that? I remember not being impressed when I bought it. Let's see how some time in the cigar box has changed her.

 

Aged BB

 

In the bottle:

Woah! Dirty! Very earthy patchouli and a bit of sweetness and ... grass? That would have to be the hemp.

 

Wet:

There's the vanilla peeking through (ahhh) and the patchouli is there, but it seems to have dusted itself off coming out of the bottle. Nowhere near as dirty. Grass is gone.

 

Drydown:

Oh, here's where I get all sad panda. Pencil shavings!!! No!!!! Granted, they seem to be shavings from a very high-end pencil, but they are pencil shavings still. Boo.

 

Dry:

The pencil shavings seem to be going away now thankfully. Mmmm ... this is nice I don't get the intense sexyness that some describe. For me, Banshee Beat is a nice, soft, sweetly alluring all-purpose fragrance. I could (and am!) easily wear this to work.

 

This is such a morpher! It ends up being this amazingly comforting, warm and sweet scent. This is the kind that makes me want to curl up by a fire in my favorite jeans and snuggly sweater and watch the snow fall outside. Very pretty.

[Lorna Brigid]

I really didn't submit my review of this?? Really?!?

Could have sworn I had....but there is no page of lines on the icon for the topic, so I must not have...

 

I'm a rarity here, I actually do NOT love Banshee Beat.

I recall I got my bottle from Urban Outfitters, a day or two before xmas, whenever this was still out, be it a year or two ago.

I sold it within the same hour it had been delivered to my door!

Not only did I smell dirty hippie, I smelled old dead dirty hippie's money!! The drydown was no better. There was no syrupy sweet vanilla to save me. It was really raunchy on me, and made me . Death and money is really the best way I can describe it. It was baaaaaaad. All you guys can have it, it is not for me!