The Soldier

[angelicruin]

THE SOLDIER
Red musk, vanilla cream, black tea, black pepper, leather, and pie.

Creamy red musk, leather, and black tea are the strongest notes on my skin. The black pepper note give the scent a little snap to it. The more I smell this, the more I love it. I think this may be a very popular scent with the red musk & leather note lovers out there.

[coffeewithjack]

When the Yule update came, this was the scent that truly leapt out at me--red musk, tea, cream, AND pie? Despite being in a decant circle for a full set of sniffies, I placed an order solely for this bottle, unsniffed.

 

This is lovely. Upon first application, something (I think the pepper?) gives me a slight impression of anise seed, which I don't care for. Fortunately this fades quickly. The Soldier is a lovely creaaaamy red musk (a bit more polite than in the Infernal Lover). I don't smell the tea, but the cream certainly rounds the scent out. The throw seems to leave something to be desired, but admittedly I am testing several strong scents (Smut 2010, I'm looking at you!) at the moment. Hopefully it holds up better on its own.

 

That said, this is a beautiful scent. I'm going to need a couple of bottles.

[Aldercy]

In the bottle, I thought this smelled rather similar to The Elephantine Colossus, which I really like. Good start. On me, however, it's a different story.

 

The red musk is a little questionable here. Red musk generally works for me and I love it when it does, but this seems to be one of those few blends where it's indefinably "not right" on me. It's a little grapey and medicinal. A very hard, harsh, flat note. I don't get any vanilla cream or tea at all, and the pie and pepper combination is a little odd. Like ground black pepper on berry pie. With grape cough syrup.

 

I'm going to let this hibernate for a little bit and I'll try it again in a couple weeks, but right now I'm not enjoying it. I'm surprised and disappointed, as this was the one out of the whole update that I thought was the most sure to work. Alas.

[SophieCedar]

I'm also in a decant circle for this one but still got a bottle. The lab hit this one dead on.

 

Wet: Most prominent are red musk, black pepper, and pie. I'm really not good with pepper, but this isn't oppressive, just notable, and provides a playful bite. Vanilla cream is present, giving a juvenile, harmless, playful quality. The black tea is also there, which my brain interprets as refined, traditional, and comforting.

 

Drydown: very fun. The black pepper moved to the background more (yay!) leather is more notable. Still sweet with vanilla cream and pie crust notes too. Red musk seems to be good at keeping a scent tied together for an extended time.. this is no exception. I really like this one and don't regret getting the bottle.

[LunaLovegood]

I'm just wearing this today and a few hours into this I am impressed, and here is why: Leather is DOOM on me. As in anything that has leather amps like a mo fo on me and I end up smelling like a brand new car. While I dont mind it on a car, I do mind it on my person.

 

Having said that, I am so happy that Soldier is not going bunkers on me. Just a hint of leather to make it a bit spicy, but its not amping and I can barely detect it. Its like he is just there to accentuate the rest of the components which are so well blended together. Its red musk heaven, a bit of sweetness, a bit of spiciness. Its just beautiful. Another win for me!

[ivyandpeony]

I love this! All the components are really well balanced - I don't amp the red musk like I sometimes do and it sweetens the leather, really making it wearable for someone who often finds that note too dry and masculine. There's just the littlest bit of a sweet buttery note that must be the pie, but it's not overwhelming or sickly for someone who can't wear the buttery notes in Jack or the pastry notes in Knave of Hearts. So the pie note and the pepper note are the lightest ones on me, but they're definitely contributing to the whole.

 

When you just get a whiff, it's almost sasparilla-y. Get closer and the individual elements pop more. I can't wait to actually wear this all day instead of just testing a dab of it to see how that part goes when I apply more.

[cherrycherry]

Another winning red musk blend. Oooh, this could be love. It's like The Infernal Lover on me, but with a strong gourmand undertone. Delicious.

[miss_rynn]

If you like the idea of Snake Oil, but find it too sweet, cloying or spicey, than The Soldier is for you. It's the same red musk as is in Snake Oil, to the point where to me it smells like Snake Oil with the sugared vanilla spices removed. The leather is the same to my nose as is in Whip - suble, but pervasive. There's just a hint of vanilla and cream, but the end result is something very masculine. A masculine Snake Oil, if you will. I like my scents sweet and girlie, so this isn't really my thing.

[violetblue]

I like the throw and dry down on this one a lot!! The red musk is softened by the other notes so it's not harsh like The Infernal Lover was on me. The foodiness is spot on and it's blended wonderfully. Really pretty!

 

ETA: And now, weeks after using it, I suddenly am smelling the anise too, and not liking it at all. I may scrap the bottle order at this point I think...

Edited January 10, 2011 by violetblue

[strahlend]

There's something about the combination of musk and a foody feeling (pie/vanilla) that's kind of making me feel not so great. I'm getting quite a bit of pepper with the musk and sweet foody vanilla too, so this ends up smelling like a weird mash-up of wildly incompatable notes. It's reminding me Now Winter Nights Enlarge. I just checked the notes on that and it's also a red-musk, foody, vanilla blend - I guess that's why. Glad other people are enjoying it.

[Xanon]

At the end of the day, to me, this smells like my bottle of Herr Droselmeyer 2006 with the addition of pie crust. I like it. The leather is faint, so for you people out there who wish to wear leather, but your skin amps it like whoa - I suggest trying this. The vanilla

In the earlier stages of wear, I get more black tea and pepper with the pie. The leather tends to hang in the background for me through the stages. I am guessing that the pie is cherry or currant... something that pairs with the red musk and vanilla cream very well.

 

Overall I really like this blend. I am happy that I purchased a bottle.

[lamenteuse]

For me, the best way to describe it is this: Mutter U + Elephantine Colossus + a dash of Snake Oil = The Soldier. I LOVE all those scents, so this is like a magical moshpit of happiness on me.

The pie notes keep it foodie close to the skin, while the red musk has a nice throw that keeps it from being too sticky smelling. The leather and black pepper come out fast and sharp, but end up nicely playing in the background with a splash of cream.

[edenssixthday]

The Soldier - The thought of red musk, leather, and food sounded awful to me. However, I am pleasantly -- very pleasantly -- surprised. It opens up with the sweet scent of red musk, rounded by a soft black leather. The sweet foodiness is identifiable immediately. It initially smells like cream, but as it dries down, I smell pie crust, and that concerns me because I just can't wear gourmand/bakery scents, as they all "go off" on me and turn to dust or plastic. This one doesn't turn. It stays sweet and that foodiness blends amazingly well with the leather and red musk. I also keep smelling something that I swear is sassafras, but it could just be the way the other notes are blending together. I can't stop huffing my skin because this smells so wonderful!

[Penance]

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I waffled a lot on whether I should order The Soldier or not. Red musk and black tea are good, vanilla cream is good in principle (but it can go bad, like it did in Love's Philosophy) and black pepper and leather are often good. The pie is what threw me. What kind of pie is it? Something like apple pie would be good, but lemon chiffon or strawberry rhubarb or cherry would be bad.

 

But I caved and got a bottle anyway, because I had to know if it would work for me since it sounds wonderful.

 

First sniff:

 

Hello, red musk! I get a huge waft of fruity red musk when I open the bottle. When I first got this in the mail, that was all I could smell, but now that The Soldier's had some time to sit and recover from its journey through the mail system, I also smell a little bit of vanilla cream (which smells different from Love's Philosophy; more like heavy cream with vanilla added in than vanilla ice cream) and a tiny touch of pepper.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Red musk and cream. I'm not a huge fan of fresh red musk, so I'm not totally in love with The Soldier at this point, but I'm positive that this is going to age into something truly gorgeous if I just give it time.

 

Dry down:

 

Still very strong, fruity red musk with a soft layer of cream underneath and a tiny pinch of pepper. It's a very distant relative of White Rabbit (only minus the ginger and with red musk added) on me, but the family resemblance is slight at best. I don't smell the leather and I still have no idea what kind of pie is supposed to be lurking in here (I can't smell it, so it could be any kind in theory).

 

The bottom line:

 

I like The Soldier now, but I think I'm going to flat out love this once it's matured. Red musk is always, always better with some age to it, IMO. I'm almost definitely going to be getting a backup bottle or two in anticipation of the goodness to come.

 

ETA: Now that The Soldier has had a few weeks to mature, I'm smelling the leather on the drydown! In the bottle, it's still creamy red musk (far more creamy than it was before), but the drydown has definitely changed. It's slightly peppery leather and creamy red musk. Still no pie that I can smell. The red musk is already aging nicely.

Edited December 18, 2010 by Penance

[sunshinedaisybliss]

Wow.. when this first went on, I was surprised at how strong it was - the leather was sharp, the tea and pepper were right out there, and I could swear I was smelling something like licorice or anise. A few minutes in, and the initial sharpness of the leather has calmed down a bit but leather is still the dominant note. It's reminding me a bit of Crowley at this point.. strong, rich and heady leather with an undertone of vanilla. A bit like what I get when I layer old Crowley with old Snake Oil.

 

The Soldier really hit his stride after about half an hour, which is when the red musk started to come through. And I can't smell the pie specifically, but there's definitely a rich, gourmand feel to it now. The leather is very swoon-worthy, still very deep and lush and strong. I can still pick up the pepper, but not so much the tea. And the vanilla isn't really standing out either - everything here is really beautifully blended. I'm definitely getting a licorice/anise smell here though, like ivyandpeony mentioned.. it's almost sasparilla-y.

 

One hour later, and it's stayed pretty much the same - everything has mellowed a bit and warmed up nicely on my skin, although the leather is still quite sharp - I think that might be due to the black pepper, which is making the back of my nose tingle a little. I still can't notice the pie that much, but I don't care - I was actually hoping it wouldn't be dominant because 'pie' notes can sometimes go a bit wonky on my skin. This is a bold and brave blend - I only dabbed a little on, but it has great throw and stays strong on my skin. Crowley is my absolute favourite go-to BPAL leather blend, but he may have some competition here! The Soldier is a ballsy little guy - and I suspect he's going to smell even more awesome after a bit of aging - I'm hoping that the leather will lose its sharpness a bit and soften up a little more. It's not that 'chemical' leather that people mention from other BPALs, it's the nice old warm leather, but it is very strong.

 

I think I got lucky with this one - yay for a skin chemistry win! I reckon another bottle might be required

[filigree_shadow]

Uh... this smells like red musk and licorice on me. The licorice/anise part is strongest, which is befuddling because that's not even listed in the notes. I thought maybe it was just an odd skin chemistry reaction from putting the oil on the back of my hand, so I put some on my other arm. For the first minute it smelled kind of creamy and musky, and then BAM. Musky licorice. And yeah, it does kind of smell like sarsaparilla, like other people have mentioned. Rootbeer-esque. Only on me it's not a backseat, it's right out in front.

 

Pretty sure something weird is going on here. I'll let the decant sit for a while and then try it again, because with the lineup of notes that this one has, I'm not willing to just give up on it.

 

ETA: After an hour or so, the only thing left was red musk. That's nice, but... that just smells like all my other red musk blends. I'll still keep it and try it again in a while, but I think I like some of the other red musk perfumes better.

Edited November 29, 2010 by filigree_shadow

[tailoredshirt]

Upon application, this was very foodie and sweet...with a really odd, out-of-place note, which I think must have been the pepper. I got the leather and pie mostly, some vanilla cream, and a bit of musk and pepper. I never got much tea. I'm not sure I love the leather/pie combination at the beginning, especially with the pepper, but the longer it stayed on my skin the more I kept huffing my hand. The musk and pepper faded, and I was mostly left with sweet vanilla cream pie and a bit of leather underneath. I actually wish I'd gotten more musk and no pepper, but maybe age will help with that. It's too sweet for every day, but I'll definitely be using this bottle.

[dawndie]

Wet: light musky leather

 

On skin: black licorice

 

Half-hour later: lots of great red musk with a touch of anise

 

In conclusion: I love love red musk blends, and in this one the black tea, leather and pepper are obviously combining to make black licorice float above the red musk. Unfortunately I don't like black licorice much Still fun to try, though.

[SurrealReality]

In the Bottle:

Leather and red musk (very similar to one of the musk notes used in Smut) with hints of black pepper, pastry, and vanilla cream

 

Wet on Skin:

vanilla cream, leather, red musk, pastry (I'm not getting anything really specific here… just sort of a pie dough type note), & black pepper

 

Dry:

Pastry (again, nothing really specific… just pie dough), vanilla cream, leather, & red musk

After about 1/2 an hr or so, the leather and red musk become stronger and the vanilla cream & pastry fade into the background

 

This smelled strongly of leather and red musk in the bottle, but for a short time, this actually smelled the way I wanted it to on my skin - more foodie, less red musk/leather. However, that lovely foodie confection didn't last nearly long enough before the red musk/leather took over again

 

I see that several other people have mentioned anise, licorice, & sarsaparilla. The blending of these notes does give a slight impression of those (personally I would say it's closest to sarsaparilla), but I don't think there's actually any in here

Edited December 1, 2010 by SurrealReality

[revinn]

I have been on the search for a sexy oil for a very long time. I can't stand a lot of heavier notes that are considered traditionally sexy (incense, patchouli, amber). When I found Loviatar, I thought I had found my Holy Grail. I didn't know that I loved red musk and leather so much, especially together.

 

Tragically, two days after I tried my imp of Loviatar, it was discontinued. I never thought I'd find anything like it. UNTIL TODAY.

 

The Soldier is Loviatar on my skin, but even better. It's not as heavy. It has a sweetness to it. The throw is perfect, not too strong or too faint. I am in love.

 

Multiple bottle purchase, no question.

[tacey]

Woah. Anise like crazy - where is that coming from. Gotta wash this off...

 

Very strong throw, at least in the wet stage. Lotsa red musk and black pepper - I didn't get any vanilla/tea/leather, but the anise didn't belong, so YM will almost certainly V. I have no insight regarding pie...except my husband thought 'cotton candy' from across the room.

Edited December 5, 2010 by tacey

[fallingfortruth]

The Soldier absolutely broke my heart. Everything about it looked good, but then when I tried it on... All I got was anise. *sobs* I'm hoping that it ages out and gets better, but if it doesn't I guess I'm going to have to keep waiting for my replacement for Loviatar.

[Schmoozy]

Wow. This is freaking amazing!! Eagerly anticipating my decant, I was sad to see the mention of licorice/anise in some reviews. I was worried that those notes of doom would ruin what sounds to be one hell of a blend. Thankfully, The Soldier has just the barest touch of black licorice. The black pepper and licorice add spice to the tea, red musk and leather. All the notes combine together, and not one is dominant. It's creamy, slightly foody, spicy and full of naughty leather. The red musk to my nose is barely there, it only adds depth to the leather and tea. Instant Love.

[lahdeedah]

I tried The Soldier a couple of times, one at Will Call, and once yesterday. The first time I thought I detected anise, but figured maybe it had gotten contaminated with traces of another scent, because HOW? Then reviews started mentioning it. Second time, I paid close attention.

 

Wet: Red musk and leather. Amazingly, they seem to be subdued versions of these notes. Sweet. I usually amp leather, and it has ruined many a scent for me.

 

Dry: Getting a hint of something else fruity, and the leather is getting a little stronger. Then, BAM, licorice. I waited to see if it would change again, but really it was just red musk, leather and licorice the end. Ended up reminding me quite a bit of Pom IV, which I have a bottle of and don't require another. Pass.

[CitizenBree]

When i did my first skin test, I thought this was just like Paduan Killer Swarm. It was sexy, sticky, musky. With a full test, i still get that piece of PKS, but there's also licorice. Not strong like that one lupercalia that was dead on anise. It's also spicier than PKS. Like the spice in snake oil. If you are a huge anise fan, there might not be enough here. If you hate anise, this still might work. I hate anise but sometimes it smells nice and sometimes it's too strong. I probably would not wear this again.