The Ninth Cage

[hkhm]

THE NINTH CAGE
The unicorn hardly heard him. She turned and turned in her prison, her body shrinking from the touch of the iron bars all around her. No creature of man’s night loves cold iron, and while the unicorn could endure its presence, the murderous smell of it seemed to turn her bones to sand and her blood to rain. The bars of her cage must have had some sort of spell on them, for they never stopped whispering evilly to one another in clawed, pattering voices.

A claustrophobic blend of iron and oak.

imp: strong metallic and wood, though not specifically oak...

wet: very oak-y, strong and true. this will probably layer well.

dry: the metallic note is pretty tame on me, blends nicely with the wood which, while quite strong, is pretty nice.

[tartsquid]

This actually smells more like a deep woods note than anything metallic to me. I generally prefer scents with a bit of sweetness, so I'm surprised to find that this one is actually pretty nice. It's a very masculine smell to me.

[fisharescary]

In the imp, I couldn't identify the smell other than 'I've never smelled anything like it.' I look up the description, and things click into place-it seems I have finally met the lab's metallics.

 

On skin, the iron is still there, but the oak does come through. Like the sweet tree smell in Blade of Grass, TP'ed Trees, and this year's October.

 

It's really well done- in fact, I'm not sure I can wear it. The sharp tang of iron makes *me* feel a little claustrophic and threatened. It is, however, incredibly intriguing. I'd be fascinated by smelling this on someone passing.

[Invidiana]

This one is strangely intriguing. I expected to like it the least of all the Last Unicorn scents but I love the smell of oak, and there must be some sort of sap/resin note in here as well, much like in October, which actually makes it sweet on me. In the beginning the metallic element makes it pretty masculine but after the full drydown it's actully the sweet woody oak that comes to the forefront and it ends up being unisex rather than cologney. I predict that with aging the oak and sap notes will get even richer and I can't wait to see how it develops.

[crebbsgirl]

This one was a little cool for me. I should preface this by stating that metallic scents and I do not get along. On my skin this was very cold, with a definite metallic tang that went slightly cologney. There was a soft woods note in here but I really had to sniff for it. This one wasn't very me.

[sqwook]

I totally love these scents that have this kind of high-pitched awesomeness to them, like The Torture Queen. First on, this does not disappoint. Yay! (It's the kind of scent that some bpallers may find too perfumey or cologne-y; I have learned that I LOVE it.)

 

I'm excited to see how this wears throughout the day. Because unfortunately for me and The Torture Queen, TTQ does not seem to have any base notes grounding it at all on my skin, so it seems kind of thin several hours later. This, on the other hand, seems like it may hang in there with some grounded-ness, perhaps from the oak.

 

I certainly didn't expect this to be my fave out of the Last Unicorn pack, but it very well might be!

 

ETA: Okay, now I know what it reminds me of. You know how the first review of Dorian talks about "...as soon as the maid serving the tea is gone, this proper Victoran gentleman f***s you six ways from Sunday..." (No, I don't go around memorizing reviews, but that one was, um, memorable.) Well, I always felt like Dorian was a little sweet and vanilla (delicious though it is) for that image. The Ninth Cage, though, is edgy enough to do it.

Edited January 1, 2011 by sqwook

[strahlend]

I'm not getting anything here that makes me think of metallics or being claustrophobic... quite the opposite. In my decant I smell mostly a sort of bitter oak. On my skin, oddly enough, this smells kind of fresh and pleasant. There's a green element here that seems almost aquatic. It's reminding me of something... ivy... that's what it is. It's making me think of the oak/ivy combination in twisted oak tree - it's more of a feeling than a direct connection. Wow. This is a really interesting scent. It's green and woodsy and it feels clean without being overtly soapy. A good scent for spring/summer. This is totally different than I was expecting, I like it a lot.

[SophieCedar]

Wet: reminds me of a few atmospherics from Christmas Carol. Oh wait.. there's the oak. Mostly oak and a touch of metal. Reminds me of the adjoined offices in the high school my dad worked at. They were filled with oak and iron furniture. We visited mostly in the summer. The AC was off and the furniture baked in the summer heat behind closed doors. When I'd open the door, a hot dense cloud of this smell would hit me in the face.

 

Drydown: oak turns to mens cologne on me. The metallic note is amplifying this. Bizarre and not sure I'd wear it all the time, but interesting enough not to break up the imp set by swapping.

[cfrancesca]

Oak and lots of metal, which often turns sharp and cologney on me, but I find the over-all blend to be surprisingly soft.

[Little Bird]

I usually get along well with metallic blends, but the metal/iron here is masculine and somewhat sharp and soapy, which I'm not loving. I get a slight green feel from the blend at first, but it's like a bright, high pitched, soapy green. I think that I catch whiffs of the woody oak every once in a while, but it's a dark, bland, dry, wooden smell that I'm not crazy about. Mostly this is like a sharp, aquatic, men's aftershave sort of soapy smell on me...

[NYSE]

you guys are so good at breaking these scents down, I feel so out of my league, this simply smells really nice to me... I have a lot to learn from you guys..

[ajansuz]

I have never smelled anything like this, so if you're looking for specific notes in a review, you're out of luck with mine. In the imp, to me it smells very sweet and resiny with a bit of a bite. Very pleasant, though, not at all oppressive or dark.

 

Wet on me I finally do get some wood note emerging, but it's staying blended with the sweet and sharp. I don't get any cologne-y impression at all. It is, however, utterly gorgeous, and it's got decent throw.

 

Dry down it stays strong, equal parts resin and wood. If this is the labs metallic, then it really, really, likes my skin. I didn't think I'd like any of the first series Unicorn scents better than Mommy Fortuna, but I was dead wrong. I'd actually wear this to a job interview or anywhere I wanted to make a confident, powerful impression. Definitely bottle worthy, and it lasts for hours.

Edited January 19, 2011 by DarkSinestra

[Altaira]

This is... odd. I definitely get the dry oak. But iron? I think I just have to accept that my nose interprets all "metallic" or "stone" scents as "cologne." It's a bit floral, a bit vegetative (is that cucumber?). I can feel my head tightening in preparation for a headache.

[zankoku_zen]

Sweet metallics and deep woods. In some ways, it reminds me to Bed of Nails except its a deeper, richer blend when it comes to the woods.

[milo]

This is all metal and a touch of wood. After a bit, the oak is more present, but still, this blend is more metallic to me, and very much iron. Not to fond of metal as a rule, and this one is pretty heavy, oppressing metal. Fitting for the description, but untimately this scent is not for me.

[edenssixthday]

The Ninth Cage - I tend to like sweet metallics, but I always would prefer to smell them on my husband instead of on me. However, I adore oak, so I'm curious how these two notes will work together on my skin. It's actually a really nice combination of warm wood and sweet metal, almost perfectly balanced. It's a very simple blend, but extremely evocative of the poor unicorn's cage. As with most metal blends, I love it, but I wouldn't ever wear it. It's got that cologney quality that makes me think I'd much prefer to smell it on my husband, and people who like oak and high-pitched, sweet, metal blends, would likely really enjoy this one.

[imaginepageant]

In the Vial: Strong, sharp, cold metallic with warm, smooth wood. What an odd combination - but it works, I like this already.

 

Wet: Gets warmer, and almost a little salty. On the drydown it starts to smell a bit ozony. And very much like men's cologne. This is like an Axe spray that's been watered down until it's bearable.

 

Dry: Yep, men's cologne, which apparently is common of metallic notes. I'm sure I've sniffed other blends with metallic notes, but they've never smelled like this. It's so much more complex on me than it was in the imp that there must be additional notes in here - ozone, aquatics, salt, maybe some citrus or melon, a little musk. But bottom line is: men's cologne.

 

An Hour Later: The oak has come back and softened everything up a bit, but it's still men's cologne.

 

Overall: I have now officially found BPAL blends that remind me of each of my ex-boyfriends. Scary. Pass!

[Urpflanze]

I haven't tested much more than a score of bpals, but The Ninth Cage is my favorite so far.

 

The notes here seem obvious (there is almost total consensus among reviewers): metal and wood (oak, apparently). On me, those notes stay solid and harmonious from start to finish. No phases, no funny stuff, no sniffing around to try to find what you loved about it a couple minutes ago. What you smell is what you get. It goes strong for four hours or so and then lingers for another ten.

 

I like that it is simple, long-lasting and lets me smell like an inanimate object: a rusted lock, a rain-soaked barrel, a penny forgotten on a tree stump or, if you prefer some romance, like treasure hauled up from Davy Jones' Locker. Somehow this scent manages to be bluntly masculine while seeming effortless. If you ask me, it's because you smell like stuff, not like people.

 

Now it is a little too bad that The Ninth Cage itself, unicorn trapper that it is, is hardly to be celebrated, because this scent is a class act. Perhaps it isn't the cage's fault that Mommy Fortuna had some broken ideas about how to make a dollar.

 

But on to the real question: Does this scent make me want to magically trap things of beauty? I dunno. I'm gonna say...ummm, no?

[Gwydion]

In bottle: Delicious iron accord and gentle aged oak. Lovely. Wet: The more complex elements of the core scent come out as it warms. It is just slightly spicy. It is still slightly iron accord dominant with the oak expanding in richness underneath. The scent has claws, and it’s exactly what I want it to be. Dry: If anything more interesting and lovely. The oak is doing something gorgeous with that slightly spicy element I am suspecting is part of the iron accord. As the iron accord breaks down to it’s components with wear it just keeps getting more interesting and rich. There is almost a hint of dirt to it, which I also like. Lovely and dark.

[Doc M]

Part of a Unicorn Horn imp pack I ordered in the spring of 2010? Maybe 2009? Just getting around to reviewing it now. Straight up cologne. Very strong. Fan of the Last Unicorn book & movie but not this scent. Passed it on to a friend who is also a LU fan.

[Ajila]

In the bottle - A clean but slightly harsh metallic note

 

Wet on me - A very grey scent, one that feels dark and slightly damp. Definitely metal and I would have said a touch of musk as well

 

Dry on me - The dry down's really interesting, it melds into a sort of smooth slightly musky almost berryish scent that doesn't smell of wood or metal but still retains the feel of them

 

Overall - The dry down's unusual and I quite like that, but the wet stages are quite harsh and overall I think this blend is more masculine than something I would wear.

[mymymai]

In the Imp (ITI):I get clean iron, ozone, and a touch of oak. It isn't as off-putting as I had imagined it would have been.

 

Wet: The iron is certainly stronger on my skin, but here it’s cold and a little foreboding The oak underneath is sweet and adds a nice contrast with the iron.

 

Dry: It’s a perfumey scent now, as the combination has turned to a masculine by slightly aquatic and powdery version of iron and oak.

[somacat]

This on me goes from an interesting metal to an opressive, high-pitched, assaultive department store cologne ambush,in seconds. If I could signal an immediate red light stop code word for perfumes I would use it on this. Instead I scrub repeatedly and take ibuprofen.

[zewtsuit]

I'm getting this odd, oaky nuttiness from the bottle. It's not a very comforting woody fragrance like the lilac woods seemed to be with florals to balance it out, but a lot colder and a lot more iron-y. It's like the evil twin of a few scents from Phoenix Steamworks. On my skin, this smells exactly how I'd imagine the ninth cage would smell. Freezing and chilled on my nose, with that metal smell that the lab is so good at creating. Not something I'd wear to anything other than a funeral, but so interesting and gives me such a good mental picture of the scene from the book that I can't bear to part with my bottle. A reluctant keeper.

[DiesMali]

In the imp: Strong, sweet metal with a bit of oak.

 

Wet on my skin: Surprisingly sweet, tangy, and metallic. The iron note definitely overpowers the oak at this point, and for some reason it's almost creating a salty ocean effect.

 

Dry: Mommy Fortuna smelled like honey and blood. This smells like blood, damp oak, and freezing rain. Rather than a cage, this almost makes me think of a coffin in a pauper's grave. Desolate and cold. Interesting that the two related scents give me such a strong impression of blood. It's a powerful and sweet scent, but not so much sweet in a pretty way as it is sweet in a high-pitched, shrill sort of manner. It isn't something I would wear for normal day to day business, but like King Haggard, it will be amazing for the Renaissance Festival and/or roleplaying sessions. Maybe even cosplay, now that I think about it.