Nyarlathotep

[CrazyPretzel]

Brooding, yet electric: the scent of buried secrets, roiling nightmares, the essence of the Crawling Chaos, the Father of Knives and Locusts, the Hunter in the Dark. This is the blackest of ritual incenses charged with flashes of ozone.

Fresh, it's lemons + ozone. Sniffing the imp I suddenly thought of a blackened sky with flashes of lightning and lemons coming down as hailstones and started laughing and almost spilled the imp.

On my skin, a slight woodsy note pops out but it's still predominantly lemon. After a few minutes some more slightly sweet herbal notes come up to add some variety, and then a hint of spice and it starts to smell a little more like incense - or maybe it's Ricola cough drops.

Ultimately it's an interesting scent and not bad, but I don't see it as something that I would want wafting around me all the time, so I'll probably swap the imp. Edited December 15, 2007 by Baitu

[hkhm]

imp: a very burnt scent. like burnt water if that makes any sense.

 

wet: lemony smoke. i don't get too much ozone just a very lemony smoke scent. far prettier than the initial sniff would have led me to believe.

 

dry: the smoke is a little more pronounced once this dries but the lemon is still there.

[arsenicsauce]

Huh, I'm not sure what I'm smelling in this one. When it's wet the incense is what I get the most of, but there's kind of an unexpected dry sweetness to it, something fruity. Dry I get lime, only a little bit of incense and another fruity smell that I can't place. usually I don't like ozone but it seems to be working with the citrus here. Completely not what I was expecting from the description, but I like it.

 

Edited to add: About fifteen minutes in it turned to citrus/lemon bathroom spray, the kind that dissolves the can it's in. I'm disappointed, was hoping the first scent would stick around but most ozone scents turn to air freshener on me eventually so maybe I should have expected it. I've been looking for a good lime scent but this apparently isn't it.

 

Edited again: It's still sticking with me a few hours later, and now I see where the "darkest incense" in the description comes in. It's very dark and musty, with the fruity scents all buried. Wow, did not expect this to change on me as much as it did.

Edited February 25, 2008 by arsenicsauce

[akiko]

This one is odd.

 

Imp: lemon & aquatic?

 

Wet: lemony, but it goes away, and more aquatic comes up.

 

Dry: maybe something resiny, hint of lemon?

[donnatron]

Imp: I recoil and think I have a mislabeled imp. This is lemon through and through.

 

Wet: All bright and fruity. Again, I'm just like "Why have you forsaken me?" because I love me a good incense.

 

Dry: Here's the good stuff. I guess the fruitness was the ozone and that has decided to take a graceful exit. This is dark and smoky and there is a beautiful soft resin-y scent left it its place. This is what I would deam a single note incense, as it draws to mind the Caterpillar, Dee and Uruk.

 

Throw: Pretty close to the skin. This is very mild for an incense scent.

 

Overall: I like my imp, but I like the way other scents improve on the incense base note. It's pretty, though.

[lilirose]

I write my reviews in a Word document before posting them to the forum, and with this one didn’t look at the description or any of the other reviews before writing my review. Now that I’ve read the other reviews, I’m sort of surprised, because this smells different to me than it does to nearly everything else. I get no citrus at all from this blend.

 

In the imp: Slightly sharp and woody, though I can’t identify which wood.

 

On skin, wet: This is incredibly light. I hardly smell anything at all.

 

Drydown: Definitely an ozone note in this, along with wood…not any specific wood, but the smell of walking through the woods on a damp day. Maybe a touch of sandalwood? It’s both light and deep at the same time.

 

Throw: Almost none.

 

This is nice enough, but it’s not really me.

[naeelah]

The way this smells when wet is really unusual. Stiflingly, earthily dark. I didn't know what the notes were when I put it on, and I had no idea where to start guessing. Definitely smells like a Lovecraftian blend, though!

 

Once dry, the ozone quality is most predominant. It's very aquatic, but I don't get a masculine, cologne-like sense form it. Underneath that is a dark incense a little bit similar to Al-Azif, but earthier. It's hard to get a good feel on it, because the aquatic quality is SO overwhelming on my skin. The incense is really faint.

 

So, this is surprisingly light and clean. Huh. Definitely don't try it if you're hoping for something like Al-Azif or Black Mass, but do try it if you'd like light, clean blend that has the depth of a heavier earthy blend.

[Lamia]

(Not much of an ingredient list, yeah, but the reviews babbled about how this was TehYummeh!! so I was willing to try it)

 

In the bottle, soft. Open bottle, again with the mildly spoiled fruit. IS there something going on with my nose? On skin, it became quite citrus-y, yet without careening wildly like Calliope into smelling like Lemon Pledge There is a touch of wood behind the lemon. If there's lemongrass, can there be lemonwood?

 

Not what I'd hoped it would be.

[voodoocatwoman]

I agree that this scent is hard to pin down. And my untrained nose is unable to pick out anything as far as particular notes. I wouldn't know ozone if it hit me in the butt with a lightning bolt. All I can add (which has already been said and said and said again) is that it is dark. I don't detect anything remotely citrus. Maybe an incense. A powdery incense.

[Allumina]

At first, I don't get any incense at all- it's all ozone-y aquatic, and a bit soapy. It eventually gets dusty, and develops a weird note that's almost fruit like despite not being sweet. Hmm. It's kinda interesting, and dark, but I'm not captivated by it.

[skepticism]

Vial: Sharp traces of wood/earth, probably the incense

 

Wet: Citrus combined with the woodsy scent.

 

Dry: Clean ozone smell, no woodsy/incense traces at all.

 

This is the kind of scent I enjoy wearing and would probably abuse 24/7, but I think I would appreciate it more during the colder/damper seasons. I don't find this scent masculine at all because of the citrus notes. This would work well as a kitchen scent in my tart burner, which I'll have to try later tonight.

[ReikoSazanami]

In imp: Dark, brooding incense notes and a prickliness along the top that goes straight into the sinuses.

 

Wet on skin: There’s a definite masculine muskiness under all that incense and resin, and what smells like rich spices as well. The ozone truly comes in flashes, especially when you’re close in studying the other notes. I keep thinking I smell cinnamon.

 

Drydown: Now there’s a bit of dust and smoke. The ozone is less prevalent than it was earlier, but the incenses are still sharp and biting. The spices are less rich now as well.

 

Overall: A puzzling scent. I’m not used to this deep of an incense, and it was definitely an experience. It’s a bit soapy after awhile, but retains a certain sharpness. Just not quite my thing, though I try most everything at least twice.

[Iceblink]

Sharp, bitter citrus and strong ozone. Oddly unsettling--like something you'd use to clean your sacrificial altar. I'm not getting any incense, mostly just citrus.

[rayvn1]

I really wasn't expecting the lemon in this one and thought for a minute I'd put on the wrong imp this morning! It's strange and sort of "Pledge" smelling. Not quite what I was hoping for, but I do adore the other Arkham incenses. I guess I'm not a big lemon person. This requires further testing!

[zankoku_zen]

I get lemons and ozone. Actually, it smells alot like the lemon-scented dishwashing liquid I've been using this month.

 

....

 

Probably not the best endorsement for this scent. At all.

[jehrichardson]

Dark flat patchouli and something of Aveda's Sap Moss. Ah, now I'm getting lots of sweet lemon. It's like it's dark, sharp, and high. I'm a synaesthete with scents, so I hope this makes sense. For all its darkness, it doesn't lack for sweetness or richness.

 

This is completely lovely - I'll add it to the 'maybe I'll grab a bottle someday' list!

Edited November 29, 2008 by j4r

[GeorgeJr]

Add me to the list of big lemon from this one . If not lemon , then some citrus along those lines for sure . Not orange or grapefruit . I suppose lime may be a possibility , but I still lean lemon . There is a slight , underlying darkness here . A bit sweet as well .

This is nice to have as a imp , to use from time to time when I'm in the mood for something totally different then my usual choices . But I can't see getting a bottle .

 

Upon further review . So I went to work , feeling like a large lemony kind of thing . But after about a hour , the lemon faded to a hardly noticeable background scent . What I did get the rest of the day was what smelled a lot like Shub ! I swear , it was the same spicy , ginger type of scent that I can only assume is the incense note in the blend . I may have to rethink my " no bottle of this " comment from earlier .

Edited January 8, 2009 by CoopieCat

[Andrea912]

Imp: hmmm...soft, subtle; incense in the back with sharp yet quiet acrid softened by the incense

 

Wet: ew; this did something weird; it smells like dust or wet dog

 

Dry: wow, its like attic dust with incense in the background

[femmefatale]

hmmm. Not at all what I was expecting. This starts out a rather sweet aquatic, slightly soapy smelling, but very pleasant. As it dries it is still a bit soapy, but getting a bit darker smelling. It's also got a pretty good throw to it.

 

To be honest, I'm not sure how I feel about it. I'm not sure if this is something I would usually wear, though I think it would probably make a great room scent.

 

 

ETA: After it's dried down a while I keep catching a whiff of something that smells so good and then I realize "hey, it's me!". It's smoothed out a lot and it's actually very nice. I think I will actually wear this one.

Edited January 13, 2009 by Femme_Fatale

[MCS4096]

In the Imp: Hmm.. I also get a very bright citrus cleaning fluid scent, with liquid smoke in the background I'm not a Lovecraft fan really.. so I can't comment on how evocative this is or not, but to me the effect is kinda musty, murky and brackish. And frankly nasty.

 

Wet: Jesus.. what is this, lemon and vetiver? blah! I rather consider myself an "incense" blend connoisseur, but I get no incense from this The "lemon" bit is obviously the ozone note.. but while the vetiver is making it somewhat smoky, it's more of a recently burned down building kind of smell. And I'm sneezing a lot.

 

Drying down: I'm now getting a distinct rubbing alcohol note.. This smells just like a hand sanitizing wipe! The kind they give out at like.. KFC in the little packets. Or it's a urinal cake. I'm sorry, this one just isn't working out for me!

[angelicruin]

In the imp, very dark smoky scent.

 

Wet on skin, bitter smoke and brimstone. As it dries, it remains bitter but is also sweet. Reminds me of fruit & vetiver on my skin. Usually incense blends are gorgeous on my skin, but this one is just not working on me.

[Calicopocket]

In the Bottle- A sharp ozone that overpowers all other scents. It smells of burning with barely any noticable lemons... I want to say something like burning anise.

 

First on the skin...It develops into something dark and woodsy with a the lemon hiding in the background, just bidding its time as all the other scents flaunt themselves. The burning soon fades away into the background leaving a sharp burning citric scent.

 

The longer it's on...the more I begin to smell like the most evil lemon drop in existance. I'm thinking of chaotic lemon tarts now. My skin has this terrible habit of making everything (I do mean everything) smell like candy on me....Nyarlathotep is no different.

 

It was a nice try, though! I do rather like the smell but I'll hand it off to someone who can carry the darker part of the oil without ruining the effect.

Edited June 9, 2009 by Calicopocket

[Suu4LC]

MEH. This is sort of a sweet, incensey vetiver scent. Vetiver is my least favorite note evah is vetiver, so this doesn't bode well for me and Nyarlaramadingdong.

 

Behhhhhhh, yeah this is a total vetiver scent. On my skin the citrus-y lemon note that other reviewers were noting comes out. Seriously the longer this on my skin, the more lemony it gets.

 

Yep, lemony vetiver. O_o Odd combo. Evil...yet oddly refreshing?

[moon_lemming]

Oh god, the notes in Nyarlathotep might as well be "anti-Karen mixed with some Irish Spring." In the imp it is not so threatening, mostly just a dark-feeling aquatic/ozone scent. On me, it turns into... leather? and aftershave, which is how my skin generally interprets the Lab's ozone.

 

Huh, a couple of minutes in it starts with some lemon thing. I was just reading the reviews on the forum, and they mentioned lemon, and I was like "Oh my chemistry is so weird, there is no lemon in heeeeey wait a minute."

 

Nyarlathotep ends up settling down as a lemony powdery aftershave. I never found the incense, unless it contributed to the leather feeling I got at first. Totally not a scent I'd wear, but not as bad as I thought it would be.

[sarajane]

VETIVER.

 

I've reviewed like a million things today that have NO vetiver in the description, but I put them on my skin and they are ALL VETIVER.

 

I caught some lemon at the beginning, but now we're in vetiver single note territory. I amp everything with vetiver to the point that they smell like vetiver single note. I hate my life.