Satan Starting from the Touch of Ithuriel’s Spear

[claudia6913]

Henry Fuseli
Golden amber, carnation, blackcurrant, aged black patchouli, red musk, and vetiver.

Red Musk, vetiver, and carnation with an under current of patchouli are the highlights of this blend while wet. As it dries the amber comes forth with its golden resinous feel. The black currant gives just the barest touches of sweetness. As this dries the patchouli remains a dark base for the scent as the vetiver and musk swirl around while the amber and the carnation and currant attempt to lift the blend out of the dark earth. This is the first blend where I've been able to reliably pick out vetiver and found out I actually like it. So beware those hoping this is light on vetiver ... it's not.

 

Edit: Okay, this was reminding me of something and I just couldn't figure it out but it finally came to me! It's like a cousin of Lawn Gnome. It has that same patch/currant combo. That's why I love it so much. =)

[HerbGirl]

Yes...I was hoping this would have a touch of vetiver - nope. Wowza it is strong. I couldn't get past the overwhelming vetiver (it actually made my stomach churn a bit!) but I bet it is stunning on the right person...all of those notes of win!

[LizziesLuck]

This is GORGEOUS!!!

 

The dominant note on me is beautiful blackcurrant. The patchouli and vetiver are just providing an earthy base. The musk is gentle in this, and the carnation isn't really evident at all. This is such a beautifully dark, fruity blend. The blackcurrant sort of smells...."thick", a bit syrupy but without being too sweet. The other notes combine with it beautifully. I am totally taken by this, and will be purchasing a bottle.

[Roogna]

this is definitely one for the vetiver lovers! and wow is it gorgeous! I definitely need more

 

in the imp: vetiver dominant with a muddled mix of the other notes. hard to pick them out distinctly except maybe the currant

 

on my skin: vetiver with a touch of fruity current and the musk and amber come out much more! and I can pick out the patch but it fades to the bottom of the mix. At first, I don't get any carnation that I can tell, but then it wraps itself around the vetiver like they were meant to be together.

[Anaire]

For the first week I had this decant I got a glorious morpher of Golden amber and blackcurrant against a backdrop of red musk and ending with spicy carnation. It was quite the party!

 

After about a week vetiver and the patchouli decided enough was enough and made their presence felt.

 

So currently during the wet stage the blackcurrant and red musk come out to play with a drydown of patchouli and vetiver. I'm hoping with some aging they relax a bit and let the other notes out to play on a more permanent basis though so will undoubtedly spring for a bottle of it.

[lucycat]

In the imp: Patchouli is the strongest note, floating over the other sweeter notes underneath.

 

On the skin, some of those sweet notes come out more. It’s fruity from the blackcurrant, and the red musk is making its presence known. I can’t pick out the amber, but I think it’s what’s grounding everything, and I can’t distinguish the vetiver at all.

 

This has a perfect sweet spicy autumnal feeling.

 

It took me a few hours to realize what this reminded me of: Visions of Autumn III from last year’s Weenies. The patchouli is the one note they share, and it’s the same patchouli, though honey provided the sweetness in Visions of Autumn, and here I think it’s coming from the blackcurrant. Funnily enough, a friend who liked Visions of Autumn III on me thought it contained amber, which it doesn’t and Satan Starting does. I haven’t done a side-by-side comparison, but already I think this is a bottle candidate.

[oimky]

I absolutely love this scent! I got this amongst others through a decant circle (my first BPAL's!), and it's heaven, I need a vat of this stuff, 1ml just won't do! Once it's dried down it's an incredibly sultry scent, dark and smoky, but not overwhelmingly so. I find on my skin the Carnation doesn't stay for long, I also find that I sniff myself constantly when this is on, I can't get enough of it.

Edited November 24, 2015 by oimky

[DiesMali]

In the bottle: Fruity vetiver-patchouli.

 

Wet on my skin: Smoky, gorgeous vetiver-patchouli and soft carnation.

 

Dry: UTTERLY GORGEOUS. This has taken a fast leap to being one of my favourite BPAL scents ever. It's dark, rich, vetiver-patchouli-amber closer to the skin, with just a touch of musky sweetness from the blackcurrant and red musk. The throw, however, is mostly velvety carnation and warm amber. It's a dark scent overall, definitely one for vetiver lovers, though the warmth from the carnation-amber gives it these little golden sparkles on top of the deep, rich brown base. It's a very unusual scent, like nothing else I have, and I LOVE IT.

[Musamea]

in the imp: all murky vetiver and patchouli

 

wet: earthy vetiver with the spiciness of the carnation moving forward to keep the blend from just being pure dirt

 

dry: this scent is still vetiver's game, but it's deepening and spicing up nicely from the carnation and patchouli; up close to my wrist, the red musk is a tad bit feral, but the throw from about arm's length is the most interesting golden incense

 

overall: this is a really different scent from what I usually wear – earthy and smoky, with no tempering sweetness – it's not necessarily a traditionally masculine scent, either, since it's not cologne-y at all, just very deep and grounding. Not a big bottle purchase for me, but I can see using the rest of this decant for meditation or when I want something calming.

[zankoku_zen]

Carnation, amber, red musk and some smokiness. Slightly masculine, but definitely gender neutral. This one smells smoky and dominant, and the carnation just softens it up a bit. Low throw, good wear length.

 

Musky, smoky, carnation.

[milo]

Red musk, kind of smoky with more than a little bit of patchouli. This one reminds me of Crowley a bit. This one is a bit too strong for me, even though there was just a teeny bit to test. No upgrade needed.

[Teamama]

I have discovered my (unwanted) X-Men super-power. I can turn Satan into Old Spice. I smell like my grandfather.

 

Three different trials, and always the same result .

[Little Bird]

Mostly red musk, but with some baby powder from the golden amber, a weird, burning mesquite bbq tone from the vetiver, and a dry spiciness from the carnation. Not my favorite red musk blend.

[SophieCedar]

This is a testament to how well SSTIS has aged. Everything has smoothed and its GORGEOUS.Any sharpness that could be derived from the red musk or vetivert is gone. Once again..this is so frikkin SMOOTH. I'd suggest people retry their decants, now.

[artisjok]

Definitely a red musk blend, I’m also picking up on the patchouli, but not much else. I can see how he amber is contributing. I find it odd that the other notes are completely abscent, yet I got a similar experience with aged Mme. Moriarty, just musk and patch, so maybe it’s just what happens with time. 

Smooth. Not very stand-out for me, though I probably would have drooled all over this fresh. 

[VetchVesper]

I'm surprised I haven't written a review for this one.  It's a favorite. 

 

In the bottle, it smells a bit like Crimson, which, of course, wasn't out yet when this was made.  There's a thick, rich red musk backed by clove-ish carnation.  People have complained about the vetiver.  I LIKE vetiver, but it can be harsh or acrid on me sometimes.  This one is present, but behaves itself, playing the role of a dark backdrop to the other notes.  The amber becomes prominent in dry down, mixing with the carnation so that it smells rich, and glowing, like the light from dying embers.  The fragrance is dark, dry, spicy, rich fragrance.  Not so sexy as opulent.  It could work for either sex, though I think it leans feminine.   It befits its painting well, is definitely a cold weather blend, and is probably for special occasions.  This is a "going to the opera" sort of fragrance.

 

Satan Starting at the Touch of Ithuriel's Spear is not for the faint of heart, but if you, like I, are a lover of lusty, rich red musk blends like Crimson, Bloodlust, and Callidora, this is worth finding.  Those who love ambers like The Lion or Jacob's Ladder might also want to give this a whirl.

[MamaMoth]

i'm so thrilled that i was able to snag a bottle of this from the lab's etsy recently! it's been hanging out hopefully on my iso for ages now, because hot damn those notes!  it's basically just a list of my favorite things. i was almost scared to try it and face disappointment.  but i'm not disappointed, not at all. 

this is like an object lesson in aging bpals.  even though i never tried this fresh, it is quite clear that the 8-ish years since its creation has done Very Good Things.  it has that rich syrupy smoothness, the notes so melded they're practically soul-bonded. 

the vetiver comes out first in the bottle, but quiets down on the skin. here, rich perfumy amber takes the lead, smoky and roughened by the vetiver.  a little powdery to start, but quickly settling down to that vanillic-resin amber note that i love.  patchouli and red musk embracing and supporting in a dark, writhing tangle.  inky blackcurrant infuses it all with somber sweetness.  i can't find the carnation, so i fear it may have mostly aged out of the blend.  regardless, this is pretty much everything i want from a perfume, and the epitome of black phoenix.  worth the wait, most definitely!