Random Brothel

[Silvertree]

Velvet red musk, polished mahogany, Virginia cedar, orange flower water, jasmine, black amber, and skin musk.

[VioletChaos]

I. Am. In. Love.

I haven't been this obsessed with a scent, from any house, in literally years.

The first thing you need to know about Random Brothel, is that it's a very slow burn. What I mean by that, is that from the time it's applied until it achieves its full bloom after drydown, takes quite a long time. In the bottle, and during this transition period, mostly it smells like violets with a bit of acrid wood in the background. There's something that's quite Late-Autumn-Goth about it, and it's not at all unpleasant. 

However, at around the 20-40 minute mark, the scent shifts entirely, revealing THE, most hands-down gorgeous musk imaginable- rich and slightly sweet with incredible depth, the black amber adding to the layers, but only in a far away background kind of way. 

And the traces linger. Oh, how magnificently they linger. I've been sometimes putting some one shortly before bed, waking in a light intoxicating cloud, then reapplying for the day. 

I already have one backup bottle but am seriously considering two more because I cannot imaging living without this scent in my life, ever. I

[feyofthefellwood]

Absolutely lovely. The red musk is not as heady or incensey as in most scents, the jasmine is like flower pollen without indole, and the orange flower water is smooth and understated. This floral muskiness blends so beautifully with the black amber, and lasts forever. I wasn't expecting it to smell this alluring and am so pleasantly surprised. 

[ND¢]

You know, I got this because I am obsessed with the Lab's black amber note, knowing that multiple listed notes (specifically cedar, red musk and jasmine) do not work for me, just because I wanted to see. And I'm reviewing it because it's kind of an amazing scent.

 

I, like the previous reviewer, find it substantially more alluring than I expected. A little mini jasmine blast on application that is somehow velvety and reminds me of a fresh rose petal? Weird? But not jasmine-indole-yuck, is my point... along with a slightly acrid sharp note that gutters along for a second and then smooths out to round out what I see is orange flower water and a little rich mahogany. The velvetiness is in full effect quickly. 

 

Not getting the typical cedar here, nor the grapey red musk death I feared. This would (amusingly) be a great companion scent for Countess Willie. And then from that initial almost-uncomfortable intro, it develops lush fullness and is... really sexy. Like... walking into a random brothel and then.... 😖🥴 I'm... not sure I can bring myself to swap it! I think this would have found traction as a full release! 

[zankoku_zen]

Fresh flowers, musk, and a whiff of wood. This one was one of the freshest flower scents I've had in a while. Hmmm. Good throw, medium wear length.

[puellacaerulea]

This one leads with heavy, polished mahogany, which gives me a distinct scent memory of (of all things) the smell I'd be hit with as I walked into my grandparents' house. As it wears, the black musk and amber amp up. On my skin, this is more heavy woods and musks than florals, but that said, red musk does tend to overwhelm everything else on my skin. A little too heavy for my liking, but I did appreciate the scent flashback to my grandparents' furniture.

[elissamay]

Triggered a scent memory of vintage, bright-green Palmolive dish soap in grandma's kitchen. Way more floral in the opening than expected with two kinds of musk in the blend, but it settles down to a flowery skin musk that lasts for hours and hours.

Edited April 30, 2023 by elissamay