Hi-Fi

I came across this accidentally, and it was instant love. I didn’t even want to look at it as the name sounded masculine and I’ve never heard of this brand as a perfume. But I took a sniff and I was hooked. It is indeed the most natural and close to the real flower narcissus that I’ve smelled. Everyone knows narcissus as a note in perfumery usually is something heavy, slightly yellow, and creamy. This is fresh, delicate, natural. In the spring smell some narcissus and you will see. The only other perfume I smelled that was a good narcissus was Ostara by Penthaligon. Here the peony has a supporting role. The perfume starts floral, goes into a short leaf/foliage/green phase and then settles into a soft and gentle narcissus. It sounds boring and it isn’t a complex scent at all, but it’s so charming and romantic in its simplicity. In therms of silage and lasting power... the silage is good for about half an hour to one hour, then becomes very soft. The scent has low to medium lasting power on skin, much better on clothes . Overall it’s youthful , calming, lovely, and appropriate anywhere. Completely charming and inoffensive, innocent, pure.

I am working my way through a small Derek Lam 10 Crosby discovery set, left to right. This is the third scent that I have tried, and the one I like best so far. At first it smelled like crushed green stems. Very fresh and natural-smelling, and somewhat bitter. Then a sweetness came out, but the pure greenness remained. I was trying to pinpoint what flower this reminds me of, because I don't know what narcissus smells like, and then it came to me: hyacinth. I can picture pink, purple, and white hyacinths in full bloom, with both the sweetness and the greenness. I'm also getting a touch of magnolia, as well as an aquatic slant, like water lily. I detect some fruit too, but can't quite identify it. Maybe kumquat? I am pleasantly surprised with this fragrance, because I found that the first 2 Derek Lam scents I tried were just weird! The name Hi-Fi seems ironic, because I wouldn't characterize this as a loud scent, but rather a friendly one. I suppose you could say it conveys a Spring garden in High Fidelity. Hi-Fi has remained fairly linear, and I find it to be quite lovely. For me, this one is a winner.

This feels like a cross between B&BW Daisy Dream Girl (not in the data base) and D&G L'Imperatrice. B&BW Daisy Dream Girl is a violet-powdery, Sweet Tarts candy and pink lemonade type of concoction. A youthful and summer appropriate powdery fragrance. Hi-fi has obvious peony with this Sweet Tarts candy and pink lemonade along with the watery fruitiness of L'Imperatrice. I would not be surprised if there were some violet, strawberry, watermelon and citrus in here as well. I noticed another reviewer below, guessed waterlily, magnolia and other notes could be included in Hi-fi. They could be right. I say there has to be more notes to this perfume. There is definitely a sturdy base of some kind because I find it strong and this lasts a good 9 hours. All I need is one spray.

If the word "lovely" had a smell, I definitely would vote for this. It is by and far not my aesthetic of perfume. At all. Would never wear this. However that has literally nothing to do with how I rank this scent. Didn't put it on my body so I can't speak to the sillage or the longevity. If you were a fan of sweet pea and peony from bath & body works, this is a much more elevated version of this. It's very fresh and sweet. It is a very clean scent as far as I'm concerned but I wouldn't go so far as to say straight out of the shower type of clean. Not soapy. Very well-rounded and no aspects of screechiness.

Derek Lam fragrances are curiously funny. Ones listed with only two notes feel like more and a few listed with three feel like one noters. This one, although not my favorite from the DL variety, lists Narcissus & Peony, and that"s exactly what you get. Nothing more than simple, clean, spring freshness. If you are looking for simplicity, this is the cologne for you. It last a considerable amount of time for a cologne, but could project better. I must say, I don't hate it. I'd buy it if it was in a discount bin, but full price... Nah, I'd pass it up for another floral.