Rien Intense Incense

Paradise, this stuff is pure bliss for the men of this world. Males of a certain.....errrr.....vintage, shall we say! Incense, labdanum, rose, leather, aldehydes and oakmoss amongst others combine to make an astounding nuanced, animalic and soapy scent of the highest order. This is mans man heaven! Us fellas have been mourning the loss of proper vintage gents scents and trying modern versions alongside new fragrances that do their best to mitigate the IFRA legislative madness and total BS, usually to no avail. This one from Etat libre d'orange feels like it has slipped through the net of red tape, thank God 🙏. There are a few other exceptions too, like the Naughton & Wilson and Rogue perfumes offerings that have the quality, strength and integrity of traditional male perfumery. Rien intense incense is very much in the vein of proper men's aromaband performs like it too. Kouros, Lapidus pour homme, Antaeus (old school formulations) and the like finally have a worthy modern addition to sit along side them, a cologne to carry on their glorious legacy. This product does come with a few very necessary warnings; :If you wear this your schlong may well grow to the length where you'll have to tuck it into your sock! :You'll instantly know how to take on MMA fighters and knock them out! : instantly, you'll have better insight than the managers and players of your favourite team. :Regardless of whether you have previous experience or even a licence you'll automatically know how to ride V-twin motorcycle to within an inch of its life....or yours! :The desire to convert your garage or spare room into a weights gym will be all consuming. :lastly, a considerable amount of extra funds will be needed to buy a complete new wardrobe consisting of not only motorcycle apparel but a pair of Trickers/redwing style boots, a high end and beautifully tailored sports jacket, immaculate button down shirts and well made Jeans that don't look like they've been sprayed on! It is illegal to wear this fragrance for the following reasons; :you are a vegan or vegetarian. :you are above middle management level. :you are unable to wire a plug, change a light bulb, check your oil etc. :are lactose intolerant or have issues with gluten, wheat etc. :do not consume alcohol (tobacco is not compulsory but occasional use will help with you application to own this scent....maybe!). :you drive an electric vehicle. :You're a fan of reality TV and social media. :you actually, truly care and BELIEVE what anyone else thinks about your personal choices and opinions is important. Females; Please do not spray this on your person unless you wear predominantly black clothing and makeup along with combat boots. Be warned, you may grow a male appendage and a taste for Steak, sport, engines and strong beer....the risk is yours. At the very least you'll have a trail of middle aged men in your wake to navigate, you've been warned! 😆listen, just a bit of fun but there are certainly glimmers of truth in there somewhere for the sort of guy that will like this, not that I'm identifying at all! 😳 It's just a very realistic and retro (to me) mens scent harking back to better times of free speech, common sense and opportunity for all! Beautiful but somehow both modern and classic with great performance. An excellent job. Speaking of performance, I've given this two full wears in reasonably warm temps, it's very strong, initially filling the living room! It's been detectable on me for the whole day and still more than a skin scent at bedtime. It's a fresh bottle so I'm going to hide it away (from further temptation) in the cupboard until Autumn when I'm assured by many others that the performance not only improves and smooths out but becomes a little darker. I can't wait! Incredible value as very little is needed per application and even better if bought with a discount. Straight to my top shelf where it will be a permanent addition, being worn often as the temperature cools. Beautiful, top level perfumery.

Rien Intense Incense is probably the most interesting creation from Etat Libre d'Orange and certainly their best performer. It projects strongly in the first hours; persistence on the skin is +24h, and on clothes for several good days. Rien Intense Incense is very interesting and perplexing. In its case, the "test before you buy" rule must be respected. It is a niche perfume par excellence, dedicated only to those with "acquired taste". It is for those who want to experience the perfume, not for those who wear perfume to "smell good" and attract admiring glances. The name that refers to incense is quite misleading. Rien has by no means the ecclesiastical smell of incense; if you are looking for a cathedral / mosque smell, Rien has nothing to do with this olfactory area, having nothing in common with Arabian incense perfumes, nor with Montale Full Incense, Comme des Garcons incense series, Filippo Sorcinelli, Heeley Cardinal etc. Notes that can be distinguished in the composition: aldehydes (strong in the opening), powdery iris (quite intense in the first hour), the smell of incense ash, a somewhat dusty cumin, some indefinite animalic notes, a very stuffy and somewhat mortuary rose note, very vague notes of moss (which seems to have been kept in dry earth), and notes of used, dusty, and dry leather (which are much drier than the leather found in other perfumes and which have nothing to do with either the sexy aspects of a rebel man / femme fatale, nor with gasoline accords – do not expect either Gucci Guilty Absolute, nor the interior of a car, nor a worn saddle, nor a leather jacket, nor suede, nor the leather characteristic of Francesca Bianchi's creations). These notes are characteristic of the first months of wearing. As the liquid matures, the smoky, tarry, auto shop etc. accords attenuate, and the aldehydes become stronger. Over time it becomes less dry and harsh and a bit sweeter. After 2-3 years of use, I detect in it a creamy and very pleasant honey note. Beyond listing the notes, how does Rien Intense Incense smell? Very hard to say and if you ask 10 people you might get 10 completely different answers. If I were to consider the side that attracts me, I would say that Rien smells of tar, pitch + the smell of burnt incense ash + the smell of a dusty auto shop + leather goods + metal greased with tar / dry Vaseline + the dry-down of Yves Saint Laurent Kouros, combined with the dry-down of the cumin from Antonio Puig Quorum + dry and dusty moss + floral notes, of which the iris is predominant in the first hour. If I were to consider the opposite, unattractive side, I would say that Rien is an exercise in unpleasant imagination: this is how I imagine the T-shirt of a mechanic smells, undressed after a whole day of work, full of oil, Vaseline, thinner etc. and left in a dusty closet for 20 years, alongside grandmother's sheep wool coats, soaked in mothballs. Rien Intense Incense is a dry, sober, dark, and truly gothic perfume. Rien has a breath of monochrome and vintage end of the world; in fact, this should have been called "La Fin Du Monde", not that popcorn bag smelling perfume also from Etat Libre d'Orange. In addition, Rien conveys something indefinitely animalic, mechanical, and sexual-morbid. Much more suitable for men, although it is a genuine niche unisex. It has nothing to do with contemporary mainstream perfumery and it brings back some indefinite memories from the '70s - '80s. Recommended for temperatures below 20 degrees. It is not suitable for the office, business meetings, going to clubs etc. It could be suitable where a goth outfit is appropriate, or in a nonconformist and open-minded environment. Do not give it as a gift, and if you want to buy it for yourself, purchase a sample first.

Rien Intense Incense by Etat Libre d'Orange is a dense, polarizing, pitch-black ambery leather fragrance designed to challenge the senses of those who encounter it. Firstly, as an incense freak: I love this stuff. It's not my favorite incense fragrance (That's Hermann, also by ELDO), but it ranks highly in my collection. I hesitate to agree with the title. Indeed, there's a smoky, incense facet here, but the perfumer (Antoine Lie) matched it perfectly with an animalic leather accord. There are some amber facets and a pleasant, almost dated, powdery aspect. However, our two most important players are incense and leather. It's linear, and many other notes don't register to me personally, but I wasn't interested in anything other than the incense. It starts phenolic and potent, almost with a pissy leather element, but everything cools off after a little while, and it turns into a velvety, bold incense with oily black leather and some gentle amber. I can see why this gets polarizing reviews and responses, primarily because of the smoke and the leather. Personally, I find Rien sort of charming and nostalgic. If you were looking for liturgical incense (think very piney, smokey, sweet & melancholic frankincense & myrrh blends used in Christian establishments worldwide), this is not it. I sprayed this around two friends, and we instantly agreed that this smelled like a spiritual shop (or a head shop). According to the other fragrantica users, this smells like nag champa incense, which isn't necessarily what I was looking for, but I'm glad I have this in my collection. Rien is a nostalgic fragrance for me. My mom & I used to go to this little shop near the school she taught at when I was a kid. I loved the shop's crystals and jewelry (gay omen!!! happy pride!!!), but they also stocked and burnt nag champa incense inside, and the store smelled precisely like this fragrance. Anyways, scent & memory aside, the price and performance of this one justify its spot in my collection. Amber and leather/animalic fragrances perform durably on my skin, and this is no exception. It lasts 6-8 hours on my skin and forever on my clothes. I wouldn't wear this one to work, except in the winter. ELDO has killer packaging and presentation: The atomizer is very responsive and balanced, and the bottle feels and looks weighty and expensive. Since it's an older offering, it wasn't prohibitively expensive, which I appreciate as a college student.

I find it very difficult to write about Intense Incense after having already reviewed the original. And yet, there are things worth saying. Where Rien is the fragrance of a magnificent funeral, Rien Intense Incense is more theatrical, more dramatic. To illustrate the idea with a cinematic comparison, I'd say Intense Incense is the scent of Charlotte Gainsbourg in Antichrist by Lars von Trier, whereas the original Rien belongs to Grace (Nicole Kidman) in Dogville, by the same director. The first thing that strikes me is how justified its existence feels. Far from being a purely commercial flanker, it simply reshuffles the deck, taking the same ingredients and placing them in a different order. You unmistakably recognize Rien, yet everything has changed. The aldehydes polish the incense, giving it a cool, vivid shimmer. The leather steps into the background, though it never disappears, while the overall finish becomes more metallic and noticeably fresher. And that freshness is precisely what makes this version so compelling. Intense Incense is smokier, brighter, and therefore surprisingly well suited to the warmth of summer. Even if it's still a rather daring choice for the season, I found it more fitting than the original while wandering through tourist-filled cities beneath the crushing heat of yet another French heatwave. I've read that, for some people, the current formulation of Intense Incense has significantly weaker longevity and a more restrained projection than the original. Personally, I think it depends on the conditions. The first time I wore it, I also felt it faded rather quickly. Yesterday, however, I experienced the exact opposite: it kept shimmering from morning until night without ever losing its presence. Was it the temperature? The humidity? Ask a chemist. Finally, for those unsure which version of Rien to choose, I'd focus on their personalities. If you enjoy fragrances that are sharper and fresher, go for Intense Incense. If you prefer your scents denser and more leather-forward, the original remains the better choice. Either way, the Rien experience is always richer if you've smelled the original first. So, which path will you take? Will you wander through a desolate Garden of Eden overrun by harvest mites, or will you try to outrun the relentless gangsters chasing you through the little town of Dogville?

wWOWw! Absolutely GORGEOUS! The very first comparison fragrance that came to mind has to be Kouros, or better said what Kouros (once was) before reformulations. The Aldehydes are used in a somewhat "Old-School" way, but not exactly. These Aldehydes aren't as Metallic or "Tinney" as say Grès by Cabochard, Aramis or even Kouros. To my nose the Aldehydes are a bit more of a modern take on the note, yet there is a slight old-school feel to them here. What mainly reminds me of Kouros is the "Civet like" smell although I see Civet is NOT in the notes list? That note is also blended beautifully in Rien I.I and is accompanied by an OBVIOUS Incense note which imo is a colder/clean insense with possibly a touch of smokiness if any smokines at all. The way the Clean Insense, the Rose and slightly powdery Iris note are blended here really is TO DIE FOR! Also I am getting the rubbery "New Tire" smell people are talking about, but its faint imo and really does add to the over-all dna making for a more interesting wear bc it doesn't over-power the other notes and isn't at all a distraction. Now, if anyone has smelled Initio's Oud for Greatness, or Lattafa's Oud for Glory, those also have a "Rubber smell", but that Rubber smell is way, WAAAY more subdued here in Rien Intense Insense and while it sticks around in Oud for Greatness (which I love), in Rien Intense Insense its completely gone within minutes. This smells "Expensive" and imo is quite "Unisex" maybe leaning a tad Masculine, but I dont think people would bat an eye if a woman walked by smelling Like Rien I.I. And the performance? As nuclear as people say it is, yet it still manages to smell amazing although no more than 2 spritzes is truley needed, probably even with just one spritz your good all day. Im not prone to giving high scores all willy-nilly like, but this things a freakin' 10 outta 10 in my book next to Ramon Monegal's Mon Patchouli. I very much highly recommend Rien Intense Insense, but ya must like Aldehydes and Civet which are divisive notes, plus they are pronounced in this beautiful fragrance!