Lampblack

Lampblack fulfils it's promise of light vs. dark in some style, it feels like a dark rubbery mutant solid heart surrounded by kaleidoscopic orbiting gasses and sparkling motes of light. As deadidol mentions it definitely has a CdG synthetic feel, but with some meat added to the bones, the vetiver and opening citric notes adding a natural comfort that only seems to further highlight the alien futuretech synths. The dark side also hides some delightful associations and surprises (more of that later). What's remarkable is the fact that the sparkling thin gassy grapefruit accord maintains itself to the close, maintaining the light vs dark dance for the full duration, I've no idea what synthetic molecule achieves this but it works wonderfully here, it reminds me a little of nu_be Sulphur in this respect but applied in an even more successful way. CdG lovers I would be awfully surprised if you didn't wet yourself over this. Lampblack opens with a lifelike citrus grapefruit, with a little sparkle. Shortly after an accurate ink note joins and these two sides define the opening stage. The transition to the heart seems to strip back the grapefruit to a thinner more persistent synthy note, and the ink note morphs slightly, now exhibiting a light rubbery facet. The combination can come off a little sweaty, not a cumin BO sweat, but more the slightly sharp smell of sweat breaking through an anti-perspirant. There is also a de-rooted vetiver (ala VE) and some kind of musk that seems to add a compliant solidity to the heart underneath the swirling mid to high notes, this identifies a little like toasted circuit board lurking around. As Lampblack moves to the drydown the earlier accords remain in an attenuated state and a plumy berried note is added. The effect of this is to add a very slight nauseousness on the periphery that reminds me of the ghostlike form of cyborg wet dog. From there it looses the berry notes first, then the darkest rubber and fades to a close with grey vetiver and the radiant grapefruit synth sparkle. I know I've mentioned some odd concepts above but it's what I'm feeling, but in no way does it come across in a nasty or skanky way, it's more of a artificial digital fascimile of an organic impression. It isn't a beast in strength or projection, but seems to have a pronounced radiance much in the spirit of Timbuktu, and longevity seems good at 8-10 hours. 4.5/5

Respectfully, I couldn’t disagree more with the previous reviewer who says this scent is nothing new and has pretty poor performance; I think if this scent is not exactly like anything else, yet has familiar characteristics, then that itself makes it something new and interesting. Familiarity can be a good thing. In fact, I always get compliments when I wear it (just 1 spray) and it lasts for hours on me with good projection. Of course perfume can behave differently from person to person, which I think a lot of reviewers don’t keep in mind.. Also, while I wouldn’t consider this a minimalist perfume (though I guess you could), I think minimalist scents ABSOLUTELY belong in perfumery. There’s still an art to it. I don’t judge a perfume by how complex it is anyway; I judge it by its wearability and how often I want to wear it. I keep coming back to this one, which is a testament to its overall effect. Luca Turin, one of the most respected perfume critics, wrote that Lampblack is “...stylish and salubrious,” and I definitely agree, even if scent is highly subjective. Also, $125 for a bottle is not necessarily expensive for the concentration and quality you’re getting, imo. Many perfume extraits and oils go for way more. If you compare this to a more cheaply made perfume, of course it’s going to seem very pricey. Samples are always a great option...Anyway, this scent is DOPE. EDIT: To any reviewers I disagree with, I still respect your opinion. And this is mine. Btw, I’m pretty sure this is not an eau de cologne.

The zip of freshly rolled ink on a brayer; wood and paper pressed together with giant steel rollers; the faint whiff of deodorant as the printmaker bends over the press with a block in their ink stained hands. Sunshine streaming through an open window as motes of sawdust catch the light; that same sunshine bathing a new print, drying on a rack just out of the way. Lampblack, oh my god, Lampblack. I bought a sample, intrigued by descriptions of it smelling like printmaking, but without high expectations as I'm a wood block printmaker myself, and figured it would just smell like people imagined printmaking must smell like, and not the actual thing. It smells exactly like the actual thing. From the nagarmotha lending the scent of freshly carved wood and freshly torn paper, to inky notes that couldn't be any more accurate, to the citrus and spice reminiscent of a clean studio and a clean body, this scent is a work of artistic genius, and an incredible tribute to wood block printing and printmakers themselves. This will be the first scent that I buy as a full sized bottle, and I already know I will return to it often. Additionally, this scent works very harmoniously with my go to deodorant (Old Spice Captain) and my usual working hands lotion (a homemade blend with calendula, geranium, and wild orange), it's the first scent I've tried that I don't need to wait until my other scents fade some before applying.

Well this fragrance caught me a little off guard but in a such a good way. This Smokey vetiver, citrus concoction has my immediate attention from the first spritz. I can see the CDG interpretations that come to mind in other reviewers thoughts but to me stands alone in it's dark yet tame delivery.To gain a better understanding about what Bruno was trying to achieve in this unique offering I had to understand the title "Lampblack" which I was told represents the pigment of Indian Ink. I remember in my Grammar School days with pen,ink and blotting paper those odors immediately came to mind. But this masterpiece is so much more than that smell with it's subtle nuances. A relative newcomer to the fragrance industry I can see Bruno's artistic talent in this genre by his devotion to detail and yes you can be one with the progression of notes weaving their way and encompassing you in a trance. I think with that in mind Luca Turin has become a fan of this presentation giving a more than a respectable 4 out of 5. A winner indeed. This is one you will be enthralled to enjoy. 9/10

Previous reviews are right, this isn't, per se, anything terribly new or unique, I can think of at least half a dozen scents with very similar notes. But for me it's the most exact and evocative ink scent I've encountered - the precise smell of my art studio in college, a thing I hadn't smelled in years. Wet india ink and thin textured sketch paper, a creaky old wooden easel with rusty hinges, charcoal you've accidentally wiped across your cheek, pencil shavings and those moldable rubber erasers, your nose pressed against the textbook, bitter linseed from oil paint and the plaster of someone else's sculpture drying across the room but when you're next to an open window and it's late May and you can smell cut grass and hot tarmac and fresh air outside. I love this. I can't even be bothered to try to tear apart the notes because it's such an intense memory scent for me that I don't want to complicate it. Plenty of CDG perfumes are similar and Andreea Maack's "Coal" is very close and IMO a lot more wearable, but I love Lampblack so much more.

Wow! Lampblack certainly grabbed my attention with it's dirty, boozy (make that petroleum) like introduction. There's a sharpness there from the citrus but a dirty coal smell starting to develop which is perfect considering the name. Just to say I haven't sampled anything from Bruno Fazzolari to date but I'm drawn to fragrances with names like Lampblack & Room 237 (anything that references The Shining has to be worth a sniff right?) So top marks for creating intrigue before I've even sampled them. As it settles down on my skin it's all about that Cypriol oil adding a spicy earth to proceedings. However, the further drydown is lighter on it's feet and I can actually smell the grapefruit now and what is more of a vetiver sort of vibe. Interesting stuff, I thought it was going to be hellishly strong after that opening but is actually quite disappointing. I love the way in which it has mellowed now. So a really good scent then but I feel it will be one to divide fragrance fans.

Lampblack does what it sets out to do so well, that I dare call it perfect. I have absolutely no gripes with it's execution. It is, by all means, the perfected version of a wearable inky facsimile fragrance. From the moment I smelled it, I knew I had to get a bottle. Lampblack is the poster child of niche done right. Anyone who dares to claim that niche fragrances are too gimmick heavy, or value concept over execution/wearability should be forcibly gifted a sample of Lampblack. Boiling this fragrance into a note breakdown is a bit of a disservice. While my nose clearly makes out grapefruit, vetiver, quite a bit of pepper, and some other subtleties, it does not smell like a jumble of notes. Each is so expertly implemented that it jives into a beautiful perfectly bitter yet fresh woody ink aroma. Can't really recommend it enough, totally deserving of the praise it receives. 9/10

impressive resemblance to an actual print shop. litho ink, darkroom, rosin, pulling silk screens, plywood floors, metal drying racks. leans masculine, but in a nuanced way. barbershop, garage, well-oiled machine, tar, dry heat. smells like a life dedicated to analog crafts. starts off incredibly intense, dark, and luminous, yet it carries this airy, effervescent, green, zippy quality from the grapefruit and pepper notes. mellows very slightly in the dry down when the woody notes come forward, but i find that it remains intense throughout the entire duration of wear. i was hoping for a little bit more ashiness and smoke. i am new to fragrance, and this is so exciting to me. such a comforting fragrance as someone who studied printmaking, and i can't wait to wear this all fall and winter long. would loooove to find a comparable home fragrance/candle/incense situation.

"Lampblack" is fantastically vibrant and modern vetiver. It opens with a sting of tart grapefruit, then a dry, smoky cypriol and pepper which instantly gives things a distinct woodshop feel; wet paint, sanded work counters and charcoal. The orange and benzoin inject enough mellow, juicy sweetness to balance and cushion the more bitter, smokier aspects of the composition, allowing it to remain fresh and youthful smelling. The overall effect, for me, conjures up memories of taking life drawing classes in a student workshop at college, inhaling the scent of warm redolent wood furniture, varnish, paint cans, graphite pencils and tinges of Tutti-Frutti bubble gum. I listen to a lot of Jazz hop (chilled out instrumental hip hop with jazz sampling -check out artists like "Nujabes" for reference). I feel that "Lampblack" is the olfactory embodiment of that music.

This week has been my week for sampling three fragrances from Fzotic, the house created by Bruno Fazzolini. (For some reason Fragrantica does not have "Fzotic" on its searchable list). I tried Zdravetz, Room 237 and now Lampblack. I guess the creator specializes in associating his scents with bizarre, gothic, industrial and chemical things. Lampblack "is pigment and the smell of ink" he says. But I don't detect those in this fragrance. Instead, I find this one is bright, spicy, vetiverian. There is a peppery and citrusy tanginess to the parfum which awakens me and makes me feel happy and alive. There is a spiciness that is counteracted by the pungently bracing citruses in here and underneath it all the vetiver which adds a note of class to the composition. I would wear during the day, perhaps to an office if I worked there.

this is god damn glorious; a perfect example of materials cohering seamlessly to exceed the sum of their parts. attempting a note breakdown to explain the effect of this fragrance is completely redundant. the overall impression I get from this fragrance is that of a smouldering sunset refracted through smog to produce otherwordly color, a seething, post-apocalyptic aura. there is vestiges of vintage, gasoline-addled masculines in Lampblack, but the touch is more of a nice homage than a replication and is ingeniously offset by the sharp, uncanny grapefruit-cypriol effect. In this sense, Lampblack merges past with future until they're no longer points of reference; the organic and synthetic until they're almost indistinguishable... I'm just glad this exists.

This is a high-contrast, angular oddball: equal parts smoky and resinous and green. It’s a pick-me-up and also a comforting layer of protection: dark yet airy, like fragrant soot or a silk screen printing machine. The woods here are dry, sour and rubbery. The citrus is bitter. The benzoin brings charm and rounds it out beautifully. Lampblack was my introduction to nagarmotha (cypriol oil), and it’s a super clever deployment. It communicates ink pigments and smoky tar while somehow remaining sheer. To me, this is a better, more original rendition of vetiver than Vetiverissimo, also by Fazzolari. The overall effect is bold and industrial, but on my skin it also has a subtle black-leathery aspect. This ambiguity makes it sexy as hell.

Its opening is jarring, like getting slapped in the face with a gasoline soaked newspaper. It then dries down into a peppery grapefruit with a subtle hint of that smell of old computer parts from the 80s. It is not a friendly or casual scent, but I'm fucking obsessed with it. I wear it on occasion and it stays on for hours. Perfect for goth night at the local dive bar if you are into that. CAUTION: do not blind buy this. But definitely get a sample. Fzotic stuff is significantly more expensive than it should be, but I will have a bottle of this around for the rest of my life. (also if anyone finds a cheaper alternative to this scent please let us know)

I love the opening, but the tar scent that I love about it doesn’t last on my skin for more than an hour. I could spray this all day just to get that opening, but that’s just unrealistic. It is love, but the performance needs more. BUT, other reviewers have stated the opposite of the performance, so it might come down to my skin chemistry. I am basing this off only the Lucky Scent sample, so I might want to try applying it through spray to see if I get better results. I am hoping that that’s the issue, because I do love this scent. And, regardless, I will be adding this to my collection - it is a must have.

This is another incredible fragrance from FZOTIC that wears like a true olfactory art piece. Lampblack feels nostalgic for a time when handwritten letters and printing presses were a central part of life. It’s pitch black, inky, smoky, a bit oily and tar-like, but also comforting and bookish with the vetiver. I think it nails the photorealistic art-studio concept, but also reminds me of stepping into an old-school bicycle repair shop. Alluring, refined, super handsome, and I can viscerally feel how much love has gone into crafting this.

Lampblack is so fabulous, so good that had it been a mainstream release from say Dior or Cartier, it would be as sought after as Bulgari Black once was. Just the right balance of refined and novel: citrus and newsprint that goes on and on in a variety of effect-creating ingredient combinations, always flawlessly on key and keeping the theme going. My favorite of BF along with Vetiverissimo, both beautiful twists on vetiver (and I don’t even usually like vetiver).

I first heard about this from on Michael Malice's show "Your Welcome". I always liked the smell of ink and when he explained Bruno Fazzolari produced a fragrance that attempted to produce the smell of ink I had to try it. I bought the Portfolio set offered on the website and I really enjoy Lampblack. It smells like a strong India ink and vetiver. The other scents really make this a great fragrance and is one of my favorites from Bruno Fazzolari.

Wow this is nice! I get that ink vibe but it's so much more than that. Very well done & absolutely gorgeous. This is a winner for sure... that citrus twang surrounded by the vetiver sets this a part from anything I've ever smelled before. This is my second from this house & it's definitely my favorite this far. Longevity is a perfect 6+ hours & the projection is a good 5 feet... GET YOUR NOSE ON THIS ONE!

this is a perfect example of how varied people's experiences with fragrance can be. my impressions couldn't be further from the person below! this is a heavy, incensey, woody perfume, perfect for a bitter cold night walking around the city. 1 spray is enough, two is pushing it. i think it would be suffocating in warm weather. definitely get a strong, mysterious feeling from this!

Undoubtedly Bruno’s best work.... I find this just delivers in every sense of its concept. This is like the indie version of encre noir with sparkly grapefruit and a cleaner and more versatile vetiver. No cashmeran bomb here like encre noir. Just really high quality natural-ingredients. This fragrance also happens to be a beast!

Giving this as a gift to a man who is retiring from working in printing. This smells like him: Old Spice, various inks, visits to the darkroom, woodshop and garage. Beyond the key ink note there is fresh & clean subtle citrus, inviting pepper and incense. A cuddly signature scent for someone who sniffs books or pulls prints.

Wow, I love this. It does smell like ink! It's definitely giving printmaker's shop with a stick of incense burning somewhere. This lasts all day on my skin, and I never get sick or smelling it. I feel that it projects well. 10/10. I'm going to buy the full size once I finish my sample.

On me this smells just like Enchanted Forest by The Vagabond Prince...just with better longevity and projection. No Black Currant in it according to the note breakdown but that's what I get on my skin. A good fragrance if you like that hardcore black currant accord.

Brilliant avant-garde vetiver. I think this is an amazing example of a somewhat "high concept" fragrance that is accessible, wearable, and versatile. Beautifully executed and balanced. It definitely garners compliments and comments of "oh that smells good."

Just received a sample of this! Love it! It really does smell like ink! It starts off as very sharp and spicy and mellows out to something spicy and fresh and a little warm. Bright, a little industrial, very nice.

Wonderfully biting peppery citrus refreshing a deep dark vetiver. Has a mentholated quality that bridges the gap between a mainstream masculine body wash and something more industrial and tar-like.

I first tested this while re-reading Misery by Stephen King. I’m testing again today and the scent fits the book so well - typewriter ink, snow, woods, cologne, and a bit of metallic fear.

Not even sure what I'm smelling, but something about it really clicks with me. It's very interesting, odd but strangely pleasant. Probably gonna end up with a bottle of this.

Black ink and smoke...the citrus is tiny, almost undetectable...a great fragrance in great packaging...

Very good. Sharp green vetiver with a dangerous side.

Of the six Bruno Fazzolari fragrances I have tested, this one has been the most difficult for me to review. Not because it is a “difficult scent,” but because I just wasn’t sure how I felt about it, and also after reading all the other reviews, it wasn’t really what I was expecting. After hearing about smoke and vetiver, I was imagining that this might be something like a darker, inkier Chanel Sycomore, but this is not remotely like that at all. Lampblack opens with a note that strikes me as birch tar, although I suppose it must be the cypriol in combination with vetiver and other notes. (Perhaps there may be some birch tar in the unlisted ingredients?) Since birch tar is commonly used as an element of leather accords in perfumery, I suppose that this is why multiple reviewers have identified “leather” in this fragrance. As it happens, I am no fan of birch tar or birch-based leather accords, so the opening of this fragrance is a bit of a challenge for me. However, after multiple wearings it has grown on me more than I would have expected. Still can’t say that I love it, but it is interesting. Sillage in the opening phase is moderately strong, and this lasts a good 90 minutes before fading. Beneath the tar one catches glimpses of something brighter, like glints of shining metal under a layer of soot. Gradually the soot crumbles away and this bright note becomes the focus. It is the grapefruit in combination with vetiver and sweet orange, plus a bit of pepper. There is, perhaps, a tenuous resemblance to Terre d’Hermes — as if TdH were re-interpreted as a niche scent with all-natural ingredients, subtle sillage, and no harsh edges. The grapefruit note fades very gradually, and eventually Lampblack dries down to a soft, powdery benzoin. I have found it to last 8-12 hours, albeit with fairly soft projection from the second hour onward, and as just a benzoin skin scent for the last few hours. So in some ways, Lampblack seems to invert the usual pyramid. Instead of citrus resting on a base of leather, it opens with leather and moves into citrus. (Of course, the citrus is present from the start, but the tarry note mostly overwhelms it in the beginning, at least on me.) And then back to a regular pyramid with benzoin in the deep dry-down. This is probably Bruno’s most masculine scent, in my opinion. Of the six scents of his that I have tested, my ranking (in order of preference) would be: (1) Five, (2) Monserrat, (3) Lampblack, (4) Feu Secret, (5) Room 237, (6) Au Dela Narcisse. All of them are extremely well-executed, quality fragrances that betray an intelligence and a particular sensibility — classic yet innovative — in their compositions. They all balance restraint with daring, though some fall more on one side of that spectrum than others. (Interesting to me that my two favorites are probably the least daring.) This ranking merely reflects my personal preferences of what I like to wear; I think ADN is an excellent fragrance, but I just don’t like to wear classically indolic white-floral perfumes. Ultimately, I will be purchasing a bottle of Five. But I would be pretty happy with Lampblack, too.

Fresh yet smoky, spare and austere yet with some depth to it. For me it conjures an angular charcoal sketch, or some slightly chilly character from the art world in designer glasses; very, very modern, cleverer than you are and keen to let you know it, not out to ingratiate itself with new friends. The grapefruit and cypriol come on strong and prickly with no compromise. The other notes (pepper, orange) add nuance but not much warm or opulence to my nose. For me (very much ambivalent about vetiver) it's a great achievement to be tolerable at all, and it might bloom into something more wonderful in warmer weather, but this one doesn't bowl me over. Strongly reminiscent of Encre Noire, but more restrained and so more wearable. Probably far more appealing to male than female users (except for the vetiver fanatics) but still certainly unisex. Might be fantastic on a cool guy in a fiercely hot climate. Projection not huge, longevity moderate, but that's all in keeping with its restrained, kinda minimalist feel.

Lampblack seems to be Bruno Fazzolari's most celebrated release, and so in purchasing the Portfolio sample set, I was most looking forward to trying out. It lives up to the darkness of its name, perhaps best summarized as an "inky vetiver." I get a damp, earthy quality from it, but admittedly something also seemingly synthetic in the inky vein. I don't detect too many of the listed notes---citrus at the onset, sure, and maybe some pepper, but not benzoin or any of the other items; granted, some of the notes are probably imaginary as with Imaginary Authors. Certainly geared more toward cold weather but not prohibitively dense for warm weather wearing, especially at night, Lampblack is strong but not overwhelming, consistent with what I'm sensing is a trend of good projection but great longevity from Bruno Fazzolari's line. I'm not in love with it but I do like it more than I generally like vetiver-dominant fragrances, and it makes for an intriguing entry in the line. 7 out of 10

This fragrance is very good, but goes from a "wow that's crazy" in the beginning to a "this is solid" for most of its duration. The opening, to me, is woody, dark, and inky on one hand and green and bright on the other. It stays this way for maybe an hour, and then progressively dries down into a very nice vetiver with a prominent black pepper note. Overall this is a pretty linear scent. Longevity is great, I was getting whiffs of my own sillage 9 hours after application. It is not challenging and would be safe to wear to work. I think it leans a little masculine, but I also have this weird thing where every vetiver-forward fragrance smells like my grandfather's Old Spice aftershave. Overall, good and pretty unique fragrance, but not one I think I will add to my collection as vetiver doesn't light my fire. Excited to explore more from this house, because one thing about this fragrance that is inarguable is the high quality of the materials used.

Vetiver tends to go unpleasantly sour on me, and Lampblack went a little too much in that direction for so long that I couldn't enjoy it much. I could not understand the name of it, as it seemed as bright a fragrance as any. However, when it dried way down, after a few hours the sourness finally calmed down, I guess the lamp finally went black because it smelled literally like ink. Like when you write a real letter with a ball point pen, and the scent of the ink emanates from the paper. At that point I really love Lampblack! Found it fascinating that the smell of ink could smell so darn good on my skin. The question is would I wait a few hours to get to that point? Could I learn to like the first few hours? The jury is still out. (next thing you know I will be waxing lyrical about my new-found love for tangy vetiver fragrances, with Lampblack as my "gateway drug"!)

Smoky, cypriol-laced vetiver with some orange pith in the opening. The texture of this one is interesting—it’s thick and tarry, surprisingly dense given all the fresh notes. The smokiness isn’t woody or airy, but almost leathery. The start of this is dark and dank, but it settles into a masculine-fresh vibe that I find typical of some of Fazzolari’s fragrances. I’d almost call it gentlemanly in the end, but in the brooding, misanthropic way of a film noir private investigator. It’s cold weather exclusive for me—that tarriness makes it dizzying in any heat—but I have a strong craving to return to it, or at least to return to its perplexities. One day I’ll go through my sample, but we’ll see if I ever go for a full bottle...

One of the most unique and intriguing fragrances to have come out recently. Inspired by "India Ink" which is formulated with soot from burning oil lamps, this composition uses a central note of nagarmotha (cypriol oil) and blends it beautifully with grapefruit, vetiver, and spice. The results are breathtaking, reflecting a gorgeous interplay of light and dark and still maintaining a beautiful wearability. This is a must try for adventurous perfume lovers. A masterpiece of modern perfumery and puts this very intelligent perfume designer on the map.

Full marks for creativity! This is niche at its best. The fragrance oscillates between green vetiver, fresh cut grass to a very metallic tar smell. Very sensitive to your skin temperature. Benzoin provides the resinous and mildly incensy background and the freshness of grapefruit (as a well blended note) provides constant freshness. Class act. Test before you buy and a collectors item. Shukran Habibi!

I agree that it is the jack of all trades or utility knives of vetiver scents. The bright citrus opening turns into an earthy melancholy dry down. Not so dark as let's say Encre Noire but the gloomy vibe is present. I find it to last between 5-7 hours the 2 times that I sampled it which is acceptable in my book. One of the better niche vetiver scents in my book.

There's a lot to love here. The most prominent individual notes are grapefruit and pepper, followed by ink, and they combine in fascinating ways. I get nuances of shoe polish and rubber and a slight nod to CdG Tar. I also get a note of celery about a half hour in...go figure. The only downside: there's a certain sweaty quality and it gets stronger with time.

Woah besides the woody base, the green notes in this bottle are pretty nice. Longevity and sillage are good too, but for the price and the bottle of this size it's not a solid for me. Somewhat masculine and quality scent. Not as unique as you might expect but still a well blended barbershop fragrance.

Have never been to a pressroom, but I imagine it smells something like this...Very nice - unique and high quality.

This one is a journey of a scent... but an underwhelming one. I was expecting more ash, smoke, ink, and soot. I got hints of the tar, but predominantly got bitter grapefruit and vetiver with a hint of pepper... not particularly exciting. Like a typical mens fragrance with an undertone of something darker. My skin tends to really pull out citrusy notes, though, so it probably is partially due to my body chemistry. I do look forward to seeing how this layers, especially with more floral scents.

I can't explain it. I don't really like it and all I get is garage/motor oil smell but at the same time its addictive. very interesting and intriguing but I still feel neutral about it. I was super excited about the ink note but not sure I smell it.

I'm afraid this just smells like a fancy deodorant to me. Vetiver, grapefruit, and aluminum antiperspirant. It does last 6+ hours and project a lot on my skin, even in small quantities.

dickensian clerk-wear. dark and oily with none of the psychedelic allure of kerosene—dark oil spent and burnt, as if the whale you're hunting set itself on fire two days ago.

Plasticky orange opening, with tar in the background. Then the cypriol bomb with vetiver support pops-in, giving an impression of turpentine. In the drydown, an indolic-like smell pops-in (tuberose?) giving an vague impression of celery. This is basically an indie version of the now classic orange-vetiver-tar theme made famous in Terre d'Hermes Parfum. Interesting take, but no new concept here. New concepts: isn't it the reason why we pay such a high premium for indie frags? Furthermore, overall performance is pretty poor, and I have to stick my nose on my skin to smell it after just 15 min. I wish Fazzolari apllied the concept of minimalism to the price tags, not only to the fragrances. Even if one could afford overspraying at that price point, it's no solution for me with this one, as the tar/plasticky effect makes me nauseous. After having smelt several Fazzolari frags (and ignoring the price tag), I can serenely state that Fazzolari has impressed me more with the nice packaging than its juices and there are more interesting houses to explore around. I now have finished my sample (gracefully provided by a friend), rest in peace Lampblack!

I got interested after I read Luca Turin’s review in his latest book and saw everybody raving about it here. So, I ordered a bottle from New York. My interest in parfum goes a long way back and even when I don’t persé like a scent I dare to say that I can appreciate the quality in it. Lampblack is something that I tried to understand over the last couple of weeks but all I got was a very strong, off-putting harsh scent. Glue/motor oil scent on steroids. Horrible.. though I guess it has to be me or perhaps a wrong batch if that is even possible but I got nothing of what the reviews promised.

@davidzev: $125 for a 1oz bottle is not expensive?? We probably don't live in the same world. At $125/30ml, the least I am expecting is a stunning fragrance like a couple of LeDore, Tauer or Bogue (and definitely not everything of their line-ups). But for an "everyday citrus/vetiver with a twist" eau de cologne, that's just a no-go, and others have done it better imo. (vetiver addict speaking here). And I had the same opinion on all the other frags I tested from this house (4-5). As for Turin, please don;t get me started...

For me, it's a no-go. It's so heavily citrus to start, but 20-30 minutes later the citrus recedes a little, but still leads. People talk about the smell of ink coming through, and I don't get that at all. Instead, I get a strong whiff of unpleasant BO, like as if someone tried to cover up their stinky armpits with a lemon deodorant. I can respect the goal, but for my skin, this just doesn't work.