Solo Vulcan

Known variously as rock rose, labdanum is a long-lived shrub of 2m and more in height that grows wild and abundantly across Iberia and Morocco, and commonly if less abundantly elsewhere in the Mediterranean landscape where the oily secretions used in perfumery are recovered from the stems and leaves. Deeper research of this unassuming small flower has revealed that wild goats feeding on the leaves apparently have beards that smell of labdanum – a revelation so 'left field' that if anyone can enlighten me regarding the enterprise that lead to this discovery, then I for one would love to know. That aside, and casting an eye across some opinions on Loewe Solo Vulcan, I am at odds with those who consider this sweet. It really isn't. A suggestion of creaminess is even more perplexing. Vulcan's signature is the potent florals. There's no real sweetness – including the orange blossom – to speak of. So, if they aren't sweet, are they bitter? Well, no; not exactly. Instead, they have an astringent pungency that is especially descriptive of the labdanum. Collectively the florals have an ambiance of edge-of-the-desert parchedness evocative of the robust flora found clinging to thin, stoney, sun-baked soils and the searing warmth of the Maghreb. A curious violet-like note hides deep within. Thyme and vetiver are subtle and shrewd additions that complete this fascinating creation. Projection and longevity are commensurate with a product that currently retails for around £180/100ml. After 24 hours even just a light application is still very detectable on my skin. So apply with restraint if testing at a counter. Apparent muted enthusiasm expressed thus far on Fragrantica may just be illusory – especially if the sentiment changes as the scent establishes a broader following. My experience wearing Solo Vulcan is that it elicits curiosity and acclamation in a way that few other scents ever have. Terrific stuff. Loewe quality dialled to its max. 🇪🇸

This stuff is heavy, heady, and strong. It absolutely can be worn on a cool summer day, if not a warm or hot one, but if you apply it in any real quantity, especially straight onto your skin, you and those around you will really, really know about it (like choking on a bunch of narcissi or something). I suspect that some of the poor ratings may be from people who've applied it too liberally. I'm not sure why else this would currently be languishing so far below even a 4.00 rating. I agree with previous reviewers—it does have a kind of buttery or creamy roundness or thickness, and some ambery or resinous depth (due, I imagine, mostly to the labdanum accord, although I feel that the lavender is probably involved too). It does not smell green to me but has a kind of background herbaceous coarseness (from the lavender and thyme at least) that I find conceptually reminiscent of the macho fragrances of peak oakmoss era, even though this does not smell like those at all and even though I can't imagine that many men wearing those would have felt comfortable wearing anything as flowery as this. I don't find it smells particularly old-fashioned but nor can I imagine it being popular among young men eager to express their individuality by wearing whatever every other young guy is wearing this week. Perhaps it's timeless or perhaps I just don't have much else to which to compare it. Even if it is modern, I think it has to be considered mature. The overall effect of the white flowers is predominantly of the barbershop-adjacent orange grove variety but also has a pronounced and, to my nose, intoxicating gardenia-type mushroomy aspect that fits nicely with the labdanum. Overall, I would say that this is probably somewhere near unisex. The florals perhaps lean feminine, the herbaceous backdrop masculine.

I fell in love with it immediately after trying it and within a couple of days I bought the 50 ml version. I am still very pleased with it, but it must be said that its "aggressive sweetness" is likely to be a bit heavy to sustain throughout the day. I agree with what has already been said: this is a very original perfume (I don't have a lot of perfumes in my collection but not a few either, and it doesn't resemble anything I already own). In addition to the floral component I detect something honey-like that makes it very enveloping, inviting and tantalizing, but perhaps unsuitable for warmer climates. I think it can be worn without problem by a woman, with remarkable longevity and moderate sillage. If it cost a little less I would recommend it without a second thought.

This is a strange perfume, and half a spray too much makes it absolutely horrific. In fact I apply tiny dabs with a little roller decant, otherwise it's intolerable. But in these tiny amounts, it can be very interesting. It's like neon orange blossom with very dry lavender, and some sort of weird indolic creaminess. In the far drydown, there's a little twinge of secretions magnifiques, but only a tiny wisp, it's not off-putting. Unique and bold for sure. Horrible if oversprayed. You have been warned.

This and Atlas are very interesting. Atlas has a slightly bigger focus on the florals, while this is earthier, more bitter. No spices are mentioned, but the labdanum’s warmth mixed with the very interesting thyme note makes the whole spicy. I even smell a faint Red Chilli note, that is not listed but that’s definitely there, at least to my nose. I'd say this is a bit more masculine than Atlas, maybe because of the vétiver and lavender, which are definitely present in the base.

just fell in love with this one testing it on skin at a store. To me it immediately felt like a sunscreen smell which i LOVE and then it morphed into a spicy creamy sunscreen, idk why but i could swear this perfume had cinnamon in it. Came to fragantica and im shocked there’s no spices in here. So i guess is just my skin. The white florals are kicking in now but still feels suncreen to me ao i just feel like this is a very interesting choice for summer <3

Fragancia que no me gustó en un principio, lo conocí por un decant que me regalaron... Después de un tiempo lo volví a probar, está vez con un poco más de optimismo y usándola un par de días termine comprando la botella de 100ml... Fragancia informal,para toda ocasión y clima... Floral herbal, pero se nota la calidad... La verdad lo recomiendo pero no para compra a ciegas... Saludos

Gatekeep this Fragrance, it is very much elegant and high class. Underrated, caught my attention. Give it a try. I personally like the orange blossom. Reminds me of something I’ve smelled before. Smell like Orange soap mixed with Christmas orange essence.

I changed my mind on this. About two years ago, I wrote a review about this, saying it was a crazily strong headache inducing cinnamon bomb. I tried it again and It is still not for me but I like it way more. This scent, on the rigth person would be so amazing. It is a very well blended scent, you can't pick the notes apart much. Best I can describe it is bitter herbs made creamy somehow, it is kind of undiscribable, very much worth a try. It has brutal performance, two sprays is enough. Rant about who this perfume fits follows, you don't have to read this, I don't think I managed to convey the vibe I have in my head very well: Evokes the color orange with some dark blue. I do not have synesthesia but this scent strongly connects itself with these colours for me. Imagine this: A guy (or a girl, I find this perfume very androgynous), darker skin tone, wearing a textured blue tank top with brown pants casting a very weird silhouette held up by a oakly-esque belt. You can not stop staring at his cropped thick rough-out orange leather jacket and Black shades you can barely see the eyes through. Oldschool shoes, german army trainer style. They have a crazy flower brogue on the pants, same colour as the tank. All unmistakably designer but no visible logos anywhere. Elegant yet impossible not to notice. Just like this scent. Elegant but very much out there. In my review on Solo Cedro I wrote, that it fits someone who likes dressing a little different, but still well within social norms. Vulcan pushes past them. If you are into wearing weird (narrow would work best imo) silhouettes and bright colours, this is for you. I don't go for that vibe so the scent does not fit me.

Please don't blind buy this. I wanted to like it so much, but I just couldn't. To me it smells like synthetic cinnamon overdose, if I think about it, it is probably just the orange blossom and thyme making such an intense cinnamon effect - but I still hate it. My friends found it very offensive too. I'd describe it as Dior Fahrenheit's possessed brother. I can imagine Smokey Nagata or Frank Zappa wearing this. Super modern? Yes Do I appreciate it for what it is? Yes Performance? Very much yes Would maceration help? Probably yes Would I wear it? Absolutely no.

Ostrożnie z aplikacją bo o jeden psik za dużo i będzie zaduch. Na pierwszym planie kwiat pomarańczy utrzymuje się przez długi czas a w tle Loewe 7. Wogóle nie podobny do linii solo.

It's kind of Paula's Ibiza's father. Lavender & thyme blooms and then it's a subtle leather + vetiver/neroli from Guerlain Nerolia, Daily office scent IMO.

Mydlany zapach starszego Pana wychodzącego od fryzjera. Odrobinę kobiecy jest ten akcent kwiatowy.

i like it very much as it kicks quite different

itentical bo mancera black gold

One would imagine, being a flanker and carrying the Solo name, that it might actually bring some Solo with it? But nope. Nothing. No Solo DNA in here. For that reason my first experience was dulled somewhat, as Solo is one of my all time favourites and I have four of its flankers: Absoluto, Origami, Platinum and Esencial. I’m a guy. I’m a big Loewe fan. I have eighteen bottles, several of them are discontinued fragrances that I’ve managed to pick up. I recently purchased eight 1.5ml Loewe samples, and this was my second try on. After the utter disappointment in Paula’s Ibiza Cosmic a week ago, and being a big fan of the OG, I had high hopes. TLDR: it’s nice enough, it’s pleasant enough. It’s basically a narrow wavelength of orange flower with one or two herbal notes and lavender popping up and down in something creamy. No woods and nothing balsamic to me, and there was no Solo DNA in here. Performs well. Perfectly unisex. Almost linear. Not very exciting. It had a quiet opening, slightly citrusy. A few minutes later I got the orange blossom. There was none of the juicy citrus fruit accords from Solo. A more heady Neroli developed, officially described by Loewe as orange flower absolute, and to me it wasn’t the sweeter sunshine neroli of so many other perfumes, it was dry. Some time later something I kept thinking was clary sage (or doing that bitter thing clary sage does) slowly came up, it might have been the thyme, but it wasn’t coming off as thyme to my nose. The mid journey remained neroli, quite bitter and herbaceous, and a sharp dry arid lavender joined, until it all went creamy. And that’s how it stayed. The silage was good. Given the colour and the name I was imagining something rich, maybe syrupy? Given the complexities of the other Solo’s I was also expecting something more complex. It’s the brightest of the Solo flankers I have, and not necessarily represented by the bottle colour. There’s none of the interchangeable fruit accords that make the previous Solo DNA’s and not a hint of the woods, ambers and complex aromatics. This is marketed as for men, and to compare it to last week’s try-on of Paula’s Ibiza Cosmic, which is marketed as for women and men, Solo Vulcan plays absolutely unisex, whereas I considered Cosmic to be a much more feminine leaning style. To me, Vulcan was just a neroli style fragrance, interspersed with a few other notes that didn’t steer it off course. It started as neroli, stayed as a bitter neroli, and ended on a faded neroli. I didn’t pick up any of their labdanum accord in this one. Any vetiver wasn’t strong enough to make out, there was nothing balsamic, earthy or woody in any of it to me (as per their own description). If the neroli family is your thing, you might be in luck with this one? It’s also meant to “evoke the powerful, fiery eruption of a volcano”... again, nothing like the orange flower freshie and that big bold dramatic statement go together for me. From their description and the bottle colour I was expecting fiery, dense and rich. This was polite, pleasing and quiet. Less vulcan more veiled. I guess I would own it, if I ever saw a real bargain? On paper, I did think I was going to run to it. Vulcan wouldn’t sit comfortably on the same shelf as my other Solo’s though. I’m very confused as to why this carries the Solo name, other than perhaps it’s easier to market a flanker than an entirely new release? Whilst the four other Solo flankers I have are all remixes of the original, which is what I always assumed a flanker should be, Vulcan is a new track entirely, on another EP. If Solo is as together and complete as an entire designer men’s wardrobe, from the nice underwear, the three-piece suit, silk tie, polished shoes, to the jewellery and a leather bag, Solo Vulcan is just the nice underwear. Maybe that’s enough for some?

Hyper-modern (at time of review,) complex and "buttery." Opens with citrus and floral notes (lillies?) It's warm and spicy, has a unique aroma; something "buttery/waxy/papery/chalky." It's woody, a little fruity. Darkens after an hour and there're hints of iris and smoky incense. It then develops notes of orange peel alongside black pepper. Remains very musty throughout, though the scent is constantly changing. Starts to smell cleaner and a bit like a bar of ivory hand soap as it turns to a skin scent. The base is a little fruity and with a persistant musk which latches onto the skin and has a clean, white floral aroma. Smells very natural and floral as it warms off of the skin. I feel this is a unisex fragrance (on the whole - parts of it are masculine,) would suit ages 25+. Best for spring and autumn and probably gonna work best during the day. The performance is excellent; really strong projection which lasts for at least 7hrs. It lasts as a skin scent until the next day. As @Vitodito said below, this isn't for me personally but I do respect how unique the scent is and feel it might be ahead of the game and could become a future classic? For now though it's quite challenging. definitely not a blind buy option.

This is very green, leafy, unisex and very niche in the way it's quite artistic and not designerish at all. It's aromatic and to me has a similar vibe to paula's ibiza. I don't smell orange blossom at all, just a green oily palm tree with oregano and some mediterranean breeze. Not my cup of tea but i appreciate the originality. Maybe would work as a candle but it's too weird for me to use it as a perfume.

On paper it smelled amazing, then I tried it on skin and it's not that great. Smells like simple white florals, orange and vetiver. Also getting some green grassy notes. Not bad by all means, but just not that exciting.

i really liked its smell in the shop, on the sample paper. it reminded me of almonds, something a bit sweet and acidic. i put it straight on me after asking for a sample. i liked the smell then, even though i couldn't smell anything in the evening. i put it again this morning and i absolutely hated it. it was too strong, too acidic, made my nose sting. The almond smell i liked was barely noticeable and it only smelled of cheap men perfume, with no deeper notes or aura. i washed it off and i'm not sure i want to try it again.

The truth is, I tried it, and for three hours it had a strong unbearable smell, like clean but dusty earth. I don't know what the scent is, but it's intolerable. After those three hours, the flower appears, and it's better, but I really don't recommend buying it without trying it. I was excited to see if it could replace Loewe Atlas, but no, I would never buy it.

im sorry but this might be one of the worst things ive smelt. holy shit it just smells vile i dont even know how to explain it, its like fresh and spicy in the worst way possible, genuinely makes me near sick whenever i smell it

Una vuelta de tuerca a la retro Egoist de Channel, pero con la frescura del vetiver y dándole masculinidad herbal con el tomillo. Con un absoluto de azahar de gran calidad, esta vulcan, se siente muy fresca y fragante floral que incluso en verano se mantiene chispeante gracias al contraste entre cálidos balsámicos y florales frescos con el apoyo del vetiver y tan agradecido y elegante tomillo. Un conjunto que denota exquisitez y buen gusto a la hora de encontrarle el equilibrio y la conjunción de notas de familias tan distintas, pero que se sienten todas al unísono en un abanico en el que cada una de ellas aporta sus virtudes, creando un conjunto donde todas suman y ninguna resta. Un aroma polifacético que se siente muy natural. Si hubiese que ponerle alguna pega a esta fragancia que no falla en equilibrio versatilidad duración, seria la tendencia actual de crear acordes en vez de perfumes. En el rango en que trabaja esta fragancia es en la parte inicial y media, dejándote con las ganas de que hubiese algo más en la base, algo más que profundice y juegue con las resinas y maderas. Algún cambio hacia la parte oscura de algún almizcle o sándalo, pero no, al parecer el disfrute se queda ahí "solo" y aunque es muy disfrutable, al poco tiempo de su uso te das cuenta de que esas grandes fragancias de antaño, ya no se hacen. Hoy en día, las masas comerciales tienen los buenos perfumes cortados y repartidos entre tantas versiones, que para sentir todo un buen perfume desde sus salidas frescas hasta sus profundas e intensas notas de fondo, tienes que comprarte tres o cuatro botellas. Parece que nos preparen hacia el layering o será que cada día sabemos más lo que queremos y si queremos una citrica y fresca pues agua, que más ligera, pues aire. Que queremos verdor e intensidad, pues el elixir,. Que nos levantamos con ganas de verdes citricos pero también queremos que hayan amaderados y densos toques persistentes... pues esencia. Qué nos sentimos sin ganas de elegir y queremos un simple vetiver co flores pero masculino, pues vulcan. Y así con las cien fracciones de perfume, a las que te quedas con ganas de devolverlas a los quince días, como con los productos que no son lo que prometen. Loewe Vulcan es un trabajo muy bueno, pero breve. Quien no se haya cansado de usar una fragancia a los quince días.... Que tire la primera piedra. O que tire su dinero en la versión que más le convenga😁😁😁😄😜 Un saludo 🎉

I think im about to give up, because whatever everyone is smelling differs from what i get haha. To my nose, this has absolutely zero sweetness, or creamyness. I don't find it warm or modern eighter, the opposite infact. Upon first smell, i get sharp soapy greenness that reminded me of hairy chested fragrances from the past decades, most likely worn by men such as Burt Reynolds. Barbershop, sharp and green, think of a fern leaf that cuts like a razor blade. The opening blast of orange blossom (neroli) reminds me of Acqua di Parma Colonia, the classic, and the overdose of green soapyness reminds me of Hermes H24 and Kouros (without the Civet note of course). I love everything vintage in general, yet i must admit im not a fan of the classic men's mossy green powerhouse fragrances from the 80's and 90's and Loewe Solo Vulcan is in that genre.

First impressions, I only tried it on paper so I don't feel comfortable writing a full review. It's a fresh-sweet scent. I definitely smell violet and neroli or orange blossom. It reminds me of Fahrenheit Cologne the most. Pleasant and kind of old-school. Unique but familiar. Warmer weather scent.

Smells like eating marzipan in a freshly polished, dark wood library.

interested in a 50ml used bottle (15ml used)? dm me