Dark

Evil. A dark, woody, swampy dungeon, smoke from oil lamps, the offal and evacuations of previous captives are just as much a part of the earthen floor as the dirt itself, sweaty leather restraints on the walls and the sweaty leather armor of the dungeon's brutish keeper. There is a clearly audible growl echoing from the bowels of the dungeon, and Neandertal Dark is making me growl too. The top notes of galbanum, pepper, fruity and sour ginger and grapefruit are the last opaque rays of light to stream through the dungeon's entrance before the heavy wood door slams shut right behind you. The odors of past and current wretchedness rushing up from the dungeon's depths to where you stand to also seek the daylight you only just witnessed for your last time. Salty and sweaty woody vetiver, tight and unforgiving bitter and anisic caraway, tarry incense smoke, rotting wood and the slight-sweetness of labdanum, and the stars of the perfume: deep, diabolic, black as squid ink, and animalic to the point of snarling, oud and leather. Despite the theatrics, there is a smoothness to everything that doesn't ever feel abrasive like sandpaper, or sticky like oil. This is pretty remarkable in itself because there does not seem to be a single drop of natural ingredients in this perfume whatsoever. The notes are seamless and unified. After about two hours it has significantly calmed down, and you're waiting in the dark quiet of the dungeon for your captor to arrive... but they never do. The massive and compelling opening does not resolve to an obvious conclusion, just a lingering tension that continues on, and on, and on. At long last the final skin scent is a warm, cured tobacco infused amber, the animalic snarl slowly dwindling into the background like haunted echoes to keep the tension - but it's certainly further away and getting further still, a succoring touch. Did I die? Did I perish in the dungeon, finally greeted by the relative warmth and comfort of death's sweet relief? Neandertal is part of a small but growing market affinity for perfumes whose advent coincides with the popular industrial interior design style: dark, raw, rough, hard, unfriendly, thick and heavy straight lines, steely and determined, accenting imperfections, and not just acknowledging the griminess of existence but reveling in it. Euan McCall would later go on to compose a handful of perfumes for BeauFort London, a reference point brand for this burgeoning genre. I imagine that few people will like Neandertal Dark, just as not many people will like the genre in general. The general casual wearer and mass-consumer of perfume is likely to recoil in horror at Dark, and many perfume enthusiasts and critics are likely to think of it as crass, pushy, willfully obstinate and difficult - wanting to be different just to be able to say it is different without actually putting much thought into it. Maybe they're right, but I certainly don't think so. Perhaps I have Stockholm syndrome.

These reviews are crazy lol. But I suppose with a fragrance like this strong reactions should be expected as Neandertal does not tow the line of pretty. I don't smell gag or essence of fear, omgosh people come on! I got this fragrance for the holidays and so far I really like it. It is certainly for the experimental and curious nose. Does it make you smell "Good or Pretty"? I don't think that is the point per se. I think the point of this fragrance is to create a mood. It certainly does not smell bad at all. It creates style and a particular ambiance of intensity, fashion, darkness, intellectuality, and mystery. It has a very strong new leather coat opening and then on me the carraway is second adding a rich core, the tomato sparkles on top and the incense gives it depth and a comforting roundness. I'm still getting to know it. and I'll report more later. Again, open up people. This is art, so let it sink in and think about it a little. Some things take time. And this is a fragrance deserving of patience and experience. So far I love it, it engages my mind and whole self.

Dark is wonderful! The opening is very green, herbal and fresh. It evolves with notes of red pepper and something slightly floral. The drydown is ambery with a slightly sweet incense tone. This perfume has an attitude in it's opening with a medium sillage, but calms down into a warm skinscent after about two hours. I agree with "manpen", this moves from almost in-your-face growling green into the cosiest scent imaginable. I love the way this scent changes and how long it lasts, usually over 12 hours, sometimes into the next day. Neandertals Light and Us also change considarebly but not as much as Dark - which is why this is my favourite.

tomato leaf is present through all stages of it, along with the spiciness of it. this one is savory to me, in a way. it's extremely vegetal too, but in a way that seems consumable, edible. it is indeed a very primal smell, like others have mentioned, but it doesn't evoke fear, or a flight or fight response. it's moreso a reminder, to me, that we're all animals; we all need to eat, to sleep. to hibernate a little when it gets cold. it's as simple as it is complex, in a way. maybe it does make me miss cave painting next to a fire with my family, who's to say kumlinge kyrka - jeremiah chiu, marta sofia honer

An incredible perfume in an incredible bottle. Very different, but not challenging, and not dark. I especially love it when I'm outdoors in cool weather, as it really complements natural settings. Spring is when this one really shines, but it works in other seasons. I've lived with it for a couple of years now, and my hat comes off to the creators of this bold and unique concept and a beautiful perfume.

Really complex and intriguing opening; cold metal, birch tar, sharp vegetal notes, marine like an ancient artifact pulled from the ocean. Later the amber & incense accord come through with supporting warmth. There's something leathery, animalic, & very much alive groaning beneath the surface. Not offensive but challenging. This is deep stuff, a villainous and powerful sauce that I recommend.

I bet the bottle really sells this. My little decant sprayer less so. Having said that, I think the juice itself is interesting enough. Anyone who wants to combine grapefruit, pine and ginger in the top notes has my attention and the pine in this one takes no prisoners. I'll add more to this review later. Seven hours or so later, faint traces linger. The first hour or so absolutely pulsated. It dares you to run to the bathroom to wash it off. And I suspect a lot of people do just that. It's murky, almost scary. Most definitely not a "date night" fragrance. You'd worry what you might attract wearing this stuff. (Would they be human....well, the name is Neandertal.) There is no other way of saying this: experiencing this fragrance was a whole lot like a drug trip. I kept thinking the first couple of hours that the perfumers came up with this concept while ripped. At first they fixated on the bottle design and had a lively discussion with their friends about how far out they could go to sell a $150+ bottle of perfume to a bunch of snobby perfume addicts and get them/us to gush all over about it. Then they decided on the cave man motif, figuring it had never been done before in perfume and/or look how much money the Flintstones images made for decades. After giggling hysterically about that, they got bombed again and went into the lab and threw together the oddest assortment of notes they could find. Caraway seeds and seaweed, really? I have no idea what that's supposed to smell like, so I couldn't tell if they were there or not. But I can't believe the perfumers weren't laughing/guffawing at us likely perfume buyers. Geranium I do know what it smells like, but I couldn't concentrate enough to tell whether I was smelling it. I was clobbered over the head with the only heart note that matters in Dark Neandertal: incense, and maybe several types of it. And then it goes directly to the fall of Rome base notes. I love incense and base notes, and don't mind be blasted out by them. Not everyone feels that way though. And finally about 2 1/2 hours into it, it either calms down or you just get used to it. Again, sort of like a drug trip. The base notes are like a group of odd characters at a party, noisy and boisterous but you can't get a real conversation out of any of them. By hour 5 or so, the overall effect is an almost reasonable scent. And you think, ah the power of drugs.....Yes I'd do it again/wear this stuff again. But I'd really like an empty bottle. I think the tactile experience of holding this plastic rock, or whatever it is covering that glass, may be part of the experience. In any case, you need something to hold in your hand to anchor you.

A floral leather, suitable for spring - not something you see often. Personally, when I smell this perfume I actually feel that I get the concept of the perfumer Euan McCall - based on the Neanderthals that lived in Asia and Europe until about 25.000 years ago and were smaller yet stronger than modern humans, before the latter probably outranked them. If I close my eyes, I can actually imagine sitting in a cave, dressed in deer hides (leather) while the bonfire (woods and incense) slowly heats up the cave (flint and rocks) surrounded by green foliage and pine woods. The opening is a classic and slightly raw leather, leaning towards fresh hides without going all animalic. After approximately an hour it gently and smoothly morphs into a nice and not too sweet green floral scent with tomato leaf and a little incense, which lasts for about another hour and after that it again transitions into a nice smooth base of sandalwood, amber, patchouli and musk which lasts a couple of hours as a skin scent. It's very strange to look at the note pyramid here, as the leather is supposed to be in the base while I get it throughout all of the phases. Good projection and average longevity (about 4 hours). I must say I love the odd stoneware bottle design which really stands out.

Dark is a very fitting name for this fragrance. On the opening it is very pungent. There are very strong notes of leather, smoke' and oud. After a quick dry down slight hints of citrus and something earthy plant like. There is also a slightly bitter green note in the background that is very pleasant. Performance wise Dark was extremely strong in terms of longevity. It lasted just under 10 hours on my skin but surprisingly only about 4 on my clothes. A 9/10 here. On the projection side Dark was also very strong, projecting around me for a couple of feet. After the first 3 or 4 hours projection definitely feel off and was more of just within arms length. It took till hour 8 to become a skin scent. A 7/10 here. I am honestly not sure what I think of Dark. I like it but I think I like it more as a scent then as a fragrance. If I was going to wear it it feels like it would only be a very cold day or night that I would wear it and definitely only in a large space. It is undoubtedly to powerful for most places. It's a 6/10 overall for me. The smell is very pleasant and I enjoy it. But it just doesn't feel very wearable, especially due to the strength of its projection and longevity.

Dark is indeed dark; a smoky, stony, noticeably cold aura (yes, I do get a hint of seaweed). My first thought was "pleasantly antiseptic." This feels like a rocky seashore in Scotland. It also feels like a (masculine) perfume; for all Neandertal's prehistoric branding, I'm getting a brisk civilized gentleman vibe as well. Maybe a Victorian doctor & naturalist at the University of Edinburgh who goes looking for fossils. Or, in other words, it's a marine leather. Quite satisfying. By about 2 hours in, the leather has faded and been replaced by a strange blue-green herbal note, a little like the tarragon in Kingston Ferry. Odd, but not bad.

I was initially slightly disappointed but it has really grown on me. The notes blend together in such a way that it is difficult for me to discern most of them individually, compared to other perfumes with similar notes. Instead, I am mostly getting a rum and raisin accord (but sweet and spicy rather than boozy). The only part I don’t like about it is the slight plasticine note. Overall, it reminds me of sitting on a leather couch at a bar near the waterfront, an arm around my date, feeling very cozy and in love.

First wearing. I sprayed a few thin tester drizzles on the back of my hand. You could barely see the liquid on my skin. I was unable to detangle the top notes - too much going on, but pretty quickly, it moves to a warm blend of oud, resin and patchouli, with a touch of incense. Very enjoyable. Very wearable. At some stage, maybe 35-45 mins, I get a slight scent of putty. Throughout the day the incense deepens, and dominates. It’s strong. Not a difficult or odd scent.

Bought samples kit of 4 (Dark,Light,Us,Them) Remember some of them I found Tolerable,some of them too odd Neanderthal it's amazing idea Such ingredients ( carrot ,seaweed,pepper...) makes aromas super strong and long lusting ,reminded me of Oud cadenza from Maison Crivelly I guess Absolutely unique , for walks in nature,rituals Very forest ,animal atmosphere

Aromatic, woody opening Kinda leathery Reminds me of wet stones in a cave - primal neanderthalic evironment

A contrasting fragrance to light, Neandertal dark is balsamic and leathery, with a note akin to black licorice.

super strong spicy ambery leather patchouli. only one spray necessary type of perfume. not even the tomato leaf note can redeem this mess. gave me trust issues. neandertal as a whole is a huge let down tbh, challenging scents for the sake of ?? i do not smell or feel any of the wrung out story telling shrouding these fragrances. can we pls stop pumping out shallow work about the anthropocene and just talk about our very real fear of mass extinction due to resource overextraction instead? it’s disgenuine, it’s giving you’re in art school and it’s time for that one classmate who presented the most fake edgy and least personal ever yet somehow tapped in enough piece during crits to start talking about the work... sos quoi!! the worse is euan mccall worked on a few of these including this very one, i feel so betrayed!!!

is this even a perfume? When I got the first whiff my mind immediately qualified it as a stinkbomb you would buy on amazon to play some disgusting pranks on your friends. I tried and tried to take it seriously and all I could come up with is a pungent geranium mixed with some low-quality wood. I do believe they used seaweed otherwise I cannot explain how this can stink so bad. I thought black afghano was horrible, this one beats it. Overall: 0/10 Not a buy and not even a sample, unless you want to prank your friends.

a dark and chaotic affront. some sophisticated component parts but the blend is aggressive and headache inducing. both medicinal (a base note of tcp) and wild (smokey, rich, animalic). like listening to five metal songs all at the same time on a loud and broken sound-system. a real shame, beautiful bottle and concept I wanted to love.

Somewhere between a vegetable garden and Deep Woods Off.

I saw Neanderthal as a recommendation from my liking of Black Afagno for the goth clubs. The Neanderthal glass spray bottle was very intriguing. I got a sample and I had to immediate had to wash it off. It evokes fear, and death, primal... that makes you want to run for your life. I have to disagree with the suggested notes. As a top note I do smell a airy leather, so light you go in for a better smell, and it burst with ozone, stagnate beef blood, and milk and rancid flesh. Neanderthal might not just be a clever brand name but it evokes being in a cave with rotting mammoth hide or a smell of a killer in the woods or a summoned demon from hell. I through out the bottle and took a shower, i get whiffs of it, i am paranoid as it's a very unpleasent scent but powerful enough to trigger a response if that was the goal of the perfumer.