Aksum

This review is long due, but it needs to be done, as this is one of the most perplexing, unique, and mind-bending perfume compositions that I have ever smelled, and I have smelled many. If I want Prin Lomros to be remembered for only one creation, it would be the original AKSUM. If there will ever be a Prin Lomros section at an Olfaction museum, I want this to be the only piece in that collection. If there is one Prin that set the bar, it was this. Whenever people ask me, what's the Prin to try, I always put this one as a first, although I realize most people will never get to experience it. I never use the word masterpiece, but this is a masterwork perfume to me. But first things first, I'm talking here about the OG AKSUM that came out in 2017 and was only sold through Bon's shop, in Thailand, as a limited edition. I think there were like 60 bottles made, and they went fast. Not the re-released, the reformulated version that Prin made due to high requests and sold afterward to people asking for it. That's a shadow of what this beast was created to be. The original, was at the time, an absolute madness, a real experiment. He managed to source some really amazing absolutes, as well as an amazing Wild, 60-year-old Indian Oud oil with a unique profile, and he decided to put it all on the table with AKSUM. At the time, it was unheard of, even today, it smells unlike anything out there. The OG was almost entirely natural and was compounded at around 45-50% concentration. This stuff is so viscous that if not sprayed for a long time, it clogs the pump and the atomizer. It doesn't spray, it rather squirts perfume. In terms of ingredients used, the oud used, and the concentration, the second version of AKSUM is quite a letdown if you ever tried the OG. It is much lighter and feels like an EDT by comparison, the oud is much inferior, I believe it is a Trat Oud, and I think there are more synthetics used. Telling them apart is quite easy though, especially if you ever smelled the OG. The OG came with the classic Pryn Parfum cardboard box and had the batch code LT010617, which was only available to purchase from the Pryn Parfum website for about 550 USD, the atomizer is a black color like all old Pryn Parfum bottles, and it has the "Pryn Perfumes" logo embossed on the label. The perfume is very dark, can't see through, and incredibly viscous, almost like an attar. The reformulated one was sold privately by Prin himself, I think for around 350 USD, it is much lighter in color and less concentrated, and most of them, or the ones I've seen, have a silver-grey atomizer and no embossed logo on the label. But of course, the smell is rather different, and the most striking difference is in the profile of the Oud used. I never got the HOMA and AKSUM comparison, to me they smell very different, but I think the new AKSUM does smell much like HOMA, whereas the OG smells nothing alike. Now that I got that part out of the way, what does AKSUM smell like? This is one of those perfumes where the individual notes work together to create a flume, an overall accord, and it all comes together as a whole. Trying to pinpoint notes in this one is futile, and unnecessary. I'll never forget the first time I smelled this. I could have never imagined myself wearing something like this. It didn't smell like perfume, it smelled alive. The first thing that came to mind smelling it, was a cave. A dark, wet, soil-like, earthy, cave smell. Inside, a bunch of natives are preparing animals for a sacrificial ritual, burning all sorts of incense, while the smell of goats that are about to be slaughtered is discernible in the air. Nice picture, I know. It still makes me picture that, even today, but I came to accept it. I'm part of the ritual now. It is a primal, raw, animalic smell. It's not animalic in the sense that it's dirty, like some of his work. Quite the contrary, it's not that dirty. It's animalic in the sense that it smells like nature. Unfiltered, raw nature. Old world smell. And by that, I don't mean the 19's, or the Dark Age, I mean freaking prehistoric times. I'd imagine that smells like these would be encountered in Ancient Greece. Rocky terrain, goats roaming around, incense burned for the Gods. That sort of Old World smell. The Oud that he used here is truly exceptional, and the absolute ENGINE/CORE of the perfume. It is an Indian Oud that has this most exceptional earthy-mineral and chocolaty aroma, together with the more common leathery profile of those ouds, but no fermentation or cheesy aspects whatsoever. Another note that is easily identifiable is the goat hair tincture, and then some spices, mostly the tumeric, the cumin, and the immortelle, hay, and olibanum. I'd call this an Oud perfume, as the Oud is the star of the show, and it really helps to build the entire composition around it. But again, here, the notes are not important, but rather the outcome of it all. Truly one of the most exceptional, boundary-pushing, and experimental perfumes that have ever been created, and the one I believe Prin should be remembered for.

This review is long overdue... Aksum is undoubtedly one of the most sophisticated creations Prin has ever composed. A LOT is happening at the same time from the first spray until the last sniff. It is head-and-shoulder above its peers when it comes to dynamic & multifaceted animalic fragrances and it will not disappoint if you are a fan of something dark & mysterious. Personally, I do not feel any connections between this and Aranyaka. Despite both being comfortably fitted in dark & mysterious theme, they apparently head to different destinations. Aksum is in a class of its own with Prin's signature goat hair tincture. It is deep, dark, smoky, incensy, slightly resinous, and ever so slightly balsamic. The combination of goat hair & asphalt is beyond the comprehension of most people. But I love it. The hint of balsamic and ambery accords, with the undertone of intense bitter green notes like galbanum and dirty earthy nuance from costus, make this fragrance extremely interesting. Earthiness, dirtiness, smokiness and hidden sweetness help round the edges of the spicy animalic notes. It is much sexier than one might expect...it gives you a warm and fuzzy vibe when smelling up close during the drydown. The projection is there. Not excessive but strong enough to get noticed but not overly offensive. Huge sillage. The lasting power though...it stays on my skin for 2 days easily, giving you a good idea of how concentrated it is. This stuff is unmistakable Prin. And it's also Prin when he was just entering the beginning of his prime (and he is still very well in his prime...if you asked me Prin is more tailored to my taste than PRYN, and without a doubt catered more to his strengths with the likes of Mriga, Varuek). Clearly, Aksum has earned its legendary status in my book.

I have to agree with rbalkris. Though I currently only have a 1ml decant (ordered more from their website), this is the perfume I have been looking for. It takes me to the farm that my parents friends owned and it was such a treat to break from the crowded suburbs to visit, and often spend the weekends with the Joy family. That was their name, Joy. Though they had no goats, they had hogs, tobacco, chickens, horses and fields of wonderful crops. They kept a large area of compost to plow into the soil and John (the youngest boy, but 4 years my senior) and I would make up names and personalities for each hog. Rita Joy loved flowers, and there were fragrant blooms of lovely color everywhere. There was a large pile of wood for the stove and fireplace, straw, fresh turned earth pathways connecting the barns and supplies sheds. It was the smell of earth, all mixed together, and in the dewy cool mornings, it had a sweetness like no smell I have ever known. John was also my first boyhood crush. He was very attractive, shy, witty and seemed to take a fancy to me. That was a long time ago. The Joy seniors have passed away, and I dont know what happened to John, but as corny as it may sound, this perfume for me keeps them as alive as yesterday. Oh, longevity and projection here is as expected, very good. It may be expensive, but if this is the last bottle of perfume I buy, I will have one in my collection.

My quest for a criterion animalic perfume ends with this beautiful monster. Named after a region in the heart of ancient Ethiopia which I was fortunate to visit, this scent perfectly captures the mystical aura of this mysterious place which was once the cradle of a very prosperous civilization. The perfume is a monolithic beast, take a look at the notes: goat hair tincture, styrax, agarwood (oud), saffron, immortelle, asphalt, galbanum, jasmine sambac, hay, beeswax, tuberose, myrrh, olibanum, opoponax, taif rose, cumin, turmeric, nard himalayan (jatamansi) and costus. Gleefully overindulgent and very daring, this is an amazing and eccentric dark masterpiece - a no holds barred animalic that will probably only find a very few but dedicated fans in the world, who like their perfumes really dark and exotic. An overwhelming fragrance experience.

Wow. Just wow. This is the opposite of soap, and is dirty in such a sexy, animalic, fecal way. It doesn't smell like shit, but there is a tinge of foul amongst a smoky, musky, herbaceous, and spicy blend. Made from very expensive ingredients (Imortelle absolute goes for $23 USD per 1 ml) it smells like a work of art. Balanced for what it is, and actually rather wearable compared to other animalic scents. 9.5/10