Al Azif

[corvidus]

A sinister, sinuous incense of summoning, a herald and paean to the Primordial Gods of Darkness, Chaos, Madness and Decay.

 

got this as a frimp from another forumite and was immediately intrigued. no idea what this was supposed to smell like apart from incense, so went ahead and tried it out.

in the imp: yep, there's definitely incense in here. i can't place what kind, but it's smoky, resiny and sweet. can't really detect much else.

wet: ...hold on, are you sure there's incense in this? on me it immediately turns to a kind of vanilla syrup (i can see what the maple syrup people were talking about, but it's not quiiite maple to my nose.) luckily, after giving it about 30 mins...

dry: ok good, there's the incense. i was beginning to get worried. delicious, smoky incense undertones start to come in strong beneath the syrupy vanilla. there's definitely something else there too, though, hiding beneath the more obvious notes. i think dirt was mentioned - the first thing i thought of was sickly rotted flesh, although in the best possible sense (?).

 

verdict: al-azif is kind of wierd, which is as to be expected i guess. it's very evocative, very dry and slightly cloying. i like it and its connotations, but i don't think i'd really wear it, at the same time? will probably keep my imp and see if it grows on me, though.

[inhumation]

Ah, this is probably my favorite from A Picnic in Arkham that I've tried so far. It is incensey and smells like dark, thick, heavy sweet syrup. The sweetness is almost honey-ish but it probably isn't, as the honey note often turns to powder on my skin. it's really nice. I want a bottle of it.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: Resinous and very sweet - I guess this could be called sinuous, but sinister, not so much. There's also a definite note of cinnamon spicing things up.

 

Wet: Unexpectedly cinnamon-heavy! There's also something foody-sweet in there, but it's definitely a very cinnamon-dominant blend. In fact, my first sense-memory is that of the vanilla- and cinnamon-scented pine cones they sell at Fred Meyer around this time of year - they keep them in huge bins right by the door, so as soon as you enter you're hit by what starts off as a pleasant cinnamon-vanilla scent, but then gets STRONGER AND STRONGER OH GOD. I got this as part of the Incense Imp Pack, but I'm not getting an awful lot of incense here. (Of course, it could also be that I'm relatively unfamiliar with BPAL's various incense notes and blends.)

 

Dry: Thankfully, it dries down to something sexy-sweet within half an hour. The incense does eventually come out, and by the end (about 7-8 hours later - about average for me) it's actually a mostly sweet, resinous incense blend with an ever-so-slightly-spicy edge.

[ModderRhu]

this might be silly to say about a perfume oil, but this smells oily.

 

it smells like deep, oily incense. almost raisin-y. kind of like the natural smell of someone's hair.

 

I don't dislike it, but I don't particularly love it either. it's definitely one of the softest and most understated incense blends from BPAL.

[quickdrawkiddo]

Imp of unknown age! That might account for the fact that this smells TOTALLY different on me than what other people seem to be experiencing. I'm getting no spices or sweetness at all. Instead this is a dusty incense with dry white florals, and maybe a hint of white musk as well. The floral notes remind me of Zephyr and Grief, but the incense keeps this from going powdery or play-doh-y. If you like white florals but find them a bit old-lady-ish, give this a try. It's actually fairly unisex-smelling to my nose. Not really my style but I might keep it around for when I feel like switching things up.

[d0gbones]

In the imp: Sweetened resins.

Wet: Resins and a slight hint of smoke.

Dry: I don't get anything sinister from this at all, it's like incense and sugared almonds on me. Not quite what I expected, but I love it!

[Veronica]

Just...weird. Kind of chemically sweet play doh?

[HighlyBell7]

In Imp: Clear with hint of yellow. Coconut and sugar and something strange.

Wet: Maple syrup with coconut that’s like that note in old aphrodisiac oil.

Dry: Old coconut suntan lotion. Hint of poop smell? I wonder if that is Arabic Musk or maybe Labdanum? The last thing I smelled that had a “poop” note had those two things in it. The other one (Skuld) came directly from BPAL, so I don’t think it’s a handling issue. And I always make sure I'm perfectly clean before testing new scents.

Later: Milder coconut.

 

[iskhavin]

I get almost all sweetness from this. Without looking at the lab notes, I wrote: "orange creamsicle coconut with a hint of sharp saffron that fades quickly, and an undertone of incense." I got this imp from a friend, and it's probably about a year old. I'm looking forward to seeing how it ages.

[LexieBlom]

Al-Azif bottle (lab fresh)

 

Wet/Bottle - Sweet and dark, heavy heavy incense, but I can't pick out any specific notes. Resin? Man, this one is difficult.

 

Wet/Skin (5 minutes) - Molasses and creamy vanilla maybe? Some incense trailing behind. It's definitely not foodie with the molasses/vanilla, but I can't really classify it either. WHAT ARE YOU?!

 

Dry/Skin (30 minutes) - Have you ever had sex in a vat of molasses? Cause that's what this smells like. But damn, I still can't pick out a single specific note.

 

This one is difficult to describe, because it is both heavy and soft, incense and sweet, and very creamy. I know nothing I can say will get it right or give it justice, but I really like it. I may not wear it often, but I like it.

[LizziesLuck]

Wow, this is not what I expected. Though there are no listed notes, so I didn't really know what to expect, I guess, but it wasn't this.

 

It's VERY sweet, but I like sweet, so I'm good with that. I get a tiny bit of incense, but mostly something sweet and "sticky" smelling.

 

It's growing sweeter and sweeter as it dries, and it's almost getting sickly sweet.

 

Dry, there is just something off about this on me. It's like a weird foodie incense, but not in the same way as All Souls (which I adore).

 

This isn't terrible, and it's hard to describe why I don't like it, I just don't. It's resinous, incensey and sweet, all things I should like, but it's not working for me.

[tinyopaws]

Wet, this smells really intensely like a bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar. Then the kinda sharp oatmeal fades away and it's very soft and sweet incense maybe with jasmine or frangipani in the background?? But after 10 minutes it's almost disappeared on me.

Edited November 21, 2015 by tinyopaws

[Shadowdawn]

So, I've been back and forth on Al-Azif since I can remember. It was a frimp I received back in 2008 with my very first order. I placed it in the "unloved" pile off the bat, thinking that it wasn't "my thing", but somehow magically and through several moves I've never quite managed to let it go or lose it 0_o . Something about it has always captivated me in some way. And I can't even put my finger on what. Each time I would take a small sniff, thinking "nah", there would be something that swirled under my nose that made me hold back on putting it away or frimping it forward. I still don't know what about this smells makes me go back for more periodically, but testing it again after many years, here are my thoughts on the notes:

 

In the bottle: I have no idea what that is, but I suspect there's incense in there somewhere. It's sweet, but certainly not foody or cloying. It's got notes or resin in it too.

 

On the skin immediately: Exactly what was in the bottle.

 

After about 10 minutes: Omg wow, this is really starting to mellow and settle now. It's kind of like the Middle East and the Tropics had a baby. Coconut, and incense... tropical incense?! Coconut incense?! Soft, sweet, mellow, beautiful and alluring dry coconut and white smoke notes emanate from my wrists. It also seems to have a slight similarity to some notes in Morocco. Spices, but definitely not heavy in any way, and individually indistinguishable to me.

 

After about an hour: It has become even more creamy, pale, and lovely... and now I'm getting hints of tropical flowers, like plumeria and monoi, along with driftwood. The coconut has become more of a coconut husk, rather than the meat and there might be a drop of coconut water in there. There's a sandy quality to it too. If there is any spiced smoke left, it seems to be wafting away gently. It is actually quite beautiful, and very delicate, but fades somewhat quickly.

 

This is very elusive, and I think worthy of it's name. Although not nearly so cruel and sinister... unless it's meant to lure you in and seduce you in some way .

[lady_pandora]

Al Azif is super sweet on me. Beeswax is dominant in the first few hours, and early on, it's super sweet and smells kind of like bananas in some sniffs, and oatmeal at other moments. Then it goes to just smoky beeswax, and then in the later hours there's maybe some skin musk and maybe a wood note? Something in common with Brown Jenkin. Oddly comforting. I might have too many scents like this; I'll hang on to it for a while and see if I find myself reaching for it.

[Elspethdixon]

In the imp/wet: Hot, dry, and acrid. It has a similar 'feel' to Dragon's Bone (which is thin, dry,and acrid and which I dislike), but I don't know whether they actually share any notes. I doubt I'll want to wear it if it keeps smelling like this, but it's certainly an interesting and evocative scent.

 

As it starts to dry, it turns into a sort of general "perfume-y" scent. Still not up my alley, and also less interesting than the wet/in-the-imp version.

 

After a few minutes (ten-to-fifteen? I wasn't really keeping track), the perfume-y smell fades into a subtle skin musk with a hint of spices. It's faint/soft and very close to the skin, and fades quickly.

 

About two hours after application it was completely gone. A shame - the 'spiced skin musk' stage was lovely.

[unxolve]

SANDALWOOD! It's that vague suntan lotion smell that I like.

There's a little bit of spicyness behind it, that starts out as only a hint, but gradually mellows out everything. A calmer, dryer suntan lotion and skin smell. Like you've been laying out baking at the pool for a few hours.

[theredkilt]

Al Azif smells to me like a sweetened up version of Penitence, but not quite. I was testing it today, after letting the imp age for 4 months and i am happy to say that it smells to my nose A LOT like Feeding the Dead minus the beer. If you ran out of Feeding the Dead, try Al Azif. It's a perfect substitute!

[Teamama]

A very clean, subtly sweet, salty incense. It's like a summoning spell in the women's locker room.

 

It's related to Morocco, but without the spice & musk.

 

I kind of like it, but am a little put off by the "clean" part. Maybe a little aquatic?

[Shel Healy]

This was a frimp, and I'm so confused. For me, it smells like girlhood . It smells like sweet plastic dolls, play-doh and blowing bubbles. It's like the girly girl equivalent of Ether which reminded me of new action figures straight out of the box.

[TheresaRedSkull]

Two words: banana pudding.

 

Not that I have any problem with that.

Edited November 9, 2016 by TheresaRedSkull

[lizabelle]

I'm so confused by all the "sweet" reviews. It kind of smells like the lime/musk "cologne" note that's in every men's cologne nowadays, with an overtone of...disinfectant? It smells like a hospital--I even see fluorescent lights in my head when I smell it.

Edited February 23, 2017 by lizabelle

[Coldfire]

Imp: not sinister. but I detect sandalwood
Wet on Me: still getting sandalwood
Drying Down: still not getting sinister. just sandalwood
Dry: Mostly just sandalwood to my nose

[Soupy Twist]

This was very hard to describe. I finally settled on "green/herbal" in the bottle, and a sweet green on application. Very fresh, almost like a dandelion or succulent. It slowly becomes more of a coconut sunscreen kind of note — not artificial or obnoxious, but a nice "day at the beach" fresh kind of generic floral. There is the briefest flicker of sandalwood, and then it turns into a lovely beeswax.

I have no idea where the description is supposed to fit with this. Also, I get no resins, incense, molasses, maple syrup, or brown sugar. I have Sugar Skull so I know what that smells like, and this ain't it. (I like Sugar Skull, so it wouldn't be a problem if it did, but this doesn't.)

 

This may be bottle-worthy.

[alyelle]

Freebie with a recent decant order; lab origin, age unknown.

 

Imp: Coconut and suntan lotion, bay leaves, spices and parchment. A more masculine Snake Oil.

 

Wet: Vanilla, salt, Indonesian spices, and possibly balsam. Thankfully no signs of cinnamon welts, which is always a worry when I'm testing something with no listed notes.

 

Dry: Snake Oil, heavier on the incense, lighter on the vanilla.

 

An average lifespan of 6 or so hours, with medium to strong throw. Would consider buying equally for me or the boy.

Stars: ★★★★

[Casablanca]

On the wand, a balsamic incense.

 

On my skin, the same incense, but now faint and a little sweet with creamy coconut-banana-vanilla. This is more light and pretty than dark and sinister, which is cool, though different from the description.

 

Basically pudding, and a little incense.