gs02
Biehl Parfumkunstwerke

Modern moonshiny new-age perfumery by Geza Schoen (a new great perfumer's vision of modern masculinity), the enigma of ghostly medicinal leather/amber, a dive in the olfactory minimalistic urban abstraction. Tokyo is there with its extreme metropolitan appalling robotic sense of loneliness. I agree with several of the previous reviewers since GS02 is a quite modern (yes kind of aseptic, robotic, opaque, aldehydic, electronic) piece of "clean-chic" animalic-green fragrance. This juice seems combining a sort of Andrea Maack's kind of hyperbaric post-modern molecular/aldehydic vibe with hints of the Comme des Garcons-like plastic-cardamomish futuristic "fluidity" and a tad of Ulrich Lang's (Nightscape-like) liquid immobile (hesperidic-benzoininc-musky) suedish chic chord. A well blended accord of synth liquid suede, green balsamic/anisic elements (angelica, absinthe), orange, aldehydes, floral/hesperidic aromachemicals and animalic patterns in order to appoint a minimalistic (kind of perfectly purified and clean) piece of metropolitan dark nuance (yes vaguely medicinal, electric, hyperbaric, fluidy). Leather, woods, amber and castoreum provide the intensely suedish/woody (melancholic) and sharply floral (it seems to detect violet leaves and geranium) main vibe which is enriched by a sort of rhubarb-like fizzy/boozy cocktail-twist (tart and vaguely bitter) and by a chic cosmetic creamy effect. Hints of minimal soothing musky vanilla and floral patterns close the abstract ring. Animalic notes and musky leather master the super smooth (and liquid) dry down. I get a tad of (Lang Cuiron/L'Erbolario Corteccia-like) smooth suedish/woodsy accord as absolute protagonist. The combination of soft leather, spice and tobacco conjures me vaguely the Bruce Willis Personal Edition's main accord (in a less virile but more chic and futuristic way). A juice which could be perfect for a night-time dinner in a japanese restaurant on the top of a skyscraper while overlooking the Tokyo's suburbia-panorama or for a Berliner electronic obscure underground party. A bizarre aroma for lovers of super glamour-chic minimalist enigmatic juices a la Costume National Scent, Ulrich Lang Nightscape or Andrea Maack Dark.

gs02 reminds me very much of the Jil Sander 'Man' series of scents, most noticeably the curious there-but-not-there effect of Man Pure. This smells like it should be a very heavy and heady scent but it comes off as really airy. One must truly enjoy wormwood and cedar to wear this, as they always seem to be at the forefront of the fragrance. While I can distinguish the listed notes fairly well there seems to be an olfactory Venn diagram in place, and in the spaces where each note's circle overlaps with another there seems to exist an unlisted note or accord, most notably a whiff of cinnamon and a curious spoiled apple (fans of Halston's Catalyst for Men will be familiar). gs02 could just as easily have been called That Which is Not There.

Buyer beware - I have noticed that most people unfamiliar with the natural smell of wormwood, mugwort, artemisia family plants, and some kinds of musk think they are smelling urine of some kind, and this was my girlfriend's first and so far only reaction to gs02.

GS02 is a dry tar-herbal-fruity scent with a greyish “synthetic ash-smoke” feel all over, a sort of subtle amber-civet undertone, and an airy-gassy fruity note that weirdly reminds me of Baldessarini EDC and to a lesser extent, Lang's Cuiron. While pretty much all the rest, the synthetic tar-leather base and the synthetic woodiness kind of remind me of Jil Sander Scent 79 (or any other cheap “dry-woody” contemporary fragrance) with an added old-school animalic vibe and a whiff of some sort of eucalyptus/cypress/olive tree note (half of these will be gone in minutes, anyway). The only thing I like here, i.e. the only thing which doesn't remind me of ten times cheaper fragrances, is the overall texture, which is indeed fascinatingly weightless, feeling almost “empty” and fairly modern – “fairly” because honestly I am quite convinced that if GS02 was called, don't know, “Herr for Man” and cost 20 EUR at your local drugstore, I bet everyone considered this “a generic and dull woodyamber-fruity scent smelling too light and lasting like a fart”. Worthy a try, but nothing really more than that for me.

6/10

gs02 opens with a mild and quite brief squirt of fresh orange before it turns into an accord I don't think I can easily describe... It has a bit of an olive oil-like smell mixed with bitter cherry spiced leather which most likely is a combination of angelica, castoreum and wormwood among other ingredients. This slightly spiced leathery-olive heart accord sits on an amber base that is not sweet at all, while from start to finish the scent is both minimalistic and extremely subtle in one. Projection and longevity are both poor.

I know I like gs02, but it is hard for me to pin down why. It is so subtle that I find myself having to apply a bunch of it on skin to try and nail down its scent. Even doing that, I am at a loss for words to describe what it truly smells like and I am sure my vague descriptors in the paragraph above do not do it justice. All I *can* say is it smells unique and quite good, but I wish it were much more assertive. In short, gs02 is a minor success from Schoen who also created Clive Christian's masterpiece X for Men that has some similarities in its base. I definitely prefer X over gs02 by miles, but gs02 is a good way to sample what Schoen has to offer at a much lower price tag. gs02 earns a very good 3.5 stars out of 5 and is recommended.

What I get from this is sweet and cold, wet leather with plum and peach notes. The sweetness becomes less after a while but still it's quite an intense and if you like it, sexy fragrance. One for a night out, when you're feeling naughty. Can be worn by women and young men imo and it's quite unique.

I have never reviewed a fragrance before, but I noticed that gs02 has not gotten much love and had to say something. I am mesmerized by this scent. There is a complicated interplay among something grapefruity, a mellifluous tonka-amber wave, and an ethereal iso-e-supery cloud. It's like a rapid, three-way ball game that's too fast to comprehend but whose players know exactly what to do. It's mystical and captivating and a little confusing.

I also freely admit that some of my lack of comprehension may come from being a completely amateur aficionado. Out of curiosity for what another nose would make of it, I asked my partner what he thought. He replied with a squished-up face and the comment that it smelled like chewed-up cinnamon gum. It does have both cinnamon and saliva notes, but for some reason I don't find them offensive. Many of the qualities in gs02 remind me of qualities I also like in Geza Schoen's Clive Christian X; but where the latter is an aristocrat or tycoon, gs02 is an architect and engineer. It's less showy and more intellectual.

It also smells great mingled with cigarette smoke.

At this point, I've emptied two sample vials and am well into my first bottle. To my nose, gs02 continues to fascinate. I look forward to Geza Schoen's other creations.