MYSLF Le Parfum
Eau de Parfum Intense, Yves Saint Laurent (2024)

MYSLF Le Parfum by Yves Saint Laurent (2024) is an expected move. Thicker, richer, ooey and gooey, this is the sweet and heavier gourmand-inflected version of the original MYSLF by Yves Saint Laurent (2023) released the previous year, that nobody knew they wanted (or nobody wanted). I was not keen on the original, but I have a softer view on this one, since it turns out that cranking up the ethyl maltol tonka steroids is just what this needed to actually go out into the world and smell like a proper fragrance, not dryer sheets.

I'll keep this short and sweet; you won't like this if you didn't like MYSLF, but you might sit better with it because of the rounding and balancing; and if you did like MYSLF, then you'll probably absolutely love this, since you're in that target market L'Oréal is chasing, where ever more-expensive performance-built club-bangers for the 20 something crowd seem to be the breadwinners of the remaining designer fragrance market. Where this compares favorably, is as a men's counterpart to Libre by Yves Saint Laurent (2019), but I'd just wear Libre instead.

Bottom line here is I miss the days where I could write epic paeans about Yves Saint Laurent releases, how boundary-pushing or novel they were, how subversive or clever with re-inventing an old concept with a new twist, or just being plain but evidently high-quality was okay too, approaching Chanel's level of filigree and finesse. Sadly, that ship about 15 years ago, after the man himself left this world and the all-devouring wyrm that is L'Oréal tossed YSL into a corner like a spoiled brat with a broken toy, sending what remained off to the mines to churn out trend-chasing trash. This is just a slight mark above that din. Neutral