Gold

The newest release from indie house Gallivant showcases the character of yet another great city of the world. I am joined by a friend for a detailed look at this release. Enjoy.

When I think of Japan and wood and spice in the same sentence, I think of the tart delicacy of hinoki wood, a slightly green, 'stripped' smell, as well as the hang bang herbs in some higher end J Beauty face creams and perhaps a bit of clove or cinnamon as the spice element. Some fragrances arrive at this idea via an incense pathway, like CdG Hinoki or Kyoto, some via the hang bang-like camphor and nard accents of the onsen (like Hasunoito by Di Ser). Others attempt it but flail around with that damp, musty cedar material or even the Iso E Super overdose that passes for cypress and hinoki sometimes (Aesop Hywl). Tokyo by Gallivant belongs to the latter, and is a misfire in my book. In dosing whatever natural wood note is in here with black pepper and a shrieky woody aromachemical, the result is a banal but unpleasant steamroller of a thing that you'd expect to see from a cheapo sticking filler rather than from an indie. Come on, do better.

I find this to be a gourmand green. There is just something that is distinctly food in this fragrance that I can’t particularly pinpoint, but it just smells like food. My guess would be the wasabi note, but alas I’m not experienced enough in the world of perfumery to truly pick that out as the sole defining factor as there is quite a few other spices present in this fragrance. Maybe because of its food-like nature, this green happens to be a very dark green to me. Typically with greens there is usually a brightness to them, like newly budded leaves or fresh cut grass, but in this I find none. While dark though, there is nothing really overpowering about this scent at all, in fact there’s an almost airy quality to the fragrance. It’s kinda weird, almost ghostly. Like you walked in onto some kind of open-air ritual in progress, there’s a heaviness to the air that you walked into, but also the distinct note of the air itself. A smoke machine on a dance floor, you can see the smoke and you know it’s there but it doesn’t stop you from seeing your friends, or the DJ, or anything really, it just adds to the effect. Because of how deep yet airy this fragrance is I’d consider it a year-rounder. It’s light enough to be worn in the summer but also has enough heft to it from the spices and incense present in the fragrance that it can cut through the colder air. I really enjoy this fragrance but it is definitely a try before you buy kinda scent.

The Gallivant fragrances in general - that is, the style of the house - are unisex (or more precisely, completely unsexy), with a few spices, have no edges or corners, are very well made, but never daring. I quite liked Tokyo. The combination of Yuzu (grapefruit/mandarin), Iris (lipstick), wood, and Hinoki (like incense, green instead of smoky) surprisingly reminded me a bit of L'Eau d'Issey. However, this is not a simple 90s aquatic fragrance, but spicy. At first, it is really very transparent, then denser, beautiful and relaxing, without sharpness. The scent maintains a balance between a slightly synthetic fresh cleanliness and the darker notes, while remaining quite close to the body. A perfectly office-appropriate, not-boring everyday fragrance. However, it doesn't really etch itself into memory either. Updated on 06/12/2020

A busy, cheery, chipper perfume. Lots going on here, but I like it all. At first, the citrusy (yuzu?) woods and pepper (wasabi?) are strong, but there’s a steady, warm sweet spice underlying them that finishes it out. Good staying power, but not obnoxious. It leans masculine, but I definitely enjoy wearing it myself. It reminds me a lot of Eddie Bauer’s discontinued Adventurer, so anyone looking for a replacement might want to check this out.