Poltergeist
Heretic Parfums (2016)

"Some people believe that when you die there is a wonderful light. As bright as the sun but it doesn't hurt to look into it. All the answers to all the questions you want to know are inside that light. And when you walk to it ... you become a part of it forever. Now, some people die, but they don't know they're gone."

Poltergeist opens with a medicinal blast of mentholated burnt wood smoke. This is a heavy thick tar aroma that draws from the bitterness of wormwood, birch tar and myrrh. The smoke is cooling and bitter, but also has a warmth from the contrasting notes that is pleasant but hard to reconcile or make sense of so it leaves a spooky other worldly memory of a centuries old barbershop fern aroma that has been burned to a toasted crunchy tar and only ashe remains. The odd pairing and astringency of wormwood-tar-myrrh with the soft fougere of neroli -geranium is indeed a little ghostly. The name Poltergeist is a bit of stretch for me to accept. The net impression is dark smoke of tar that drifts in mid air for quite awhile. There is a similarity with other smokey fragrances such as Arte Profumi Fumoir, Goodsir Bois de Ascese and D.S.& Durga Burning Barbershop - Poltergeist manages to live within the mentholated smoke aura which leads me to a contemplation upon the impermanence of life, the suffering which connects things and the bitter smokey residue that remains for but a few moments after.

I give Poltergeist a reluctant "thumbs up" because I enjoy the concept. However, the scent will be very hard for most people to enjoy because of its dark demeanor.

Smokey wormwood is what you get here, has that campfire smell. Strong, invasive opening, reminds me of Interlude Man. Performance is intense with this, so go easy on the sprays. Only good for outdoors, not safe for work.