• About
  • Login to comment
    • Bluesky
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Now Smell This

a blog about perfume

Menu ▼
  • Perfume Reviews
  • New Perfumes
  • Archives

Andrea Maack Soft Tension & Dual ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by Jessica on 5 January 2017 8 Comments

Foggy Iceberg at Glacier Lagoon

Soft Tension and Dual are the two latest releases from Andrea Maack, an Icelandic multimedia artist who established an independent perfume line in 2011. Both are inspired by Icelandic landscapes. Soft Tension is a "sensual white musk inspired by a thick mysterious fog," and Dual is "inspired by the calming water of the natural hot springs in the Icelandic highlands" and "mimics the feeling of fresh water on the skin and the intense color spectrum surrounding the hot spring lagoons." 

I've never traveled to Iceland, but I've heard fascinating accounts from friends who've been there. Would Soft Tension and Dual provide an olfactory substitute for a Nordic getaway? I tried Soft Tension first, dabbing on a few drops and preparing to inhale its notes of freesia, musk, mate absolute, cedar and moss as I imagined a dense mist over descending over waterfalls and lava fields. Unfortunately, what I got was just a hint of the freesia (cool and sweet) before I ended up with a linear grapefruit-and-musk composition. The dry down has some cedar, but the all-over effect is thin and sharp, rather than "mysterious" and all-enveloping.

All right; how about Dual, with its promised notes of ginger, lemon, pink pepper, amber and cedar? I thought I'd be inhaling paired cool and warm accords with something earthy underneath, and I got ready to picture myself dipping into one of Iceland's famous natural hot springs under an otherworldly sky. Alas: Dual is more substantial than Soft Tension, but not very complex or evocative. There's a fuzzy ginger top note, and then it's primarily a very "dry" pepper-and-cedar scent. It's fine, but it doesn't live up to its promises (or its price).

Andrea Maack Soft Tension

Soft Tension and Dual are both unisex, and they have average sillage and staying power on my skin. They could probably be layered if you so desired. They're contemporary in a very inoffensive way. Overall, they seem to follow the path marked by Escentric Molecules and recent Comme des Garçons releases, whereas I expected something more along the lines of Blackbird Triton or Olfactive Studio Lumière Blanche. I think I need to go back and revisit some of Maack's earlier perfumes, since I remember them as being more layered and creative than either of these new releases. In the meantime, I'll content myself with looking at photos of Icelandic landscapes online. 

Andrea Maack Soft Tension and Dual are both available as 50 ml Eau de Parfum ($135). For buying information, see the listing for Andrea Maack under Perfume Houses.

Note: top image is Foggy Iceberg at Glacier Lagoon [cropped] by Tim Sackton at flickr; some rights reserved.

Possibly of interest

Andrea Maack Muse ~ new fragrance
Eau de Jane, Parfums Quartana Forest of the Golden Dream & Andrea Maack Flux ~ fragrance reviews
Andrea Maack Flux ~ new fragrance

Filed Under: perfume talk
Tagged With: andrea maack

Advertisement


8 Comments

Leave a comment, or read more about commenting at Now Smell This. Here's our privacy policy, and a handy emoticon chart.

  1. pixel says:
    5 January 2017 at 4:12 pm

    I enjoyed Andrea Maack’s Coal, but haven’t tried any of her other scents. Sounds like I can skip these 🙂

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      6 January 2017 at 11:06 am

      I really do need to revisit the earlier releases. They wouldn’t have stuck in my memory if they hadn’t been more intriguing than these!

      Log in to Reply
    • cazaubon says:
      6 January 2017 at 4:19 pm

      I liked Coal too.

      Log in to Reply
  2. MrsDalloway says:
    5 January 2017 at 5:45 pm

    Soft Tension is a memorably awful perfume name! I would love a perfume like an Icelandic landscape too, but these sound like ones to miss.

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      6 January 2017 at 11:07 am

      I guess it’s meant to be a contrast, an oxymoron? I don’t quite get it….

      Log in to Reply
  3. Elisa P says:
    6 January 2017 at 9:08 am

    I gave this both a quick sniff recently and wasn’t moved by either and I also don’t like the new bottle style as much as the old ones. I do love and own Coven.

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      6 January 2017 at 11:07 am

      I like the older bottle design, with those stone (marble?) caps!! I think I liked Smart and Dark. Need to loop back and try them again…

      Log in to Reply
    • cazaubon says:
      6 January 2017 at 4:19 pm

      Yes, Coven is good.

      Log in to Reply

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Advertisement

Search

Recent reviews

Atelier Cologne Love Osmanthus
Moschino Toy Boy
Arquiste Misfit
Diptyque Eau Capitale
Zoologist Bee
Parfum d’Empire Immortelle Corse
Comme des Garcons Series 10 Clash
Frédéric Malle Rose & Cuir
L’Artisan Parfumeur Le Chant de Camargue
Yves Saint Laurent Grain de Poudre
Régime des Fleurs Chloë Sevigny Little Flower
Chanel 1957
Gallivant Los Angeles
Amouage Portrayal Woman

Blogroll

Bois de Jasmin
Grain de Musc
Perfume Posse
The Non-Blonde
More blogs...

Perfumista lists

100 fragrances every perfumista should try
And 25 more fragrances every perfumista should smell
50 masculine fragrances every perfumista should try
26 vintage fragrances every perfumista should try
25 rose fragrances every perfumista should try
11 Cheap Perfumes Beauty Outsiders Love

Favorite posts

The Great Perfume Reduction Plan
Why I Love Old School Chypres
New to perfume and want to learn more?
How to make fragrance last through the day
Fragrance concentrations: sorting it all out
On reformulations, or why your favorite perfume doesn’t smell like it used to
How to get fragrance samples
Perfume for Life: How Long Will Your Fragrance Collection Last?

Upcoming

List of upcoming Friday projects

15 March ~ swapmeet

3 April ~ damage poll
26 April ~ splitmeet

3 May ~ spring reading poll
17 May ~ Haiku challenge!

 

Back to Top

Home
Archives
About Now Smell This :: Privacy Policy
Perfume Reviews
New Perfumes
General Perfume Articles
The Monday Mail

Glossary of Perfume Terms
Perfume FAQ
Perfume Books

Noses ~ Perfumers A-E :: F-K :: L-S :: T-Z

Perfume Houses A-B :: C :: D-E :: F-G
H-J :: K-L :: M :: N-O :: P :: Q-R :: S
T :: U-Z

Copyright © 2005-2025 Now Smell This. All rights reserved.