Sloth
[perfumer Prin Lomros; listed fragrance notes of chamomile, açaí berry, lavender, violet leaf, marigold, beeswax, anise, jatamansi, jasmine, cumin, hay, frankincense, myrrh, mushroom, oak moss, vanilla and tonka bean]
Sloth has an "herbal potion" character when first applied; there's chamomile, light cumin and a hint of smoke. Sloth's next phase conjures an aroma I encountered once in an ancient Thai cemetery outside Chiang Mai (incense smoke mixing with floral notes from a grove of flowering frangipani trees). In mid-development, Sloth smells like a forest fire (not something one likes to associate with sloths who live high up in trees and move very slowly!) Leather and musky Indian spikenard (Nardostachys jatamansi) add oomph to the base, which wears down to incense ash with vanilla/benzoin. I enjoyed wearing Sloth; it has good projection and excellent lasting power.
Bat (2020 version)
[perfumer Prin Lomros; listed notes of fig, passion fruit, pink guava, soil accord, hay, incense, minerals, night blooming jasmine, animalic notes, leather, "mossy stones," teak and vetiver]
Original Zoologist Bat (by perfumer Ellen Covey) was a much-talked-about perfume: unusual, evocative and complex. Covey apparently never sold her formula to Zoologist for keeps and has now taken back the "recipe" and sells what was once Zoologist Bat as Night Flyer at her own company — Olympic Orchids Perfume.
Zoologist has this to say about new Bat on its website: "This perfume is a new interpretation of a fruit bat living in the tropics by perfumer Prin Lomros. The original version, designed by Ellen Covey, is discontinued and no longer available." Well, that's not quite true, is it? And it seems weird to me to keep Bat (with the original label) in the Zoologist line-up. Why this invitation to confusion and disgruntlement? Why not, for instance, create "Flying Fox" (a megabat!) to replace it? What's more magnificent than a flying fox?
New Bat is nowhere near as interesting as Covey's original Bat/current Night Flyer. Zoologist's new Bat is basically a fresh fig perfume (no shortage of those in perfume land); it starts with mildly earthy "fruit," mostly fig (with a hint of guava for a moment or two). New Bat smells more like a Beverly Hills man cave scented by a Diptyque Figuier candle than a bat cave (as original Bat certainly did). I'm betting lovers of the original "wild" Bat will find this version tame — a why-bother re-do.
Zoologist Sloth and (2020) Bat Extraits de Parfum are $165 for 60 ml; Olympic Orchids Perfume Night Flyer parfum is $65 for 30 or $120 for 100 ml.
I just got a spray sample of bat in the recent swap meet. Have no idea which version it is. I must be getting all the “mossy stones” because it smells like a pillar of minerals to me. ??♀️ Interesting, but not enjoyable for me. Thanks for the comparison review!
Deva: that sounds like “old” bat
Business conflicts, for sure. Good contracts make good business partners. Too bad for the conflict. Sloth interests me, but Hummingbird interests me more. I haven’t had a chance sample any of this line….
meredifay: lots of good ones in the line-up to sample.
Maybe it’s a Batman cave?
L: depends on who’s playing Bruce Wayne! Or Robin? I can imagine Christian Bale and Burt Ward smelling figgy.
Literally LOL ?
Couldn’t agree with you more about reusing the name, there are so many animals and bat-adjacent animals to choose from! Has Miss Dior taught us nothing?
Regina: Right! There are so many examples….
Kevin, hows the cumin in Sloth? Thanks for reviews!
apsara: a background note for sure
You like Sloth more than I did, but I think you’ve captured both perfumes well. Your comparison of Bat (2020) smelling like a “Beverly Hills man cave scented by a Diptyque Figuier candle” makes so much sense to me. I thought it smelled fairly masculine, especially into the dry down. I also remember smelling similarities in the base of both new perfumes. Original Bat, Civet, and Nightingale are my favorites in the line. I still haven’t tried Bee though, and I need to wear T-Rex again.
therabbitsflower: I need to order a sample of Nightingale; that’s one that’s “escaped” me.
I thought the release timing was odd, too. I mean, I’m sure it was planned ages ago, but a fragrance named Bat coinciding with COVID is unfortunate!