Bandit (1944)
by Robert Piguet

Not as it once was, somewhat tamed, but still a classic leather. Considering when it was launched (1944) it was far ahead of its time I think. Hugely influential. I see its presence in every other leather around, from Aramis to Aromatics and beyond. A wonderful fragrance which I wear with pleasure and joy (although I NEVER layer!!)

3rd December, 2011.

This has to be one of the most androgynous fragrances ever made. On me, the leather note is a little hard at first but soon enough the not-too-sweet powdery carnation dry down balances everything out. Funny enough, everyone around me thinks I am wearing a very masculine fragrance. One of my neighbours used to wear Bandit some 30 years ago. She smelled absolutely wonderful. Surprisingly, when she wore it, Bandit became spicy, ambery, animal and unmistakenly feminine. It had this mischievous touch without being too in-your-face and I am sure this is exactly what the perfumer intended.

12nd October, 2011.

Bandit - timeless clasic! The perfect classic. Suitable for all seasons, all ages.I will be happy to wear it.

2nd October, 2011.

I've smelt it for the first time a couple of years ago while
visiting a niche boutique placed in the town center of Bologna and i don't know exactly about which formulation it was (although i suppose it was the EDP version). The first impression was about a dark, rough, herbal-aromatic and  mossy-leathery chypre coming from an other age and due to be worn by man and woman even if the scales was leaning on the womanly side (too much following fruity-floral sophistication and smell of deodorized and slightly sweated arm-pit). The first impression in general is strange because some elements of dissonance are a bit disturbing (at least under my nose),  may be the excess of alcohol and aldehydes (the initial projection is nuclear), the exidedly prominent and aggressive animal-leathery and smoky notes already rising from the back and blended with a forceful whirl of citrus (mostly orange), dark spices, mint, vetiver and greens, may be because of a sort of tar undertone over a similar cola kind of sparkling coolness. In this phase the scent with its old-school feel smells like a blend of YSL Rive Gauche and Aramis with a touch of the fruity-spicy-floral temperament of the more refined Mitsouko. The initial blast of neroli, fruit, citrus and spices reminds me a bit the vintage starting chord of Youth Dew which is anyway a much  more feminine, spicy, floral, smooth, sunny and vintage fragrance with a  less woodsy and leathery temperament. In the confusion i smell patchouli and the duo rose-jasmine plus carnation that in this phase are angular and dry in perception before evolving in a smoothing sweet effect on the final mossy leather. The moderate sweetness comes mostly from the floral-spicy middle phase. You need time before that each element takes its place and a bit of leathery velvet emerges clean from the tornado. As soon as the roughness fades the final development is a dark-mossy leather plus some woods, smoothing amber with the animalic and nasty notes of civet and castoreum and the bold earthiness of patchouli. In this phase the fragrance turns out leathery, mysterious, bold, slightly earthy and floral with the pungency of the civet note. Very complex. Classic, leathery and autoritative fragrance.

30th September, 2011.

This is interesting in an old-school, classy aromatic way. The floral notes are attractive, rich and heady. There are sophisticated spices and hints of leather to add intriguing notes. The scent reminds me of Trussardi (White), with its cream florals, spices and leathers. Probably Trussardi copied this original. The scent is not too sweet, a man certainly could wear it. The spices are complex, mysterious and dark. Yet there is also a cool, clear aspect which I associate with clove and which gives a masculine, barbershop aspect. Carnation adds another dimension to the clove. I'll reiterate: this is not a sweet scent. The dry-down is dry, spicy, slightly dirty... and quite intriguing. The musk and patchouli are (thankfully) restrained.

26th July, 2011.

It’s often said that Bandit is a love it or hate it fragrance, with the implication that greatness is divisive. Well I’m smack in the middle of the road with this icon. Bandit makes me wonder, even though I’m an enormous fan of both leathers and green chypres, if there’s something particular to its construction that neutralizes the defining elements of the two genres on which it's based. There are other leather chypres that appeal to me: No 19 EDP, Aramis, Heely’s Cuir Pleine Fleur, Rabanne’s La Nuit, possibly even Cuir de Lancome and Scherrer de Scherrer (questionable that they’re both leather chypres or, respectively a floral leather and a green chypre.)

After the first sweeping minutes of Bandit, the chypre and the leather seem to cancel each other out and Bandit isn’t as vehement as either a strong green chypre or a nice, rough leather. The basenotes are dry but calm and feel more woody than anything else. Not particularly bitter, not smoky.

Bandit doesn’t entirely satisfy either my chypre or leather urges. I reach for other green chypres, leathers, and even more satisfying leather chypres like Azurée far more often.

8th July, 2011. (Last Edited: 29th September, 2011.)