LM Parfums will be releasing its newest fragrance soon. Army of Lovers is a chypre that I really loved when I had the opportunity to try it last year. I don’t usually post about upcoming releases, but thought I would make an exception for this one.

Army of Lovers is part of The Intimacy Collection, which is a stronger, more expensive range within the LM Parfums line centered around pure parfums with more luxurious ingredients. Hard Leather was the first in the collection, and Army of Lovers will be joining it on October 15th with an official launch date of November 1st.

Source: LM Parfums.

Laurent Mazzone spent two years working on Army of Lovers which was named for a Swedish band that Laurent Mazzone adores. The press release states:

«One rainy night in the summer of 1990, I put a disc on the Revox turntable, and the magic begins. The dangerously eccentric and furiously glamorous feeling in the air that night struck to my very heart. Since then not a day passes without my listening to Army of Lovers. To use this name for one of my favourite perfumes was an obvious choice. I waited for the right moment and the perfect blend. Today I have it.»

Two years of work were necessary for LAURENT MAZZONE to create his new perfume ARMY OF LOVERS. A direct reference to the famous Swedish band with whom he shares their value of tolerance and whose music he has adored since their debut. With this perfume he wishes to honour them with an olfactory tribute.

Just like the band’s melodies, their videos and their charismatic leader Alexander Bard, ARMY OF LOVERS is what would call a baroque perfume, as a jeweler would say «a precious stone with an unexpected form»

ARMY OF LOVERS is musk cyprus based, very much a «skin» perfume which mixes the strong notes of coriander, oak moss and patchouli.

ARMY OF LOVERS plays with paradox and epochs, worn equally by men and women, it’s for those who refuse to be stereotyped. Sensual and earthy, it is a perfume of our times which retains a spicy-cyprus legacy of the classics.

ARMY OF LOVERS is a perfume which defies time.

Source: LM Parfums.

Source: LM Parfums

As you can tell from that photo, the note pyramid for Army of Lovers is:

Top: Coriander, Spice, Rose, Violet.
Middle: Cashmere woods, Sandalwood, Patchouli, Oak moss.
Base: Honey, Amber, Musk.

I don’t have an image of the final bottle and its definitive design yet, but I was sent a photo of the bottle’s packaging. At first glance, it looks as though it’s leather, but I suspect it is actually just a very thick, traditional box with a textured wood design. I’m sure it will be the same sort of material that was used for the Hard Leather packaging:

Packaging. Source: LM Parfums.

As noted earlier, Army of Lovers’ official launch will be on November 1st, but it will be available for purchase starting on October 15th from LM Parfums and its affiliate (also owned by Laurent Mazzone), Premiere Avenue. I suspect the distribution situation will be the same as what happened last year with Hard Leather, where the fragrance was exclusive to those two sites for all of November and December. Then, after the new year, in January, LM Parfums released Hard Leather worldwide. It may be the same thing for Army of Lovers, but I don’t have the precise details. In the U.K., Harvey Nichols is the exclusive retailer for the line, while in America, it is Osswald NYC. In Paris, the LM Parfums line is available at Jovoy. In Germany, you can find it at First in Fragrance.

In terms of pricing, The Intimacy Collection is LM Parfums’ high-end line, so I think Army of Lovers will probably cost the same as Hard Leather: €295, $345, or £270 for 100 ml of pure parfum.

I loved Army of Lovers when I tried it last year in Paris. Passionately so, in fact, because the torrent of rich, incredibly lush, genuine oakmoss blew my socks off and made the perfume really stand out. Yet, as noted earlier, Laurent Mazzone has worked on Army of Lovers for two years or more, and fragrances tend to change over such a length of time before being finalized. They’re tweaked, fine-tuned, and recalibrated. Then, there is also the impact of long maceration. All of which may explain why the Army of Lovers that I received last week smelled differently than what I remembered. I generally have a very good scent recollection, but memory can be a tricky thing and isn’t always accurate as to the finer nuances. So, I asked the company if the fragrance had been modified in any way. I was told that Army of Lovers has been brought into compliance with IFRA/EU regulations…. In addition, the scent has been made stronger, and a top note of coriander has been added.

I will have a review for Army of Lovers on or just before its date of release on October 15th.