So you may have guessed from my little Shawn Mendes Signature review a week or so ago that celebrity fragrances are having somewhat of a resurgence. I know, I know, you’re all groaning at the thought (I can hear your moans carried on the soft, despairing winds of the internet) but I promise you that this time, things are different. Our dear celebrities have realised that consumers will no longer be fooled and they, or their teams, need to put in a bit of effort to actually make fragrances that are interesting. Just look at SJP Stash for proof, and even Mr Mendes, who isn’t wildly original in his scented exploits, but at least made something rather wearable and lovely. Now it’s time for Katy Perry’s turn to up her scent game.
I like Katy Perry. She is fun. Her music feels quite self aware and its catchy hooks are hard not to love. But Katy Perry has come along way from the bubblegum pop of I Kissed a Girl and her latest album, Witness, is a more mature sound that cements Perry firmly in her ‘serious artist’ phase. Whilst I enjoy her music, Katy Perry’s fragrant offerings have been somewhat lacklustre for me, even though some have been packaged in cat-shaped bottles (I bloody love cats), but all of that is set to change because INDI, her latest, is a massive departure from Perry’s earlier offering. INDI is an “androgynous” fragrance that comes with the tagline “be different together”. It reportedly boasts 11 types of musk and takes inspiration from Tom Ford’s Black Orchid – intrigued yet?
The Notes
Top: White Tea, Oriental Plum and Italian Bergamot
Heart: Fresh Muguet, Cyclamen and White Cedar Wood
Base: Amber Sultan, Vanilla Tonka and Seductive Musks
How Does it Smell?
So INDI starts out fruity but not in that sticky, syrupy, catch-you-at-the-back-of-the-throat kind-of-a-way that all celebrity fragrances revel in. No, INDI has a stewed, spiced fruit opening that is somewhat reminiscent of Putain des Palaces by Etat Libre d’Orange but much softer (and more subtle), leading on to an animalic heart of rose powder and cumin. The base is all woods and musks, creating a dry skin scent (it wears very close to the skin) that is high on sandalwood, not to mention the sharp spice of cedar. It’s incredibly smooth, and linear too, with an easy going, androgynous vibe to it. Not what one expects at all.
INDI is easily Katy Perry’s best fragrance and as far as celebrity scents go, it’s not bad at all. It’s a simple, comforting skin scent that has a slightly dirty, human warmth to it. I smell it and imagine snuggling up to someone first thing in the morning before they’ve showered. It has that, sexy, intimate skin vibe to it that alludes to warm breath and clean sweat. It’s ever so subtly dirty and do you know what? It’s actually rather good and it is worlds away from Katy Perry’s earlier fragrances, which were all sugar, sugar sugar. In fact, it’s a good representation of where the singer is in her career right now – it’s less ‘Teenage Dream’ and more ‘Bon Appetite, bay-beh’. If you get those references then you’ll get INDI.
Availability
Katy Perry’s INDI is available in 30ml (£23.50) 50ml (£28) and 100ml (£38) Eau de Parfum.
Disclaimer
Sample, notes and quotes via Katy Perry. Images are my own.
The Candy Perfume Boy 