Angela Flanders
Angela Flanders
113 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Bergamot and cardamom ignite immediately with an aggressive brightness, whilst the ginger and that deliberate funk note create a slightly unsettling sourness—it's less "fresh citrus" and more "something's slightly gone off in the produce bin, and somehow that's fascinating." Cypress cuts through like a bitter afterthought, preventing any comfort from settling in.
The composition pivots unexpectedly as fig leaf and cyclamen introduce a green, almost stem-like quality that transforms the spiced top into something more herbaceous and introspective. Cumin dust descends, adding warmth, whilst that contamination note lingers uneasily—the fragrance becomes more contemplative but never quite likeable, oscillating between spiced-herbal and faintly off-kilter.
Cedarwood and patchouli attempt their rescue mission too late; the fragrance has already begun its rapid fade. What remains is a whisper of dusty moss and tonka's sweetness attempting to soften the patchouli's earthy grip, but the projection has virtually vanished—you're left holding a memory of intensity rather than experiencing current presence.
Artillery No. 2 opens with a jarring confrontation: cardamom and ginger spit and crackle against a zesty bergamot, whilst cypress adds a bitter-green slap that feels almost confrontational. There's something deliberately unsettling in this composition—a "funk" note that Schwieger refuses to soften, lending an almost fermented quality that keeps you slightly off-balance. This isn't a fragrance that coddles; it's bracing and slightly acrid, like walking into a spice market where the air itself tastes sharp.
What makes Artillery No. 2 intriguing rather than merely aggressive is how the fig leaf and cyclamen emerge to provide a peculiar counterpoint. The fig leaf brings a green, almost stem-like herbaceousness that shouldn't work alongside the spiced opening, yet creates something unexpectedly cerebral—a fragrance that demands active attention rather than passive admiration. That mysterious "contamination" note in the heart remains frustratingly undefined, but it's precisely this slight sourness that prevents the composition from becoming pretty or digestible.
Add fragrances to your collection and unlock your personalised scent DNA, note map, and shareable identity card.
4.0/5 (104)