Interlude Man opens extremely briefly with just the faintest dash of fresh bergamot before transitioning to its primary heart accord of very smoky burning incense and what is most likely synthetic rubbery Oud. Underneath the two co-stars that dominate most of the scent's development are supporting notes of mild basil, relatively sweet opoponax and musky rock-rose. During the late dry-down the smokiness of the incense slowly dissipates but the rubbery Oud, opoponax and rock-rose remain through the end, now joining just detectable sandalwood to sweeten the scent further as it fades out. Projection is above average and longevity is exceptional at well over 12 hours on skin.
Interlude Man could have been great, but it just isn't. It's primary problem is the synthetic smelling Oud that just is too strong, and when coupled with the equally ridiculously potent smoky incense and underlying sweetness from the supporting cast it becomes a bit too much. That is not to imply Interlude Man smells bad; it doesn't. It just never lives up to its potential and just smelling "good" is inexcusable at the prices Amouage is charging. While the scent may be a bit disappointing (somewhat reminding me of Arso which I disliked but this smells a lot better) the performance is outstanding with the scent lasting for what seems like forever. I don't know whether that is a good thing as it is just barely pleasant smelling, but at least it shows that Amouage did not water down Interlude Man for sure. Performance aside, the relatively disappointing Interlude Man gets a "good" rating of 3 out of 5 for the scent and a very tepid thumbs up. I recommend passing this one over for purchase as it is *way* overpriced.
