Mousse Illuminée Rogue 2018

‘Mousse Illuminée’ is a true flashback to men’s perfumery of the late 70s and early 80s, when fragrances for men were primarily one thing: aromatic.
A lot of sage, bay, mugwort, anise, tarragon, coriander, basil, cumin was used, as well as honey, tobacco, and heaps of oakmoss. ‘Paco Rabanne pour Homme’ and ‘Azzaro pour Homme’ were the most prominent Fougère variants, while ‘Polo’, ‘Quorum’, ‘Krizia Uomo’, and ‘Kouros’ leaned more towards Chypre.

But whether Fougère or Chypre, everything was aromatized to the max, and oakmoss served as the base (and fixative!). Whether with lavender and coumarin or without is merely a question of accent. To put it simply, one could just speak of aromatic spiced moss.
And that is exactly what ‘Mousse Illuminée’ is.

When Manuel Cross speaks of illuminated, or optionally lit moss, he likely means that with all the aromatic additions, he has brought the multiple scent spectrum of the moss-the green, moist, smoky, bitter-into the light through the added aromas.
And indeed, that is the case, for as soon as it is sprayed, it becomes clear: the focal point of the fragrance is the moss, more precisely: tree moss. A ‘Treemoss absolute’ from the company Robertet, of which he (direct quote) has used ‘a chunky dose’.
Hallelujah, there is indeed ‘a chunky dose’ at work - those sensitive to tree moss should steer clear of ‘Mousse Illuminée’!!

At first, however, it doesn’t stand out so clearly: the fresh, green spiciness of the opening chord dominates, which comes entirely without citrus notes. But soon the moss is in full swing, and since its fixative abilities are still fully present here, it holds, and holds, and holds. It doesn’t stop holding, even when all the spice has long since evaporated.
Initially, bay and mugwort unleash themselves, along with a bit of incense and the coniferous green of cypress. Set against an overdose of moss, a typical 80s fragrance sound emerges, as unmistakable as it could be. Especially ‘Quorum’ sends its regards - a bit less dark, without the leathery and animalistic facets, but somewhat brighter in the green tone, yet this Rogue fragrance clearly heads in that direction.

Fortunately, Manuel Cross did not add castoreum, a leathery-animalistic fragrance component that was so popular 40 years ago that it would surely have flowed into the formula by the kilogram. This excess of castoreum, however, ultimately made these fragrances less appealing to me, and I was always glad when a reformulation, as was the case with ‘Antaeus’ a few years ago, reduced the beaver musk. Suddenly, I like ‘Antaeus’ again!
‘Quorum’ still doesn’t work for me, but ‘Mousse Illuminée’ is wonderful!
While Manuel Cross quotes the fragrance trends of the 80s, he does not copy them one-to-one. ‘Mousse Illuminée’ is rather a beautiful homage to them, viewed from today’s perspective.

The fragrance is successful in any case, albeit in typical Rogue fashion: a bit bumpy and unpolished, but that’s okay. Sometimes I even find it quite pleasant when not everything comes across as so highly polished. The characteristic quirks of the perfumer then reveal themselves more easily - quite similar to Andy Tauer or other self-made perfumers.

To appreciate the fragrances of Manuel Cross, one should, however, have a fondness for vintage scents. Modern synthetics are nowhere to be found here - no ambroxan, no cashmeran, no calone, nothing. Instead, it is enveloped in an old-fashioned aura. Not a rigid, stuck-in-the-past, everything-was-better-then aura, but rather a friendly, open, and sympathetic one, paired with a very contemporary desire to revive the best of the past.

I like this fragrance. It reminds me of a time when we all ran around with huge shoulder pads, wild hairstyles, and tons of kohl around our eyes. Our fragrances were intense, but they were a statement. A loud one.

A hint of nostalgia lingers.