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Odeur 53

Name: Odeur 53 Eau de Toilette (EDT)
Brand: Comme des Garçons

Comme des Garçons · Eau de Toilette (EDT) · 1998

Fresh · Aromatic / Fougère Nicheunisex

≈ $100 · 50ml · approx. retail

Official Comme des Garçons site

Commissioned by Rei Kawakubo from IFF as a personal, deliberately non-floral project, Odeur 53 is built from 53 abstract synthetic accords standing in for non-perfume smells like burnt rubber, nail polish, and laundry dried in the wind. It is widely considered the first true 'anti-perfume,' rejecting traditional top/heart/base florals entirely in favor of conceptual, industrial abstraction.

Metallic

The scent

Top notes

The opening · first 15 minutes

oxygen metallic notes burnt rubber

Heart notes

The core · the next few hours

nail polish cellulose sand

Base notes

The dry-down · what lingers

mountain air carbon laundry dried in the wind

Best for

SpringSummerDaily

Perfumer

Martine Pallix

2 in collection

See their fragrances →

Anne-Sophie Chapuis

1 in collection

See their fragrances →

Dupes & cheaper alternatives

Cheaper clones and alternatives that share the same notes and accords — savings are flagged.

Genius Me

Paco Rabanne · Fresh

≈ $51save ~$49

Shares metallic notes

Falling Into the Sea

Imaginary Authors · Fresh

≈ $140

Shares sand

Hugo Red

Hugo Boss · Woody

≈ $45save ~$55

Shares metallic notes

Kristal

Fragrance World · Fresh

≈ $27save ~$73

Shares sand

Strong Me

Paco Rabanne · Amber

≈ $49save ~$51

Shares metallic notes

H24

Hermès · Fresh

≈ $40save ~$60

From the journal

Deep dive

Axle grease, goat fur, burnt rubber: the perfumes that aren't trying to smell nice

A whole wing of niche perfumery treats scent as conceptual art rather than a pleasant product — and judges itself on whether an idea landed, not on whether you liked it. Here's why that genre exists, and who it's actually for.