For context, Ummagumma is one of my most worn scents since it came out. I’m halfway through bottle number two (w/#3 waiting in the wings) and I’m still as enamored with it as I was during that first spray in 2017. That’s not just lip service, I have Basenotes SOTD stats to back it up.
When I first saw the email that an “extra” version was in the works, because people were asking for MORE from Ummagumma I thought, who are these absolute bacchanalian gluttons??? To me, the genius of the OG Ummagumma is how well it balances the more “extra” gourmand aspects (a chocolate/resinous/tobacco combo) without walking it through the Cupcake City gates. It’s rich, cozy, warm, all while still allowing for the contrast of terpy frankincense and bright, refreshing airiness of a good cedar accord to shine through. It’s a comforting, engaging, frankly outstanding work of olfactory precision. In musical terms (how can I not, right?) Ummagumma got the mix perfect - the low end, the snare, the bass tone, the jangly guitars. It just works.
My (admittedly cynical) reaction to reading the final description of Ummagumma Extra right before release was “he messed with the dials, it’s gonna throw off the mix and turn it into another overly chocolate gourmand goop”. Imagine my surprise when I did my first side by side wearing with the OG and Extra stuck me as more angular, sparse/less rich, with a crystalline backbone of transparent woods. I find the original “louder” during the wear and find they both last on skin roughly the same duration.
I have to be honest, I find nothing “extra” here. It’s more like Ummagumma Light. Which is to say, it smells great, it’s recognizably a well-executed riff on Ummagumma by the same talented nose, and I’m glad to have a version of a favorite out in the world. But from my perception, the perception of a total Ummagumma diehard, this smells dialed back and streamlined, not turned up to 11. Whether this is because my half empty bottle of pre-Fzotic OG Ummagumma is from 2018 and somewhat oxidized, who knows.
What I do know is I’m thoroughly enjoying this nonetheless. I’ll certainly use up this travel spray and potentially buy a 30ml once that happens. But as long as the original Ummagumma exists in this world, it will be my preference and see more love. It’s a true 10/10 for me. Ummagumma Extra is a solid 7/10.