Fragrance comparison

An Air Of Despair vs Cashmere Musk

Notes, accords, longevity, sillage, seasons and community ratings, side by side.

Updated 21 Oct 2026 171 ratings analysed

An Air Of Despair

Imaginary Authors

3.5382 votes

Rank #14,999 WoodyWarm Spicy

Full profile Similar & dupes

65%scent match

Closely related

5 wins

Cashmere Musk

Ajmal

4.1589 votes

Rank #28,242 WoodyMusky

Full profile Similar & dupes

Quick verdict

Which one should you pick?

Cashmere Musk takes 5 of 7 categories.

An Air Of Despair
Choose it for a woody and warm spicy character. Wins on sillage & projection and fragranxe ranking. Best in fall, daytime wear.
Cashmere Musk
Choose it for a woody and musky character. Wins on ratings & consensus, community sentiment and longevity. Best in winter.

An Air Of Despair2/7

Cashmere Musk5/7

Ratings & consensus: Cashmere Musk
Community sentiment: Cashmere Musk
Longevity: Cashmere Musk
Sillage & projection: An Air Of Despair
Value for money: Cashmere Musk
Versatility: Cashmere Musk
Note pyramid (duration): Not scored
Fragranxe ranking: An Air Of Despair

Head-to-head breakdown

Every category side by side, with the winner called out.

Fragrance

An Air Of DespairImaginary Authors

Cashmere MuskAjmal

Winner

Ratings & consensus

Average rating and ownership split

3.53/ 5 · 82 votes

Have 18%Had 6%Want 76%

4.15/ 5 · 89 votes

Have 32%Had 8%Want 59%

Category winnerCashmere MuskRating weighted by vote count

Community sentiment

How voters split from love to hate

32%Love

34%Like

3%Ok

30%Dislike

1%Hate

74 votes

34%Love

54%Like

6%Ok

7%Dislike

0%Hate

89 votes

Category winnerCashmere MuskMost positive mix (25+ votes)

Longevity & sillage

0–100 community performance scores

⏱ Longevity62

〰 Sillage61

♥ Love / hate67

⏱ Longevity68

〰 Sillage54

♥ Love / hate79

Category winners

LongevityCashmere Musk

SillageAn Air Of Despair

Value for money

How fairly priced voters find it

¤ Price value42

¤ Price value48

Category winnerCashmere MuskBest value score

Main accords

Strength of each scent family · outlined = shared by both

woody100%

warm spicy88%

musky77%

powdery65%

metallic53%

leather42%

woody100%

musky90%

powdery80%

warm spicy70%

yellow floral60%

white floral50%

Scent match65%Closely related · both woody, musky and warm spicy

Note pyramid (duration)

Top, heart and base, with how long each lasts when known · gold = shared

Notes

SaffronCedarMusk

No top / heart / base split published

Top

MuskSaffron

Heart

Ylang-YlangJasmineLily-of-the-Valley

Base

CashmeranCedarPatchouli

InformationalShared notesSaffron, Cedar and Musk. Note durations are not published for these fragrances, so this is not scored.

Seasons & time of day

Relative to each fragrance's best season

Spring43

Summer29

Fall100

Winter61

Day100

Night–

Spring97

Summer55

Fall0

Winter100

Day–

Night–

Category winnerCashmere MuskMost year-round

Who wears it

Gender appeal votes

Men40

Unisex20

Women40

Men6

Unisex38

Women56

InformationalProfile onlyAudience is not scored

Ranking & credits

Fragranxe overall rank, nose and launch

Overall rank#14,999

PerfumerJosh Meyer

Launched—

Reviews21

Overall rank#28,242

PerfumerNot listed

Launched—

Reviews0

Category winnerAn Air Of DespairHigher overall rank

In a nutshell

Description & review snapshot

An Air Of Despair is a dry, cedar-led scent with saffron adding a leathery, slightly metallic warmth and musk keeping it clean rather than fluffy. It opens sharp for some wearers, then settles into a smooth, comforting woodiness that can feel cozy, austere, and quietly distinctive. This suits someone who enjoys minima…

Reviews →

Cashmere Musk by Ajmal is a musk-first, woody floral that leans soft, powdery, and slightly spicy. The opening pairs clean musk with a saffron glow, then turns more floral with ylang-ylang and jasmine before settling into cashmeran woods with cedar and a gentle patchouli shadow. It suits cooler weather best, and tends…

Reviews →

InformationalRead bothTaste is personal

How we score: ratings blend public fragrance ratings with Fragranxe member votes; longevity, sillage, value and sentiment are community vote scores, and season bars are relative to each fragrance's strongest season. Categories with too little data are shown but not scored. The scent match weighs accord overlap (60%) and shared notes (40%). More in the FAQ.

Common questions

Straight answers from the data above.

Which is better, An Air Of Despair or Cashmere Musk?

Cashmere Musk takes 5 of 7 categories. An Air Of Despair is rated 3.53/5 from 82 votes; Cashmere Musk is rated 4.15/5 from 89 votes. Choose An Air Of Despair for a woody and warm spicy character. Wins on sillage & projection and fragranxe ranking. Best in fall, daytime wear. Choose Cashmere Musk for a woody and musky character. Wins on ratings & consensus, community sentiment and longevity. Best in winter.

Which lasts longer, An Air Of Despair or Cashmere Musk?

Cashmere Musk lasts longest (Cashmere Musk 68/100, An Air Of Despair 62/100), based on community performance votes.

Which projects more, An Air Of Despair or Cashmere Musk?

An Air Of Despair projects furthest (An Air Of Despair 61/100, Cashmere Musk 54/100), based on community performance votes.

Do An Air Of Despair and Cashmere Musk smell similar?

Closely related: a 65% scent match on Fragranxe. Both share woody, musky and warm spicy accords. Common notes include Saffron, Cedar and Musk.

Is An Air Of Despair or Cashmere Musk better for summer or winter?

For summer, Cashmere Musk is the stronger pick. For winter, Cashmere Musk is the stronger pick. An Air Of Despair suits daytime wear. Based on community season votes.

What are the notes in An Air Of Despair and Cashmere Musk?

An Air Of Despair features Saffron, Cedar and Musk. Cashmere Musk has top notes of Musk and Saffron, heart notes of Ylang-Ylang, Jasmine and Lily-of-the-Valley, a base of Cashmeran, Cedar and Patchouli.