“We were driving faster than dammit, headed due west for a place called Anywhere But Here.”
James Spundt
***
When a tip from a clairvoyant leads 23-year old Neal Orris to a rural Connecticut barn housing his deceased father’s secret obsession, a pristine 1964 Shelby Cobra Roadster, it is the getaway ticket he was desperately searching for. After liberating his best friend Ike from his dead-end job on the family farm, the two hit the open highway. Aiming for the Palm Springs race tracks, their journey is a blur of seedy motels, cool swimming pools, hot debutantes, cocktails, and cigarette smoke. Each stop finds the friends inventing new pseudonyms and personas for themselves, their innocent game hurtling into the depths of decadence and desolation.
When to wear:
Hot, hazy weekdays when you can put your life on hold and enjoy a simple luxury like a fast drive in the country.
All about this fragrance
Vibe check
This is the scent of a hot afternoon spent in motion, when the windows are down and the day feels slightly ungoverned. It suits a wearer who likes a crisp, composed edge rather than sweetness, with a presence that reads lean, cool, and self-possessed.
How to wear
Best in warm weather, especially on dry, hazy days when its mineral and leather facets can stay clean rather than heavy. Apply lightly to pulse points or clothing for a streamlined trail; the airy woods and Iso E Super help it project without becoming dense, while the tobacco gives the drydown more texture on skin.
Who it’s for
For those who prefer leather scents that feel polished rather than smoky, and woody fragrances with a dry, mineral clarity. It will appeal to people who like clean, modern compositions with a road-worn, slightly rebellious character.
Release year
2013
The nose
Josh Meyer. Founder and self-taught nose of Imaginary Authors, Meyer built the house around narrative-driven perfumery and a distinctly indie, concept-first approach. His work tends to pair unusual materials with clear, wearable structures, and The Cobra and the Canary reflects that balance: leather, mineral facets, tobacco, and airy woods arranged into a polished, cinematic composition. Meyer is closely associated with Imaginary Authors’ early identity, shaping both the formulas and the brand’s fictional-literary universe. His style favors originality without sacrificing wearability, which is why the fragrances often feel imaginative but still grounded on skin.
Collaborators
Ashod Simonian helped shape the fragrance’s visual world and packaging, translating the brand’s fictional-road-trip concept into the book-like presentation that defines Imaginary Authors. His contribution sits alongside Meyer’s formula work, reinforcing the narrative identity rather than simply decorating the product.
Imaginary Authors’s story
Imaginary Authors treats fragrance as storytelling: each scent is built like a nonexistent book, with a title, synopsis, and visual identity designed to spark imagination. The house favors unexpected materials, unisex wearability, and a deliberately offbeat, literary point of view over conventional luxury polish.
The Cobra and the Canary’s concept
The Cobra and the Canary belongs to Imaginary Authors’ early, story-led lineup, released in 2013 and framed as a high-speed escape narrative. Its product story follows two friends on a westbound road trip, moving through motels, pools, smoke, and invented identities, with the scent echoing that blur of freedom and decay.
Extra info
The name comes from the brand’s fictional road-trip novel concept, with the bottle and story presented like a book from an imaginary author. It is an eau de parfum and part of Imaginary Authors’ vegan, paraben-free, phthalate-free, unisex lineup.
“We were driving faster than dammit, headed due west for a place called Anywhere But Here.”
James Spundt
***
When a tip from a clairvoyant leads 23-year old Neal Orris to a rural Connecticut barn housing his deceased father’s secret obsession, a pristine 1964 Shelby Cobra Roadster, it is the getaway ticket he was desperately searching for. After liberating his best friend Ike from his dead-end job on the family farm, the two hit the open highway. Aiming for the Palm Springs race tracks, their journey is a blur of seedy motels, cool swimming pools, hot debutantes, cocktails, and cigarette smoke. Each stop finds the friends inventing new pseudonyms and personas for themselves, their innocent game hurtling into the depths of decadence and desolation.
When to wear:
Hot, hazy weekdays when you can put your life on hold and enjoy a simple luxury like a fast drive in the country.
All about this fragrance
Vibe check
This is the scent of a hot afternoon spent in motion, when the windows are down and the day feels slightly ungoverned. It suits a wearer who likes a crisp, composed edge rather than sweetness, with a presence that reads lean, cool, and self-possessed.
How to wear
Best in warm weather, especially on dry, hazy days when its mineral and leather facets can stay clean rather than heavy. Apply lightly to pulse points or clothing for a streamlined trail; the airy woods and Iso E Super help it project without becoming dense, while the tobacco gives the drydown more texture on skin.
Who it’s for
For those who prefer leather scents that feel polished rather than smoky, and woody fragrances with a dry, mineral clarity. It will appeal to people who like clean, modern compositions with a road-worn, slightly rebellious character.
Release year
2013
The nose
Josh Meyer. Founder and self-taught nose of Imaginary Authors, Meyer built the house around narrative-driven perfumery and a distinctly indie, concept-first approach. His work tends to pair unusual materials with clear, wearable structures, and The Cobra and the Canary reflects that balance: leather, mineral facets, tobacco, and airy woods arranged into a polished, cinematic composition. Meyer is closely associated with Imaginary Authors’ early identity, shaping both the formulas and the brand’s fictional-literary universe. His style favors originality without sacrificing wearability, which is why the fragrances often feel imaginative but still grounded on skin.
Collaborators
Ashod Simonian helped shape the fragrance’s visual world and packaging, translating the brand’s fictional-road-trip concept into the book-like presentation that defines Imaginary Authors. His contribution sits alongside Meyer’s formula work, reinforcing the narrative identity rather than simply decorating the product.
Imaginary Authors’s story
Imaginary Authors treats fragrance as storytelling: each scent is built like a nonexistent book, with a title, synopsis, and visual identity designed to spark imagination. The house favors unexpected materials, unisex wearability, and a deliberately offbeat, literary point of view over conventional luxury polish.
The Cobra and the Canary’s concept
The Cobra and the Canary belongs to Imaginary Authors’ early, story-led lineup, released in 2013 and framed as a high-speed escape narrative. Its product story follows two friends on a westbound road trip, moving through motels, pools, smoke, and invented identities, with the scent echoing that blur of freedom and decay.
Extra info
The name comes from the brand’s fictional road-trip novel concept, with the bottle and story presented like a book from an imaginary author. It is an eau de parfum and part of Imaginary Authors’ vegan, paraben-free, phthalate-free, unisex lineup.