Unconscious Honey - Fault Lines (Random Records)

Unconscious Honey is the synth-pop project spearheaded by Björn Trenker, who hails from Berlin. His debut album, Being a Stranger, took inspiration from his background in psychiatry and was highly appreciated by the queer Berlin city magazines Siegessäule and BLU, as well as KALTBLUT Magazine, who deemed it one of the best dance music albums in 2020.

During the pandemic, Björn collaborated with his regular co-producer and husband, Paul "Snax" Bonomo, and decided to remix and reinterpret the songs from the album, with help from other LGBTQ artists and friends such as Electrosexual, Mavin, and Snecker. He also began composing the four tracks on his new EP soon after the release of his second album. Although his debut live performance was canceled due to Covid-19's second wave, Björn continued to work on new material during the lockdown.

Unconscious Honey's latest EP, Fault Lines, consists of four new and exciting songs from this period. The first song, "Fault Lines," is a synth-pop number about finding moments of joy in difficult times. "Percolate" is an upbeat song about the insecurities of being in a romantic entanglement. "Crush Of Time" is inspired by Twin Peaks, describing the feeling of getting lost in the night and experiencing a religious-like trance. Finally, "Sense Of Rapture" is about the ups and downs of queer cruising, including loneliness and disappointment, but also the feeling of absolution in a secret community.

Unconscious Honey's Fault Lines will be available on Random Records starting December 15th, 2023.

Luis Machuca (Friskybeat Records) – “Production is on point. Enjoying the Kraftwerk sound.”
Psycho-Jones (Kater Blau) – “Goosebumps. Thanks.”
Electrosexual (Electrosexual) – “Great electropop, great production.”
DJ Firefly (WRCT Pittsburgh) – “Delightful!”
Jon Fugler (XLNT radio show) – “Lovely selection. Capturing some evocative feelings.”
DJ Clairvo (Tilos Radio Budapest) – “I always dig downbeat / lounge music with a certain disco touch and vocal treatment. Nice work - supporting!”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Beatport, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Unconscious Honey - Loose Beginnings (Random Records)

In Summer 2020, Random Records released the debut album by Unconscious Honey, Being A Stranger, a collection of future synth-pop classics written by Björn Trenker that featured all lead vocals sung via a robotic vocoder effect. Co-produced with husband Paul Bonomo, aka Snax, it distilled Trenker’s life experiences into unique pop creations. Influences ranged from early 90’s pop like Deee-Lite, Army Of Lovers, and Betty Boo to the cinematic aesthetics of Cassavetes, Kubrick and Todd Haynes, to the life and work of authors Gloria Steinem and Samuel Steward. Positive responses included online magazine Kaltblut naming the album one of the best dance music albums in 2020.

Now, Random is proud to present Unconscious Honey’s second collection, Loose Beginnings, which collects all the songs from the debut, now reinterpreted by an exciting array of queer guest vocalists, all with ties to the open and diverse German capital of Berlin. Participants were given freedom to bring their own unique personality to the songs and the results are intriguing, with new dimensions and human textures added to each. Trenker expands on the concept: “Loose Beginnings tells a piece of my queer life story. I wanted to communicate that openly and unfiltered. And through these new recordings, my songs themselves become ‘loose beginnings’ for new protagonists.” Three exciting dance floor filling remixes round out the set.

The guest list includes tremendous artists, all at different stages in their musical journey. Joey from the Netherlands, currently working on her own debut album, is a star on the rise, and offers her distinctive and soulful voice on “Being A Stranger” and “Good Light”. Swedish born Ed Astronaut only recently started pursuing his musical aspirations — a ‘loose beginner’ if you will — so he shines on the title track. Polish-German soul singer and frequent Snax collaborator Mavin, formerly with Manhooker, released his debut on Random in 2018, so naturally he was on board to offer pop stylings on “Exploited Devotion”. On “Sleepless”, Mavin is joined by fierce glam singer Dan Perry, currently fronting his own band Merely Minds. Grume, who hails from Hungary and has already made a name for himself in the post-industrial band LATH, takes on the brooding “Abandoned To Desire”, while French-Swiss musician and dear friend Steev Lemercier provides his unique blend of light and darkness on “Radiate”. Artist and musician Jon Campbell, who made waves recently with two baroque pop albums, was the perfect choice to handle “Darkroom Tease”. And finally, there’s electronic soul musician and co- producer Snax, who brings baritone, falsetto and a choir to “High Strung”.

In addition to the re-sung recordings, this collection features three exciting remixes, tailor-made for when clubs finally reopen their doors. Berghain/Panorama Bar resident DJ ND Baumecker and Snax have teamed up as Snecker. Not only do they mold “Casual Touch” into their own psychedelic four-on-the-floor style, but they involve themselves in the concept of the album with a little re-singing as well. Snax then assumes his Box Office Poison persona to serve up an epic big club, ‘90s-style deep dub of “Abandoned To Desire”. Finally, French producer and sound artist Electrosexual delivers audio carnal delights in his Extended Pleasure remix of “Darkroom Tease”.

As an extra bonus, Random is offering the entire instrumental version of Being A Stranger as an exclusive release on their Bandcamp page. Now you can be join our eclectic gang of singers and artists and sing along to the tracks that move you, too!

So, be a stranger and join us on our loose beginning, and let’s get Unconscious Honey!

Hifi Sean (Plastique Recordings) – “Box Office Dub is Everything. Yes, yes, yes!”
Severins (HorseMeatDisco) – “Wow. Great project, love it. Big support.”
Massimiliano Pagliara (Baihu) – “Great package. Love it.”
Luis Machuca (Friskybeat Records) – “Nice album. Very well crafted.”
Snooba (Radio Panik) – “This is honey for the ears.”
Sandro Bianchi (Ibiza Sonica) – “Love it. Supersexy!”
Hober Mallow (Mighty Reel) – “Unique and diverse sounding LP. Love the cinematic overtones, and great vocals.”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Beatport, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Unconscious Honey - Being A Stranger (Random Records)

Even as a kid, Unconscious Honey, aka Berlin-based songwriter Björn Trenker, was obsessed with the idea that all sentiments can be bottled up in a three-minute pop song. This appreciation for pop craft stayed with him ever since. Fittingly, the creative starting point for his debut album Being a Stranger was those records that shaped his mindset of youth. Deee-Lite's World Clique, Army Of Lovers' Massive Luxury Overdose, and Soho's Goddess, to name but a few. Think Hal 9000 meets Betty Boo.

In 2017, Björn co-wrote two songs on his husband Snax’s seminal album, Shady Lights, an experience that sparked the idea of writing songs on his own, and for the last two years has been working on this debut album. Ultimately, Snax was invited on board as co-producer.

Thematically, Björn’s career work in the field of psychiatry, his sexual desires, and his hardships — specifically losing his sister after her battle with cancer in 2018 — are all distilled in the sound of Unconscious Honey. Further influences were derived from disparate sources; the aesthetics of films such as John Cassavetes‘ A Woman Under The Influence, Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Todd Haynes’ Safe, plus the work of Gloria Steinem and Samuel Steward. The idea is to translate real life muddiness into pop precision, and the result of this creative work are ten signature, melancholic synth-pop songs. The aesthetic is DIY, while the liberal use of vocoder amps up the emotional impact. Get ready for sonic adventure!

Andrew Emil (Glenview Records) – “So good! Thanks.”
Luis Machuca (Friskybeat Records) – “Really digging this release.”
Jon Fugler (Fluke) – “Capturing the vibe of the era perfectly, very enjoyable.”
Hard Ton (Toy Tonics) – “Luv it. Make Pop Great Again!”
DJ Electric (Deepology) – “This is a very nice electronic album.”
Electrosexual (Electrosexual) – “Great synth pop! Very Daftpunkesque, at it’s best.”
Ket Shah (Mucho Soul) – “Reminds me of my youth growing up with New Romantics.”
Jon Wesley (Music Goes On Radio Show) – “I like these songs, and I really like the breaks. I’ll definitely play them.”
Zach Van Lue (91X) – “This is pretty rad. Refreshing!”
Hober Mallow (Mighty Reel, Sydney) – “Great production and a unique sound. Will support here.”

Available Now From: Beatport, Juno Download, Spotify, And Apple Music.

Box Office Poison - Elevate feat. Mavin (Random Records)

The Berlin-based maestro Snax sets his sights to the dance floor with the house music project Box Office Poison. “Elevate” is the second single under this name and it features the fantastic vocals of regular collaborator Mavin. In addition to the original, the single contains top notch remixes from Luis Machuca (Frisky Beat Recordings) and New York’s TradeCraft, aka Bobby Duron and Kind Bud.

Box Office Poison appeared in the mid-naughties with a few bootleg remixes, an official remix of Bedroom Productions’ LGBTQ anthem “No Glove, No Love,” plus The Rimshooters Vs. Snax's ‘Pledge Allegiance,’ and then the single “One Good Thing” featuring Adam Joseph. Afro-Polish singer Mavin — also of the project Manhooker — is fresh off Love, his debut solo album, and his rousing vocal performance on “Turn It,” featured on Snax’s recent album Shady Lights.

“Elevate” started as a demo sent to Mavin whose vocal finesse and lyrical themes of self-empowerment via dance floor abandon instantly ‘elevated’ the tune. The music lovingly nods to the ‘old school,’ punchy and melodic with intoxicating house music chords and a touch of 2-step shuffle. There’s also an instrumental dub which works great to extend the intro or outro of the vocal version.

The first remixer is Chilean-born/Vanvcouver-based Luis Manchuca who runs Canadian dance label Frisky Beat Recordings. Luis brilliantly decodes the original into a deep and sexy late night glide. The accompanying remix is from the duo of Kind Bud and Bobby Duron, teaming up as TradeCraft. With previous releases on Trax and Nervous Records, the pair masterfully transform “Elevate” into a tough and fierce mix of grinding bass, crisp rhythms, and effectively dubbed-out vocals.

Box Office Poison’s new single is ready to light dance floors on fire this year. It’s proof positive that in these heady time, house music can still help us all ELEVATE.

Hard Ton (Toy Tronics) – “I Love this! Remixes are dope too.”
Tyree Cooper (Chicago Vinyl Records) – “I’m freakin’ lovin’ this!”
Curtiss Logan (Jersey Soul) – “Very nice release. Full support. Nice job Mavin!”
KJ (Integrity Recordings) – “Sweet Vocals. Tight Remixes.”
DJ Osric (Black and Blue Show) – “Lots of boogie and feel good on this release.”
Darrell Stout (Beatmatrix Show) – “Solid! An EP for everyone.”
Michael Fossati (Spirit of House Web Zine) – “A truly cool’n’sexy rework here from Luis Machuca.”
Electrosexual (Electrosexual) – “Fab Fierce release. Snax & Mavin = Allstars!”
Dickey Doo (All Star Show / This is Electric Radio) – “GREAT stuff! Solid mixes all around.”
Dean Serafini (Frisky Rhythms) – “Sounds rather tasty. The Original and Luis Machuca mixes are likely to both be featured on upcoming shows.”

Available Now From: Beatport, Traxsource, Apple Music, And Spotify.