“The lights are falling down”, sings Thoom on the opening line of her new project Fantasy for Danger. It’s a sentiment that sets the tone for the rest of the four-track EP, a collection of brooding, mysterious and often bewildering songs that take us on a journey through the artist’s psyche. Since the release of her debut album Pork in 2020, Thoom returns from three years in the figurative wilderness, and Fantasy’s stark, contemplative tone reflects that.

Thoom hasn’t been completely in the wilderness of course. The artist is a part of the vibrant downtown New York scene that sees The Dare rub shoulders with Dazed cover stars Frost Children, and that covetable, off-kilter energy is on full display in the artist’s new project. Take the track “Suburban Mall Jewelry” for example. Thoom’s high-pitched, childlike vocal is instantly offset by dark and throbbing production, with results that both disorient and entice, like a siren's call cutting through the dark of night. A piercing woodwind refrain conjures visions of the ancient and occult, while the singer beckons us “high up in the lonely night/On the cliff to feel alive”.

In the surreal music video for the track, Thoom invites us into her psychosexual playground. An abandoned landfill strewn with broken furniture is the setting for her escapades, flitting through the black night like a woodland nymphette. While Thoom exhibits a powerful sense of agency throughout the clip, male figures are not afforded the same freedoms. A random hookup in the front seat of a car remains stonily still. The singer kisses a Grecian statue before lying beside a weightlifting bodybuilder, both figures that fixate on the purely aesthetic form. In contrast to this, the singer cavorts through her environment, responding to her surroundings in a vivid, tactile and instinctual way. Thoom is the master of her own dark dream, and we’re all just visitors in the fantasy.

Below, we catch up with the singer about her inspirations for the record and the corny memes she can’t get enough of.

What are some of the main inspirations behind the album?

Thoom: Unrequited love. New York. Strangers.

What’s the thinking behind the EP name?

Thoom: Fantasy For Danger for me is about leaning into the self-destructive feelings of heartbreak and falling in love with strangers.

What’s your earliest musical memory?

Thoom: Belly dancing to Haifa Wehbe in front of my family.

What song could you not stop playing growing up?

Thoom: “Ah W Noss” by Nancy Ajram

Please share the most recent note from your Notes app!

Thoom: 

Body oil

Silver shoes?

Bracelets and belts

Red background?

Mic prop

Tinder in Florida

Bullett belt

Tell him to get:

Boxers 

White socks

Gloves beanie 

Headphones

If you have any jewelry, ring or chains

Women just have to endure, men have to prove themselves 

And the last meme you saved? 

Thoom: You corny to me once you on the cob forever!!

Your favourite cornershop snack?

Thoom: A halal sausage egg and cheese on a biscuit with ketchup.

What’s your ghost outfit?

Thoom: Naked except for a tutu skirt.

The worst advice you’ve ever been given?

Thoom: Be patient.

What conspiracy theory are you quite into actually?

Thoom: I don’t really think about conspiracy theories. I don’t think they’re very interesting.

What do you put on your rider?

Thoom: Champagne, grapes, salt and vinegar chips, gummy bears.

Fantasy for Danger is out now.


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