by Austin Carbone, Contributor

Thanks God

It’s hard to tell whether or not this outsider project is so deeply infused with internet culture or incredibly isolated from it. Based in New York City, the mystery artist of Thanks God reveals itself as Thomas Iacono. Raised in the city’s hardcore DIY rave scene, Iacono creatively aimed his discography at the deconstruction of synth pop and modern noise. Despite what the name might imply, there is no evidence that Iacono strongly abides with any sort of ideological or conceptual structures outside his own; cultivating the project’s esoteric atmosphere.

Thanks God is part of the Outlaw NYC artist collective, who are widely known in the underground community for throwing extremely precarious off-site parties in absurd locations; including cold war bunkers and semi-abandoned train terminals. In March of 2020 when the NYC quarantine had first hit, Iacono garnered quite some success as an organizer by co-producing the project Post World Radio, an Instagram based live-streaming platform in an effort to continue the artistic underground when the world of nightlife had suddenly vanished.

Currently, Thanks God presents his newest release Stray Bullet, an albumfocusing on a softer, more approachable production style in contrast to his initial releases’ erratic and harsh tendencies. The overarching narrative of the project prides itself on a lack of clear direction, invoking the sonic illusion of modern pop music tropes, sudden atmosphere switches, and deeply lucid daydreams. Ultimately Iacono wishes to send the listener into a dystopian reality that does not exist in this dimension.

When did the Thanks God project begin? Any driving idea behind it?

I started Thanks God in Fall 2018. I was watching an episode of Moral Orel while transitioning away from my previous project called Day Care. Orel always looks at the sky and thanks god, waiting for a response that never comes. Once I thought of the name, the music sort of happened all at once. I made over 150 tracks within the first few months, and I just have fun with it. The first tracks were completely all over the place in terms of sound and vibe, my latest work has been a more refined, actualized version of my initial ideas.

What artists, old or new, have you admired over the years? Any influences at the core of your project?

My biggest musical influences over the years have been Salem & Ween. With visual art I am heavily inspired by Jordan Wolfson and Ryan Trecartin. My biggest influence at the start of Thanks God was Hype Williams (Dean Blunt & Inga Copeland). I am obsessed with how all these artists are able to phase between vibe and genre while retaining this homogeneity in the overall atmosphere. I have a high respect for people who are able to completely ignore the orthodox. Genre purists are so boring.

You seem to have an affinity for absurd, poetic phrasings such as “lifetime sports” and “life is easy”, what do these represent in your practice?

Lifetime sports and all the other variations are a memento mori that I like to incorporate in my work. I had a gym class in high school called ‘Lifetime Sports,’ and the name always stuck with me for some reason. I started mentally dissecting why they called it that, and I started to think of life itself as a sport. You can choose to have fun or you can take it way too seriously if you want. Up to you. It's a series of wins and losses and we are all fighting our own battle. Life is easy is an affirmation I tell myself when I am stressed out. If you put yourself in the ‘life is easy’ mindset, life feels easier.

Post World Radio seemed like quite a journey, how did the project start, and what did you learn from it?

Post World Radio definitely was a journey, it started when Misty Chrysalis approached me to start a virtual music performance platform as soon as quarantine was announced. We created the account and I spent two months of my life doing nothing but curating artists and coordinating schedules. It taught me how achieving something great only requires a really good idea and some dedication. I would sit down for an entire day and schedule an entire week of performances at once. So many incredible artists were involved and the energy was so real. I had a lot of obstacles that were very shocking to me at the time, like my roommate ripping out my PA during my live performance with Morgan Garrett. It was shocking at first, but has definitely calibrated my radar for whack people moving forward. It is unfortunately very natural for people to have polarizing responses towards great things. Though I have come to learn how important it is to pace yourself and know who to trust, I have no regrets overall.

Your visual art tends to be wildly abrasive, where does this sit in your artistic narrative? Any specific themes or cultural commentaries behind it?

My visual art started way before my music, I started making videos in 2016 when I was extremely unhappy with my life situation. I edited my first video in a Borough of Manhattan Community College computer lab, and what started out as a ‘stress ball activity’ for me became a pursuit to constantly push my own boundaries. I started becoming fascinated with motion, and have experimented with pretty much every type of motion-based video technology there is. In terms of a cultural commentary I would consider my work to most consistently have anti-capitalist & pseudo-spiritual elements. I believe that god is within ourselves, that we should find a way to laugh at what brings us pain, and that our subconscious is a utopia.

As a self-described multi-disciplinary artist, what kinds of goals do you see yourself working towards in the future?

I would really like to reach a point where I could take my visual art to the next level, perhaps with gallery shows. If I stay on my grind, life will work itself out in that department. One of the most important things to me is pushing the limits of what I consider possible, so I am excited to see what I get myself into.

Any final remarks towards anyone you wish to shoutout/send your appreciation to?

Shout out to Dreamcrusher, Coin/Channel63, SWEETZACH, BGBC, OUTLAW, Andy Spade, Lil B, and Beat Happening. R.I.P. Dylann Angercar.