Neither Here Nor There

Henry Phillips steps on stage with an acoustic guitar and the soft-spoken earnestness of a 1970s folk troubadour, only to sing about profound social humiliation and absolute failure. He plays the kind of songs where a sweet melody carries a tale about the misery of walking straight into a wall after confidently exiting an elevator, or trying to sell his soul to the devil for guitar prowess only to be assigned weekly music theory lessons. It is cringe comedy at its most melodious, delivered by a man who has built a career on being a lovable, slightly pathetic misfit.

Recorded at the Lyric Theatre in Los Angeles, Neither Here Nor There was released in 2016 as his first filmed stand-up special. By this time, Phillips was a well-established cult figure, known for his indie film Punching the Clown, a recurring role on HBO’s Silicon Valley, and his popular YouTube parody series Henry’s Kitchen.

This set includes some of his most requested musical bits, such as “Guitar Pill” and “The Sneeze Noise,” alongside the bleak, deadpan ballad “End of the World”. He also breaks up the solo guitar work with dry, observational stand-up about the awkwardness of wedding conversations and the subtle tragedies of modern life, occasionally bringing out guests like Mark Cohen and Audrey Tess for collaborative songs.