Henry Hall
Henry Hall is a singer-songwriter whose penchant for the absurd acts as an impressive counterbalance to his sometimes-poignant, always-thought-provoking lyrics. Son of American comedic royalty in Brad Hall and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, it’s little surprise that his signature style regularly slides into satire. So far, Hall’s music has revelled in the irreverent, gleefully splashing about (sometimes literally) in the surreal (and a suit). But despite tracks like ‘Guy‘ or ‘Alive, Annoyed‘ looking, at first impression, like unsent ‘Saturday Night Live’ submissions, on closer inspection, they’re charged with an impressive degree of emotional depth and self-reflection. Henry Hall’s music is, most frequently, a commentary on interpersonal (or intrapersonal) relationships, from the intensely personal (‘Like a Knife‘) to the most general (‘Wikapedia-ing Poisonous Snakes‘ is Henry’s hot take on the doomscrolling phenomenon).
Following the release of his latest album, Stop Doing Funny Stuff [23rd August], we spoke to Henry about blending humour with serious shit, his work as a covert North Korean operative and, most importantly, his problematic relationship with white t-shirt contests…
FAULT: You built up a reputation off the back of Neato as a bit of a comedy act, in the sense that you weren’t afraid to be self-deprecating, release surreal visuals, or write off-the-wall lyrics. Given your parents’ success as comedic performers, was that always the most likely path for you to follow?
Henry Hall: It always felt natural to me to have humor present in my lyrics for sure because that’s how I communicate in real life. Funny stuff (purposeful album title reference) is definitely a huge part of how I connect with my family and learned to communicate from a young age. As an adult, I make light of kinda everything, which is probably highly inappropriate in many cases and speaks to a larger issue of avoidance of actual problems in my life, but I’ll save issue that for my therapist.
You’ve gone a bit “note to self” with the title of your upcoming album, Stop Doing Funny Stuff. Even if it’s largely tongue-in-cheek, it also sounds like you’re aware of – and concerned about – potentially getting typecast as “the funny guy”. The depth of your lyrics are often masked by your light-hearted delivery, so how easy/difficult is it for you to step out of that “funny guy” role?
I think there’s truth and seriousness underneath all humor — that’s what makes it funny. If you’re subverting something that’s inherently serious, a person’s natural reaction is to laugh because that’s just the way we’re wired. But, even if you’re laughing, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t something serious going on simultaneously. Everything’s a little serious and a little ridiculous/ funny in life. That makes no sense, but I hope you kinda get what I mean.
I think this album is really about trying to be honest more than anything. I’m happy to be the funny guy or serious guy or whatever people wanna see me as — that’s totally up to them. I just wanna put my real true self into the music and I think that’s happening on this album more than in any of my previous projects.
Among your more recent releases, ‘Like a Knife’ – a sombre track that charts your reaction to the news of friend’s tragic death – stands out as a total departure from some of your earlier work. Tell us about the process of writing that song? And why did you decide to release it when you did?
Musically, ‘Like a Knife’ is a nice microcosm of what the album sounds like as a whole, I think. The rhythm and melody of a song are the most important elements to me so it definitely fit the bill there. And because it passed the musical test, it was a great vehicle to try something relatively new lyrically — the passing of my friend Claire is something that is very present in my memory so it felt appropriate to express that as a song.
Alongside the imminent release of Stop Doing Funny Stuff, we can find you doing more funny stuff in ‘Dinner with the Parents’. How did that role come about? And can we expect to see you taking on more acting roles in future?
‘Dinner With the Parents’ was such an incredible experience. I’ve been auditioning for TV/Film parts for years and this one just hit! I was very, very lucky and extremely thankful to get that role. Other than the “acting” that I do everyday in this shameful, glutinous nation (I’m a North Korean spy living under a discreet alias in the United States and have been for the past 2 decades), I’m hoping to do more acting in the near future! Stay tuned, you filthy, abhorrent capitalist pigs.
Who would you most like to collaborate with and why?
Absolutely Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never. I listen to the 10 hour loop of ‘Nobody Here’ on YouTube every single day. I love the sound of his production and would just plotz to be able to work with him. But other than OPN, like most people asked this question, I think my answer would be Cameron Dicker, the kicker for the Los Angeles Chargers.
Now that the new album’s dropped, what’s next on the agenda? Anything you’re particularly looking forward to?
Well, first I’m gonna go get a huge bag of peanuts from Five Guys and watch Bring It On cuz I have it saved on my DVR. But then, after that, I’m gonna be going on tour very soon this fall!!! Stay tuned for dates.
Who is overrated/underrated?
Goddamn, I wish I was brave enough to say publicly that someone was overrated, but alas, I am too small of a man to do that.
I would say that my friend Dema’s sister Shirley is underrated!!! She just put out music under the name Why Baby. Go listen — it is so so so so good and you will love it, trust me.
What is your FAULT?
I always pick the wrong time to wear white t-shirts. It sucks. I keep getting invited to go eat food that features chili oil prominently, arrive at the restaurant, sit down, and realize I’m in a brand new white shirt. You can guess what happens next. Fuck my life.