Penny & Sparrow – Lefty

By starrymag | March 28, 2025

By: Jennifer Vintzileos

 

 

Q) How would you best describe your sound?

 

Kyle: Our friend Rey recently described us as a “genre-bending angsty girly pop duo.”

 

Q) Who are your Top 3 musical influences?

 

Kyle: Paul McCartney, Frank Ocean, Adrianne Lenker

 

Q) Tell us the story behind your single “Breakdown.”

 

Andy: I found out I have panic attacks at an Urgent Care in Utah. I thought I was having a heart attack (I had all the symptoms), so we drove to get me looked at in the middle of tour. They shaved part of my chest, hooked me up, monitored me and then a kindly doc came in and asked me about stress. We talked for a bit, I paid the receptionist and then I walked back out to the van with a new knowledge about myself. The song “Breakdown” (along with me going to therapy) started there. What came after what a lot of hard questions, great conversations with Kyle, some healing and this finished song.

 

Q) You also recently shot a music video for “Breakdown.” How did you come up with the concept for the music video?

 

A) The video for “Breakdown” is actually a part of a series of videos we did with our pal Tony Hale. He played an obsessive late-night host who keeps having us back as the musical guest. As the videos progress, he becomes more and more unhinged and it’s hysterical. We love him and it was a blast making those vids.

 

Q) “Breakdown” is a single off your latest album Lefty. Since its release, what has been the reaction from fans and listeners to the new album?

 

A) Honestly, it’s been lovely. Folks have been kind…also…folks have been quick to say “yeah, me too” when it comes to panic attacks…So, there’s strength in numbers and empathy I reckon…

 

Q) My favorite song on the album is “You Mean Too Much To Me!” Which song was your favorite to write and record for Lefty?

 

A) That changes all the time but currently my favorite is “My Lover Was A Great Man.” It’s a fan fiction song centered around a book that we love called A Little Life … that one is dark sad magic. I love Hanya Yanagihara’s writing and it was fun to pay homage to ideas and humans that she built so beautifully.

 

Q) What is your song writing process? Do you need lyrics before you can create music?

 

Andy: We usually follow this path:

 

Kyle does most of the melody and I do most of the lyric work. Kyle usually goes first, and I trail after him and play Mad-Lib with the melodies he writes.

 

Q) How much of a hand does the group have in the production side of the music that you make?

 

Andy: At this point we write and record and produce almost all of what we do. We enlist the help of a few pals here and there (notably, Jonathan Oliphant co-produced a bunch of our recent album Lefty).

 

Q) With the release of Lefty, you also have upcoming tour dates this spring. What are you looking forward to the most with the tour?

 

Kyle: We’re definitely excited to play these songs live – there’s so much variation between songs in the album and I’m looking forward to seeing how it all translates on stage.

 

Andy: Aside from singing for folks, which is always cool, I love looking for rare books and hard-to-find liquor that we don’t get in Alabama. Oh, and I also love eating big in new cities.

 

Q) Which song is your favorite to perform at live shows?

 

Kyle: We have only performed a few of these songs a handful of times so jury is still out, but I think the early favorite is “Breakdown” – very stoked to yell sing that one every night.

 

Q) Who are some artists that you’re really into at the moment or have a spot in your current playlist?

 

A) Kyle: Lizzy McAlpine, Zach Top, Annika Bennet, Bonnie Light Horseman, Faye Webster, Mihtmo, Cindy Lee, Clairo, SZA, Duncan Fellows, Brody Price, Lucy Dacus and many more!

 

Q) What would you like to say to your fans and supporters of your music?

 

Kyle: I’d like to say, “Hey, yall! We’re both really looking forward to seeing y’all out there on the open road.”