Kyle Jahnke and Andy Baxter, or better known as Penny & Sparrow are an iconic Yin and Yang. This musical duo is as playful, authentic, and care-free as it comes. They grew up in different parts of the world, but came together during their time at the University of Texas and began writing and performing shortly after that.
Their music is intimate, personal, magnificent, even cinematic. Deeply vulnerable, and perhaps even emotional, their songs blur the lines between indie-folk and alt-pop. When we first met Andy and Kyle, we immediately picked up on the deep brotherhood and love they have for each other. There is a mutual honor, respect, and support for each other, which compounds the sincerity in their songwriting. “Essentially, we have the same DNA,” shared Baxter, “but different genetics.” Professionally and personally, they share one heartbeat. It’s absolutely mesmerizing.
In 2014, the two quit their day jobs and took on careers full of bookings, tours, and songwriting. After their fourth album, Let a Lover Drown You, they had quite the following and the critics started speaking up. NPR praised the band’s songwriting as a “delicate dance between heartache and resolve,” while The World Café raved that they’ve “steadily built a sound as attentive to detail as Simon & Garfunkel and as open to the present day as Bon Iver.” Rolling Stone hailed their sound as “folk music for Sunday mornings, quiet evenings, and all the fragile moments in between.”
Jahnke is a gifted guitarist with a keen ear for melodies, whereas Baxter is a talented lyricist with a haunting voice and can steer an unmistakable falsetto harmony into any tune. Baxter’s mind swirls around words, books, and stories that form within. Jahnke, on the other hand, is unapologetically more simple. “It’s coffee, the excitement to drink it, and quality sleep for me,” Jahnke says. “When you dive into the details and emotional bearings of these traits, they’re quite similar, just articulated with a twist.”
We partnered with Penny & Sparrow in the Anthro Series to create a bottle of cask strength bourbon finished with a charred American Oak spire. This composition of ingredients is a perfect go-to when it comes to writing and performing. And on that note, we suggest that you listen to their newest single, Adeline, a song crafted out of pieces from years spent learning, hoping, and dreaming, all distilled into one love song.
