Louisville-based singer/songwriter Mark Kramer, who performs under the moniker Tender Mercy, is set to release his first LP, Leave Little Room, via Obsolete Media Objects (Lung, Balmorhea, Andrew Weathers Ensemble, etc.) on March 1, 2018, via cassette and download formats.  The release is Tender Mercy’s first album and fifth release since 2011.
“I initially conceived Leave Little Room as an EP of four songs, which I wrote during end of 2016 through the first half of 2017.   Obsolete Media Objects got on board and suggested a complete album. Truth be told, I was a bit worried since I’ve never had to write specifically for a release. I generally wait until I have a few songs that I’m particularly proud of and go from there. I think the pressure helped immensely and the six songs that followed came out so naturally. They compliment the original  four well, so much that they’re hard to hear apart from each other.”
The album was produced by Nick Layman (Black Birds Of Paradise, Future Killer) at Goldsmith Studios, located in Louisville.
Influenced by acts like Low, Grouper, Tiny Vipers and Harold Budd, Tender Mercy creates a deliberately spacious, cinematic and dynamic sound that spotlight the distinctively relatable human impulses and situations covered in his songwriting narrative. That said, its also clear that Kramer’s unique and deliberate approach is one that isn’t easily classified or shoved into a genre; he’s an acolyte of his own agenda, influences and creativity.
According to Kramer, Leave Little Room deals with themes of insecurity, anxiety and everything that goes along with those feelings and catalysts. From the complexities of being holed up in your shell and watching while others seem to radiate natural leadership (“Leave Little Room”) to the trials and tribulations of tackling one’s upbringing (“Fear”), Kramer is honest and thoughtful in the same ways that the best and most self-aware artists are.
Kramer has undertaken several self-funded, DIY tours traveling through the Midwest and up and down the East Coast, and has supported a broad and dynamic array of regionally, nationally and internationally lauded artists including, Advance Base, Jeffery Lewis, FUGITIVE, Cross Record, Simon Joyner and Wooden Wand to name a few.
Kramer will support the album’s release with a series of live dates in the Midwest and on the East Coast in March, including a slot on SPAZZFEST in Greenville, North Carolina on March 23. He’s also actively pursuing a West Coast tour in October. Here are the dates:
2/22 Louisville,KY…..Highland Tap
3/1 Cincinnati,OH….The Listing Loon
3/2 Harrisburg,PA….Little Amps
3/3 Philadelphia,PA….TBD
3/4 New York,NY….Arlene’s Grocery
3/5 New Haven,CT or Providence,RI…TBD
3/6 Boston,MA….Midway Cafe
3/7 Worcester,MA….TBD
3/8 East Hampton,MA….Luthier’s Co-Op
3/9 Rochester,NY….Small World Books
3/10 Cleveland,OH….Coda
3/11 Detroit,MI….Outer Limits
3/12 Chicago,IL….Cafe Mustache
3/13 Evansville,IN….PG’s
3/14 Columbus,OH….Filiment @ The Vanderelli Room
3/23 Greenville,NC….SPAZZFEST IX
3/25 Louisville,KY….Surface Noise