Monthly Newsletter Digest
DECEMBER 2025 NEWSLETTER
ANNOUNCING MY NEW ALBUM
SPRING GREEN
OUT EXCLUSIVELY ON BANDCAMP MARCH 6, 2026
TOUR ON SALE THIS FRIDAY - BUT -
PRE-SALE FOR NEWSLETTER READERS ON THURSDAY
SIGN UP HERE TO GET PRE-SALE CODE
It’s winter now, but Spring Green is coming!
I am very proud to announce that Spring Green, my fourteenth studio album, will be released on March 6th, 2026, and the title track will be available to stream this Friday, Dec 5th! Recorded live over three days in the studio, Spring Green is a subtle testament to the radical act of endurance. These eleven new songs—
half of which were co-written with close friends—remind us to stay tender, to take the time for rejuvenation in the company of community. I hope to celebrate this community with you at lots of upcoming album release tour dates, listed below.
I wanted to share that I'm trying something a little different with this album release, and I need your support. There's nothing I love more than organically connecting with my audience and community, so this album release campaign will be all about that: direct connection. I have been disheartened by the myriad ways in which the modern music business undermines this human connection, imposing business models that silo, homogenize, and devalue music. I’m only one independent artist, but I am resisting these trends in the name of all I love most about music.
So what does that mean? Over the next few months, I'll be releasing a few songs from the record on streaming, but when the whole album releases on March 6, it'll only be available for purchase on Bandcamp for its first month.This album was funded by you on platforms that help make careers sustainable for artists--Kickstarter, Patreon, and Bandcamp. I am so grateful for your support, and as such, if you are a Patreon subscriber or Kickstarter backer, you'll be the first to have access to this music. Then it'll be available to everyone via Bandcamp on March 6, and finally, a month after the album's official release, it will go to streaming--but not to Spotify. Keep an eye out here for more thoughts on that soon.
Songs inherently seek to communicate, to collapse the distances between us by fostering empathy and compassion. In the coming year, I will be asking you to continue to be an active, enthusiastic ambassador for my music, to help amplify my message both on social media and in your real world interactions: tell the world what you’re listening to and buy a copy for a friend.
PRE-ORDER the new record directly from Mark!
SPRING GREEN TOUR! Sign up for the pre-sale:
This spring, I’ll be taking my band on the road for shows across the Northeast, Midwest, and South. I can’t wait to play these songs live with my incredible band, and want you to have access to the best tickets. For the first time, I’m running a fan pre-sale. Click THIS LINK to sign up to receive the pre-sale code, and then you’ll be able to purchase tickets on Thursday, one day ahead of the general public.
Mar 19 - Chatham Orpheum, Chatham MA ^
Mar 20 - The Spire, Plymouth MA ^
Mar 21 - Arrow Street Arts, Cambridge MA ^
Mar 26 - One Longfellow Square, Portland ME #
Mar 27 - Music Hall Lounge, Portsmouth NH #
Apr 16 - Stoltz Listening Room @ Avalon Theater, Easton MD %
Apr 17 - Concerts In The Studio, Freehold NJ ^
Apr 18 - Jalopy, Brooklyn NY ^
Apr 19 - The Kate, Old Saybrook CT ^
May 6 - The Ark, Ann Arbor MI %
May 8 - CSPS, Cedar Rapids %
^ full band # trio % duo
More dates to be announced!
I’ll also be playing a very special opening set at a benefit for Stone Mountain Arts Center the week before my album releases:
Feb 27 - Stone Mountain Arts Center, Brownfield ME (with Lori McKenna)
DECEMBER SHOWS
Mountain Stage with Kathy Mattea - Live Taping!
Sun Dec 7 - Cultural Center Theater, Charleston WV - 7 pm
I’m very excited to return to this venerable radio variety show for the second time. The Bacon Brothers will headline (yes, Kevin Bacon), but what I’m really excited about is that my friend Rose Cousins will also be featured on this episode, and she will join me on harmonies for my set, backed by the house band. You can buy livestream tickets at the link above as well.
Back Porch Songwriter Series: The SONGS of RANDY NEWMAN
Wed Dec 10 - The Drake, Amherst MA - 8 pm
Yes, yes, I’m breaking my rule of “never book any other gigs the week of the Under The Covers shows”…TWICE! But c’mon, it’s Randy Newman, and he’s gotta get his flowers now. I’ll be backed by the Deep River Ramblers (featuring long-time friends Jim Henry and Paul Kochanski, among others), and Peter Mulvey, Jenna Nichols, and others will be on hand to put their own spin on Newman’s classic songs.
Under The Covers with Jake Armerding, Rose Cousins & Zachariah Hickman
Dec 12-14 - Passim, Cambridge MA - All 5 shows SOLD OUT!
We’ve been doing this show annually for over 20 years and this is the first time we’ve sold out every show in advance! We can’t thank you enough for this outpouring of support. Always worth checking with the venue on the day of the shows, as people’s plans change and a ticket or two might become available. If you can’t be in the room, you can still go to the Passim website and buy a ticket to livestream the show and time of your choice
MP3 of the MONTH
My Patreon folks will remember this track from a couple years ago, but given the season I thought it timely to share a home recording of “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” with you as this month’s MP3. I can’t post covers on Bandcamp, but I made the original Patreon post public for the month of December. If you scroll down to the bottom of the post, you can right or control-click to download the song and add it to your favorite holiday playlist.
SIDEMAN SECTION
Sat/Sun Dec 20/21 - Passim, Cambridge MA w/Lori McKenna & band (SOLD OUT)
A WORD ABOUT PATREON
JOIN OUR PATREON COMMUNITY!
One of my hopes for 2025 is to double my number of Patreon subscribers.
As of December, we haven’t doubled membership, but we’ve gained 44 new members this year. I’d love to see if we can hit 50 new paid members for the year. Can we do it?!?
The best way to sustainably support my creative output is by getting a subscription to my Patreon. As you're thinking about what you want to support in the coming show, I'd be honored if you made my music one of those things. For as little as $5/month ($60/year), you can help me do things like release new songs, make new albums, and tour consistently. In return, you get early access to all new music, and starting in 2025, invites to quarterly virtual community events.
peace,
mark
Watch Mark’s performance from the 2019 Americanafest at the Ryman Auditorium!
You can check out a special episode of Austin City Limits featuring highlights from this year's Americanafest (like yours truly performing with Lori McKenna, Josh Ritter, J.S. Ondara & Shawn Colvin) on PBS starting this Saturday at 10 pm CT! Check out this teaser video & go to http://acltv.com/watch/tv-schedule/ & click on "check your local PBS listings" to find out exactly when it will air in your market.
