Alex Chilton once said his advice to a young musician was to make a really good record, because if it really was good, someone would eventually find it. Mark Renner's life in music is an example of Chilton's theory in action: He attracted little attention for his work in the '80s, making music that merged the clean lines of British post-punk with a thoughtful outlook and a sense of space that reflected his rural upbringing. But Renner's recordings were rediscovered in the 2010s, and his musical career enjoyed an unexpected second act.
Renner grew up in Upperco, Maryland, a r...