Mark Pritchard

Mark Pritchard issued material in countless different identities as he navigated through a broad spectrum of electronic genres. Raised in England yet now based in Australia, this producer might appear at first like a mere dabbler, yet the stature of his associates -- among them Tom Middleton, his Global Communication partner -- along with the respect earned by the labels supporting his output, confirm him as a skilled and versatile master of many forms. His earliest commercial breakthrough arrived via Shaft's "Roobarb & Custard," the 1991 novelty single that entered the U.K. Top Ten and secured a performance on Top of the Pops. Thereafter he assembled an unusually wide-ranging yet steadily accomplished catalog of underground dance music that kept developing across more than three decades. Throughout the 1990s his extensive partnership with Middleton embraced ambient house as Global Communication, famed for the 1994 masterpiece 76:14, electro as Jedi Knights, and atmospheric drum'n'bass as the Chameleon. During the 2000s he explored radiophonic textures as half of Harmonic 33 and midtempo broken beat styles as Troubleman. Later the Harmonic 313 alias blended Detroit-style hip-hop with dancehall and acid house, while the Africa Hitech project alongside Steve Spacek drew inspiration from footwork, grime, and U.K. garage. Eventually Pritchard abandoned every alias to release music solely under his own name, among them the guest-laden ambient album Under the Sun (2016) and the dancefloor-oriented MP Productions - EP 1 (2020).

As one half of Shaft in 1991, Pritchard debuted on an FFRR subsidiary with "Roobarb & Custard." One of several playful hardcore techno tracks sampling the theme from a long-forgotten children's television program while alluding to the drug ecstasy, the single reached number seven on the U.K. pop chart the following January. The next year he launched his techno-focused Reload alias on Evolution, the imprint he co-founded with Middleton (also operating as E621), who likewise became a production partner. Their alliance produced ambient and house material as Global Communication, including the landmark 76:14 (1994), together with further approaches such as the Chameleon (drum'n'bass issued by LTJ Bukem), Link & E621 (physical IDM), Jedi Knights (funky neo-electro), and Secret Ingredients (sample-driven house). Evolution served as the home for most of these guises and also supported early releases by Matthew Herbert and Danny Breaks. Another standout from the label was Pritchard's sublime deep house cut "The Push" (1996), credited to N.Y. Connection.

Pritchard collaborated less often with Middleton during the 2000s and early 2010s, although the pair assembled DJ mixes for the Fabric and Back in the Box series. Alongside a range of guests that included Antipop Consortium rapper Beans, Opus III vocalist Kirsty Hawkshaw, grime renegade Wiley, and Sa-Ra member Om'Mas Keith, Pritchard sustained his stylistic expansions. As Harmonic 33 he and Dave Brinkworth merged laid-back hip-hop with library music, whereas the solo Harmonic 313 project drew more direct influence from Detroit's rap scene in tandem with his longstanding admiration for the city's techno pioneers. Phat Kat and Elzhi, two associates closely linked to Dilla, appeared on the Harmonic 313 Battlestar EP. Troubleman functioned as another outlet across two albums, covering nouveau easy listening, hip-hop soul, downtempo house, and broken beat.

Although Pritchard had previously favored style-specific aliases, he ultimately chose to issue most solo work under his birth name. These releases included the aptly titled "Elephant Dub" single for Deep Medi (2010) and a trio of EPs for Warp (2013) that featured vocal contributions from Spikey Tee and Ragga Twins. He maintained his exploratory collaborations, reuniting with Steve Spacek as Africa Hitech. A full-length solo statement arrived with Under the Sun (2016), shaped in part by sessions alongside engineer Phill Brown; Thom Yorke, Linda Perhacs, Bibio, and Beans contributed guest appearances. Roughly a year afterward he assembled Under the Sun (Expanded, Vol. 1), a collection of instrumentals, alternate versions, and previously unreleased tracks. His work with foreboding atmospheres and voices continued on The Four Worlds (2018), previewed by the Gregory Whitehead collaboration "Come Let Us." Various club styles surfaced on 2020's MP Productions - EP 1, encompassing grime, electro, and dancehall. ~ Andy Kellman