Mark Pritchard is a Crewkerne, Somerset, UK-born and Australian-based producer and electronic music artist, who over the course of his almost 30-year music career has collaborated with a number of electronic music artists and producers — including Tom Middleton in Global Communication and Jedi Knights, Richard. D. James, Dave Brinkworth in Use of Weapons and Harmonic 33, Stephen Horne in Series 7, Adrian Hughes in Shaft, Danny Breaks in Vertigo, Kevin Hann in The 28 East Boyz, Dominic Fripp in Chaos and Julia Set, Paul Kent in Mystic Institute, Kirsty Hawkshaw in Pulusha, Trim in Pritch and Trim and Steve Spacek in Africa Hitech, among others. Additionally, Pritchard has released solo material under a number of aliases including Reload, Link, Harmonic 313, Troubleman, NY Connection, William Parrott and Roberto Edwardo Turner (The Returner), as well as under his own given name. Back in 2013, Pritchard announced that he would be retiring his various aliases and using only his birth name for future releases; however, no matter what project he was involved with Pritchard has developed a reputation for working across an eclectic variety of genres and subgenres including hip-hop, techno, jungle house, ambient electronica, drum ‘n’ bass and grime — and as Fact Magazine has noted for lush and instantly accessible productions.
Pritchard’s forthcoming album Under the Sun is slated for a May 13 release through Warp Records, and the effort reportedly has Pritchard focusing less on club music, while retaining the lush and instantly accessible production style that has won the British-born, Australian-based producer international attention within electronic music circles. Under the Sun’s latest single “Beautiful People” is an ethereal collaboration with Radiohead‘s Thom Yorke that pairs Yorke’s unmistakably plaintive vocals singing over a lushly gorgeous production consisting of a looped, gorgeous flute sample, propulsive yet steady drum programming, swirling electronics, brief bursts of twinkling keyboards, and squiggling synths — before quietly fading out. It’s a hauntingly gorgeous and tense song that leaves a lingering and uneasy presence and a subtly cosmic sheen. As Pritchard explains in press notes “The original instrumental to ‘Beautiful People’ s a personal song about loss, hopelessness and chaos, but ultimately the message is love and hope. Thom’s contribution to this collaboration captured perfectly what the piece is about. . . ”