A pitchfork next to a compost bin.

A pitchfork is an agricultural tool with a long handle and long, thin, widely separated pointed tines (also called prongs) used to lift and pitch (throw) loose material, such as hay, leaves, grapes, dung or other agricultural materials. Pitchforks typically have two or three tines. Other similar types of fork may have up to six tines with different lengths and spacing depending on purpose. They are usually made of steel with a long wooden handle, but may also be made from wood, wrought iron, bamboo, alloy etc. In some parts of England a pitchfork is known as a prong^[1] and, in parts of Ireland, a sprong refers to a 4 pronged pitchfork.^[2] The pitchfork is similar to the shorter and sturdier garden fork.

The pitchfork and scythes has frequently been used as a weapon by those who couldn't afford or didn't have access to more expensive weapons such as swords, or, later, guns.^[3] As a result, pitchforks and scythes are stereotypically carried by angry mobs or gangs of enraged peasants.

In Europe, the pitchfork was first used in the early Middle Ages, at about the same time as the harrow. The pitchfork was originally made entirely of wood; today, the tines are usually made of hard metal.

Symbolism, literary and artistic references[link]

Pitching hay

Artistic usage[link]

Arguably the most notable American artistic display of the pitchfork is in American Gothic, the painting by Grant Wood. In this painting it symbolizes hand labor. Less famous are paintings by various artists which depict a wide variety of pitchforks and other tools in use and at rest.^[4]

Political usage[link]

Because of its association with peasantry, the pitchfork is often a populist symbol and part of the nickname of populist leaders, thus:

• "Pitchfork Ben" (Benjamin Tillman)
• "Pitchfork Pat" (Pat Buchanan)

The Gangster Disciples, a street gang in the midwestern United States, use a three-pointed pitchfork as one of their symbols.^{[citation needed]}

Religious symbolism[link]

The pitchfork is often used in satire of Christian demonology in popular media, especially in early humorous cartoons where a popular joke was a caricature of an angel and a pitchfork-wielding devil sitting on the shoulders of the protagonist.

The Greek god Hades wields a bident, a weapon strikingly similar in form to a pitchfork.

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pitchfork

• Trident
• Fork (disambiguation)

References[link]

Flying Lotus
Background information
Also known as	Flying Lotus FlyLo Juno Leed
Born	(1983-10-07) October 7, 1983 (age 28)
Origin	Los Angeles, California United States
Genres	Electronic, experimental
Occupations	Musician Record Producer Filmmaker Record Label Owner
Instruments	Computer, Turntables, Sampler, Drum Machine, Synthesizer, Keyboards, Multi-instrumentalist
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Warp, Brainfeeder, Plug Research
Associated acts	Thundercat FLYamSAM Alice Coltrane Ravi Coltrane Thom Yorke Laura Darlington Gonjasufi
Website	flying-lotus.com, brainfeedersite.com
Notable instruments
Reason Ableton Live

Flying Lotus (born Steven Ellison) is an experimental multi-genre music producer from Winnetka, California. His debut album, 1983, was released on Plug Research Records in 2006.^[1] He produced much of the bumper music on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming block,^[2] for which he is uncredited, and he also contributed remixes for fellow Plug Research artists including Mia Doi Todd. He is often referred to as FlyLo by fans and critics. His grandmother was songwriter Marilyn McLeod. He is the great-nephew of the late Alice Coltrane, whose husband was John Coltrane. He is also the cousin of musician Ravi Coltrane.^[3]

Music career[link]

In 2007, he announced that he signed with Warp Records.^[4] Following his Warp debut, the six-track Reset EP, he quickly became one of the label’s cornerstone artists and released his second album, titled Los Angeles, on June 10, 2008. In 2008, Flying Lotus also remixed "Reckoner" from Radiohead's album In Rainbows.^[5] His third album, Cosmogramma, was released on May 3, 2010, in the UK and May 4, 2010, in the US.^[6] In January 2011, Cosmogramma won in the Dance/Electronica Album category in the 10th Annual Independent Music Awards.^[7]

Recently, Flying Lotus collaborated with the Ann Arbor Film Festival in the performance of a live scoring of the 1962 avant-garde film Heaven and Earth Magic.^[8] In a post-viewing interview with the audience, Flying Lotus said that he was unsure whether or not a recording of the performance (or a recreation of it) would be publicly released, but he would be enthusiastic toward similar projects in the future. He was chosen by Battles to perform at the ATP Nightmare Before Christmas festival that it co-curates in December 2011 in Minehead, England.^[9]

In January 2011, Flying Lotus won the 10th Annual Independent Music Awards for his video "MmmHmm" in the Short-Form Video category.^[10] Flying Lotus will be collaborating with R&B singer Erykah Badu on new material for her next album.^[11] In August 2011, Flying Lotus announced a multimedia project with filmmaker Miwa Matreyek, which is to be titled The Mapping of Countries Yet to Come.^[12] It is currently rumored that Flying Lotus plans to remix one of Radiohead's songs from The King of Limbs.^[13]

Discography[link]

Demos[link]

• 2005: July Heat

Note: Various unofficial Flying Lotus demos leaked by fans are sometimes mistaken as official Flying Lotus releases, such as "Raw Cartoons."^[14]

Albums[link]

EPs and Misc[link]

12-inch singles[link]

• 2006: Pink Sun EP (12", EP) My Room Is White (Flying Lotus Remix) - Plug Research
• 2008: Cool Out (12") Lost (Flying Lotus Remix) - Hyperdub
• 2008: Dive EP (12", EP) Blank Blue (Flying Lotus Remix) - Ubiquity Records
• 2008: Get Dirty EP (12", EP) Game Over (Flying Lotus Remix) - Ghostly International
• 2008: Natural Selection (Flying Lotus' Cleanse Mix) / Vancouver (2562's Puur Natuur Dub) (12")
• 2008: Woebegone (CD, Single, Promo) Woebegone (Flying Lotus Remix) - Ninja Tune

Production[link]

• 2008: José James - Park Bench People (on the track "Visions of Violet")
• 2009: Declaime - Whole Wide World
• 2010: José James - Blackmagic
• 2010: Gonjasufi - A Sufi and a Killer (on the track "Ancestors")
• 2010: Mike Bigga - Adult Swim Singles Program (on the track "Swimming")
• 2011: Thundercat - The Golden Age of Apocalypse
• 2011: Blu - 'NoYork! (on the tracks "Doin’ Nothin", "Everything Ok" and "Doin’ Something"
• 2012: "Lately" and "Lamented" on the Hodgy Beats Untitled EP

Collaborations[link]

• 2008: One for Pep Pep (Remix) (Tim and Eric Awesome Record, Great Songs)
• 2008: Testament (w/ Gonjasufi)
• 2009: Bootleg Beats (w/ Samiyam)^[17]
• 2010: ...And The World Laughs With You^[18][19] (w/ Thom Yorke)
• 2011: Kryon (w/ Kode9 & the Spaceape)^[20]
• 2011: Group Tea (w/ Matthewdavid)^[21]
• 2011: Lost (w/ King Midas Sound) ^[22]
• 2011: Live (w/ Hodgy Beats & Mike G of OFWGKTA)

Mixes[link]

• 2011: Lover's Melt (Stones Throw Podcast)
• 2011: Lover's Melt Pt. 2 (Brainfeeder Podcast)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website
• Brainfeeder
• Official Online Game
• Warp Records
• Plug Research
• RBMA Radio On Demand - Sonar Sessions 2007 - Flying Lotus (Warp/Plug Research, Los Angeles)
• Sept 2007 Interview with L.A. Record
• Interview (2007)
• Los Angeles Review (2008)
• New Yorker profile by Sasha Frere-Jones
• Flying Lotus “BRAINFEEDER RADIO” Part 2 at Dublab

The Tallest Man on Earth
Background information
Birth name	Kristian Matsson
Born	(1983-04-30) 30 April 1983 (age 29)
Origin	Leksand, Dalarna, Sweden
Genres	Folk, Indie
Years active	2006 – present
Labels	Gravitation, Dead Oceans
Associated acts	Montezumas
Website	tallestmanonearth.com

Kristian Matsson (born April 30, 1983) is a singer-songwriter from Dalarna, Sweden. Since 2006, he has released three full-length albums and two EPs. He performs under the moniker The Tallest Man on Earth. He is known for recording and producing his own records in whichever home he is currently living and states that the connection between his voice and guitar is so strong, he rarely records them as separately tracked performances. ^[1]He is also known both by critics and his fans for his charismatic stage presence.^[2][3] Matsson is married to fellow Swedish singer-songwriter Amanda Bergman, who performs under the moniker Idiot Wind. The couple have toured extensively together, often performing songs together on stage. He has toured with Bon Iver.^[4] Matsson also fronted the band Montezumas.

Critics have compared The Tallest Man on Earth to Bob Dylan both in terms of songwriting ability and vocal style.^[5][6][7] When asked about his lyrical style, The Tallest Man on Earth explains that he began listening to Bob Dylan at fifteen, and upon hearing Dylan's cover material, he "tried to figure out where those songs came from" and became slowly exposed to early American folk, such as Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie. But he is careful to qualify this, say "I don't consider my work to be a part of any tradition. This is how I play. This is how I write songs"^[8]

With regards to his guitar technique, Matsson uses a variety of open tunings, and to a lesser degree standard tuning. He had classical guitar training in his youth, but says he "never really focuses on it" and that by the end of high school he "got bored playing guitar because it was like math"^[9], until he then discovered open tunings while listening to Nick Drake in his early twenties. He was drawn to this style of playing because it allowed him to focus on singing while still performing intricate music. ^[10]

Discography[link]

Studio Albums[link]

• Shallow Grave (2008)
• The Wild Hunt (2010) UK chart peak: #180^[11]
• There's No Leaving Now (2012)^[12]

EPs[link]

• The Tallest Man on Earth (2006)
• Sometimes the Blues Is Just a Passing Bird (2010)

Singles[link]

• The Gardener
• The King of Spain; The Wild Hunt
• Pistol Dreams
• The Dreamer
• Weather of a Killing Kind
• 1904

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: The Tallest Man on Earth

• Official website
• Artist page for The Tallest Man on Earth at NPR Music.

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Dave Longstreth

Amber Coffman

Angel Deradoorian

Dirty Projectors performing in 2008

Dirty Projectors are an American rock band, consisting of David Longstreth (vocals, guitar, musical direction; born December 17, 1981), Amber Coffman (vocals, guitar), Angel Deradoorian (vocals, keyboard, samples, guitar, bass), Brian McOmber (drums), Nat Baldwin (bass), and Haley Dekle (vocals). They have released seven full-length albums through 2012.

History[link]

Early years (2002–06)[link]

Longstreth's first album, The Graceful Fallen Mango, was released in 2002 under his own name and introduced his distinctive use of song arrangements and his combination of lo-fi and hi-fi production. The album was a project that Longstreth began as a freshman while studying at Yale University.^[1] With the help of Adam Forkner of Yume Bitsu, Longstreth recorded and released The Glad Fact on the Western Vinyl label under the name "The Dirty Projectors." In 2005, the band released The Getty Address, a concept album about musician Don Henley that features extensive orchestral and choral accompaniment. The diverse, stripped-down New Attitude EP followed in 2006 and featured inklings of the band's later vocal interplay and guitar work.

[edit] Rise Above, Bitte Orca and Domino Records (2007-09)

In 2007, the band released Rise Above, an album of Black Flag songs as re-imagined from memory. The album introduced the band's distinctive contrast between Longstreth's vocals and the harmonies of Amber Coffman and Susanna Waiche, who was later replaced by Angel Deradoorian. In support of the album, the band performed songs for a Take-Away Show acoustic video session shot by Vincent Moon.

In April 2008, Dirty Projectors signed with Domino Records, and the label announced the release of their next full-length album, Bitte Orca, for June 9, 2009. That year, the band also collaborated with David Byrne on the song "Knotty Pine" for the compilation album Dark Was the Night produced by the Red Hot Organization. Byrne joined the Dirty Projectors onstage to perform this song, along with "Ambulance Man," another collaborative track not included on the compilation, at the "Dark Was the Night Live" concert at New York City's Radio City Music Hall on May 3, 2009.

“Stillness Is the Move” was the first single released from "Bitte Orca", a West African - R&B influenced hybrid, sung by Coffman and inspired by the Wim Wenders film “Wings of Desire”.^[2]

On May 8, 2009, members of Dirty Projectors collaborated with Björk to perform an original composition by Longstreth, written for five voices and acoustic guitar, as part of a charity concert to benefit Housing Works, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing shelter for homeless men, women, and children suffering from AIDS. The concert was held at the Housing Works Bookstore & Café in downtown New York City.^[3]

Dirty Projectors were to release a new EP in September 2009 entitled Temecula Sunrise.^[4] While the EP was never released, two of its tracks, "Ascending Melody" and "Emblem of the World," were instead offered for free download on the Dirty Projectors website in early 2010.^[5]

[edit] Mount Wittenberg Orca, Swing Lo Magellan and new musical directions (2010–present)

In June 2010, Dirty Projectors announced the release of Mount Wittenberg Orca, a digital-only EP with Björk. The album, based on the artists' previous collaboration in 2009, was released on June 30.^[6] Mount Wittenberg Orca was released physically by Domino Records in 2011.

Dirty Projectors released an expanded edition of Bitte Orca on September 28, 2010. The double album included live performances, several B-sides, and a Bob Dylan cover.^[7]

On March 30, 2012, Dirty Projectors released the first single from their upcoming album, Swing Lo Magellan, due for release on July 10 in the United States and on July 9 internationally.^[8][9]

Musical style & aesthetic[link]

While often associated with the late 2000s New York indie rock scene, critics have likened Dirty Projectors to musicians from many genres. For example, critics have compared them to New Wave artists David Byrne and Squeeze, pop stars Beyoncé and Mariah Carey, and Progressive rock musicians Frank Zappa and Yes.^[10][11] In a 2009 interview, Longstreth embraced some such comparisons but expressed a strong dislike for classic rock, commenting, "Steely Dan is a band I’m not that into," "I’m not a huge Yes guy," and "Frank Zappa I fucking hate."^[12]

Discography[link]

• The Glad Fact (2003)
• Morning Better Last! (2003)
• Slaves' Graves and Ballads (2004)
• The Getty Address (2005)
• Highlights from the Getty Address (2006)
• New Attitude EP (2006)
• Rise Above (2007)
• Bitte Orca (2009)
• Ascending Melody (2010)
• Mount Wittenberg Orca (w/ Björk) (2010 digital-only initial release; 2011 Domino Records physical release)
• Swing Lo Magellan (July 10, 2012)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Dirty Projectors

• Official website
• Dirty Projectors Domino Records page
• Dirty Projectors Western Vinyl page
• Useful Chamber – a Dirty Projectors resource
• Dirty Projectors at Allmusic
• Dirty Projectors in concert on NPR Music
• Dirty Projectors on Beyond Race Magazine (BRM)
• Dead Oceans Page
• Dirty Projectors & Björk on the Rob da Bank show

Iron & Wine
Beam at a 2006 concert at Brooklyn's McCarren Park Pool
Background information
Birth name	Samuel Beam
Born	(1974-07-26) July 26, 1974 (age 37) Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, U.S.
Genres	Folk Folk rock
Instruments	Vocals, Guitar, Banjo
Labels	Sub Pop Warner Bros./4AD
Associated acts	Calexico, Rosie Thomas
Website	www.ironandwine.com

Iron & Wine's performance at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco

Samuel Beam (born July 26, 1974), better known by his stage and recording name Iron & Wine, is an American singer-songwriter. He has released four studio albums, several EPs and singles, as well as a few download-only releases, which include a live album (a recording of his 2005 Bonnaroo performance). He occasionally tours with a full band.^[1]

Beam was raised in South Carolina before moving to Virginia and then Florida to attend school. He now resides in Dripping Springs, near Austin, Texas.^[2] The name Iron & Wine is taken from a dietary supplement named "Beef Iron & Wine" that he found in a general store while shooting a film.^[3][4]

Early life[link]

Beam was raised in Chapin, South Carolina, where his father worked in land management and his mother was a schoolteacher. When he was a child, his family took regular trips to the country, where his grandfather ran a farm. He attended Seven Oaks Elementary School, Irmo Middle School, and Chapin High School. While home from college, he was a waiter at California Dreaming restaurant in Columbia. Beam earned a bachelor's degree in art from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia.^[5] He specialized in painting. He graduated from the Florida State University Film School with an MFA degree. Before the release of the first Iron & Wine album, Beam's main source of income was as a professor of film and cinematography at the University of Miami and Miami International University of Art & Design.^[6] He had been writing songs for over seven years before a friend lent him a four-track recorder. He began making demos and gave one to his friend Michael Bridwell, brother of Band of Horses lead singer, Ben Bridwell. Michael handed it to Mike McGonigal, editor of Yeti magazine, who chose "Dead Man's Will", later released on In the Reins, for inclusion on one of his magazine's compilation CDs. Beam later came to the attention of Sub Pop Records co-owner, Jonathan Poneman, who contacted Beam to propose a deal.^{[7][8][9][10]}

Musical career[link]

Beam released his first Iron & Wine album, The Creek Drank the Cradle, on the Sub Pop label in 2002. Beam wrote, performed, recorded and produced the album in his home studio. Featuring acoustic guitars, banjo, and slide guitar, the album's music has been compared to that of Nick Drake,^[11] Simon and Garfunkel,^[12] Elliott Smith, Neil Young and John Fahey.

Also in 2002, Beam recorded a cover of The Postal Service's then-unreleased song "Such Great Heights". Rather than being included on an Iron & Wine release, the track was initially included as a b-side of the original version by The Postal Service. It was later included on the B-sides and rarities album, Around the Well. He then followed up on his debut album in 2003 with The Sea & The Rhythm, an EP containing other home-recorded tracks with a similar style to the songs on the debut.

Beam's second full-length album, Our Endless Numbered Days (2004), was recorded in a professional studio with a significant increase in fidelity. Produced in Chicago by Brian Deck, the focus was still on acoustic material, but the inclusion of other band members gave rise to a slightly different sound. That same year, he recorded the song "The Trapeze Swinger" for the film In Good Company, and had his version of "Such Great Heights" featured in an advertisement for M&M's and in the film and soundtrack for Garden State. This version was later used in a 2006 Ask.com advertisement, and eventually released as a single in 2006 backed with recordings of "The Trapeze Swinger" and "Naked as We Came" made for Radio Vienna.

In February 2005, he released an EP entitled Woman King, which expanded on the sounds of his previous LP with the addition of electric guitars. Each track features a spiritual female figure, and had subtle Biblical undertones.

The EP In the Reins, a collaboration with the Arizona-based rock band Calexico, was released in September 2005. Beam wrote all of the EP's songs years earlier, but Calexico added their trademark fusion of southwestern rock, traditional Mexican music and jazz to the songs' arrangements. Several tracks, most notably, "Burn That Broken Bed", feature brass instruments, a first for Beam's music.^[13]

The third full-length Iron & Wine album, entitled The Shepherd's Dog, was released September 25, 2007.^[14] This album was voted one of the ten best of 2007 by Paste magazine.^[15] Contributors included Joey Burns and Paul Niehaus of Calexico, as well as jazz musicians Matt Lux and Rob Burger.^[16] When asked to describe the album to The Independent, Beam remarked that "it's not a political propaganda record, but it's definitely inspired by political confusion, because I was really taken aback when Bush got reelected."^[17]

Beam has released most of his music on iTunes, including several exclusive EPs. The Iron & Wine iTunes Exclusive EP features unreleased studio recordings, including a Stereolab cover and two tracks which had previously only appeared on vinyl. The Live Session (iTunes Exclusive) features Beam and his sister, Sarah Beam, performing a number of tracks from his albums, as well as a cover of New Order's "Love Vigilantes". Sarah Beam has contributed backing vocals on many of Beam's studio recordings.

Beam's music has appeared in television series such as Grey's Anatomy, The L Word and House M.D. "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" was used in the film Twilight. The song was specifically chosen for the film's prom scene by Kristen Stewart, the female lead, and appears on the film's soundtrack.

The B-sides and rarities album Around the Well was released in 2009. Iron & Wine also contributed the song "Stolen Houses (Die)" to the AIDS benefit album Dark Was the Night produced by the Red Hot Organization.

On November 26, 2010 Iron & Wine released a special edition Record Store Day Black Friday 12" vinyl and CD single called, Walking Far From Home for independent record stores.

Kiss Each Other Clean, Iron & Wine's fourth full-length album, was released on January 25, 2011 on Warner Bros. Records in North America and 4AD for the rest of the world.^[18] With this album, Beam blends his earlier styles with a stronger pop influence.^[19]

Personal life[link]

Beam, his wife Kim and their five daughters live in Dripping Springs near Austin, Texas.^[5][8][20]

Discography[link]

Studio, compilations, live albums and EPs[link]

Singles[link]

• "Call Your Boys" b/w "Dearest Forsaken" via Sub Pop Singles Club (CD + Clear 7" Vinyl) (2002)
• "No Moon" b/w "Sinning Hands" (Limited 7" Vinyl Bonus with first Pressing of Our Endless Numbered Days) (2004)
• "Passing Afternoon" (CD only) (2004)
• "The Trapeze Swinger" (iTunes only) (2005)
• "Such Great Heights" (UK only CD) (2006)
• "Boy with a Coin" (CD + UK only 10" Vinyl) (2007)
• "Dark Eyes" (Bob Dylan cover w/ Calexico) (2007)
• "Lovesong of the Buzzard" (CD + UK only 10" Vinyl) (2008)
• "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" (iTunes only) (2008)
• "Walking Far from Home" (2010)

Other contributions[link]

• The O.C. Soundtrack (2004) – "The Sea & the Rhythm"
• Garden State Soundtrack (2004) – "Such Great Heights"
• Sweetheart: Love Songs (2004) – "Ab's Song" (The Marshall Tucker Band cover)
• L Word: Season Two soundtrack (2004) – "Naked as We Came"
• Grey's Anatomy: Season Two soundtrack (2004) – "Naked as We Came"
• In Good Company (2004) – "Naked as We Came," "Sunset Soon Forgotten," "The Trapeze Swinger"
• Fighting in a Sack (2004) – "New Slang (Featuring Iron & Wine)[Live]"
• KCRW Sounds Eclectic Volume 3 (2005) – "Waitin' for a Superman" (Flaming Lips cover)
• I Am a Cold Rock. I Am Dull Grass. (2006) – "We All, Us Three, Will Ride"
• I'm Not There soundtrack (2007) – "Dark Eyes" (with Calexico)
• The Road Mix Volume 3, music from One Tree Hill (2007) – "He Lays in the Reins" (with Calexico)
• Acoustic 07 (2007) – "Naked as We Came"
• Numb3rs Season 3, Episode 19, "Pandora's Box" (2007) – "Naked as We Came"
• Friday Night Lights Season 1, Episode 12 (2007) – "Upward Over the Mountain"
• Friday Night Lights: Original Television Soundtrack (2007) – "Dead Man's Will" (with Calexico)
• Twilight soundtrack (2008) – "Flightless Bird, American Mouth"
• Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn soundtrack (2011) - "Flightless Bird, American Mouth (wedding version)"
• 90210 Season 1, Episode 18, "Off the Rails" (2008) – "Cinder & Smoke"
• House M.D.
  • Season 4, Episode 16 (Season Finale, Part 2) Wilson's Heart (2008) – "Passing Afternoon"
  • Season 6, Episode 1 (Season Premiere, Part 1) Broken (2009) – "Love Vigilantes" (New Order cover)
• Dark Was the Night (2009) – "Stolen Houses (Die)"
• Ugly Betty Season 3, Episode 16 (2009) – "Naked as We Came"
• The Mysteries of Pittsburgh (2009) – "Naked as We Came"
• Misfits Season 1, Episode 6 (2009) – "Such Great Heights"
• TiMER (2009) – "The Trapeze Swinger"
• The Last Song soundtrack (2010) – "Each Coming Night"
• Degrassi (season 10) Episode 31, Halo Part. 2 (2010) - "Passing Afternoon"

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Iron & Wine

• Official site