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Poi Dog Pondering | |
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 Poi Dog Pondering performing at the 2009 Austin City Limits Music Festival | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Hawaii, U.S. Austin, Texas Chicago, Illinois |
| Genres | Alternative rock, soul |
| Occupation | Musicians |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Labels | Platetectonic Music Texas Hotel Records, Columbia, Tommy Boy Records, Barnone, Premonition Records |
| Members | Frank Orrall Susan Voelz Paul Mertens John Nelson Ted Cho Dave Max Crawford Kornell Hargrove Dag Juhlin Ron Hall Rick Geherenbeck Charlette Wortham Robert Cornelius Carla Prather Ryan Murphy |
| Website | Official site |
Poi Dog Pondering is an American musical group which is noted for its cross-pollination of diverse musical genres, including various forms of acoustic and electronic music. Frank Orrall founded the band in Hawaii in 1984, initially as a solo project. In 1985 Orrall formed the first line-up of PDP to perform its first concert at the Honolulu Academy of Arts. The band embarked on a yearlong street performance busking tour across North America. They eventually settled down in Austin, Texas in 1987, where they recorded their first three albums. In 1992, the band relocated to Chicago and they began to incorporate orchestral arrangements and elements of electronic, house music, and soul music into their acoustic rock style.
The membership of Poi Dog Pondering has evolved from album to album, with over three dozen members having drifted in and out of the line-up; at any given time, the band often features anywhere from 8 to over a dozen players on stage. Frank Orrall (vocals, guitar, other instruments) has been a constant player since the inception of the band, and Susan Voelz (violin, guitar, vocals) has been part of the group since 1987. Ted Cho (electric guitar, mandolin, bass), Dave Max Crawford (organ, trumpet, accordion) and Paul Mertens (flute, sax, clarinet) have also been relatively long-term members, although they have left the group and returned at various junctures.