Poi Dog Pondering

Few American groups have mixed as freely as Poi Dog Pondering, a band that has folded acoustic and electronic music into a single body of work. Its story begins with one musician: Frank Orrall started the project in Hawaii in 1984, first as a solo outlet and as an alias for his production work. Over time the line-up has swelled and shifted, with more than three dozen players passing through and, on stage at any moment, anywhere from eight to more than a dozen musicians.

The first concert, at the Honolulu Academy of Arts in 1986, was followed by a yearlong busking tour across North America. The band settled in Austin, Texas in 1988, making two EPs for Texas Hotel Records and two full-length albums for Columbia Records. In 1992 it moved to Chicago, and its third album, Volo Volo, marked a turn towards dance and house, with DJ Cassanova fully joining the line-up. Chicago magazine named it best band in 1997, and the Chicago Reader's poll chose it as Best Pop and Rock Act in 2009. Pomegranate, Natural Thing, In Seed Comes Fruit, 7 and Audio Love Letter followed, and Orrall remains the only constant member.