See How We Are: John Doe & Exene Cervenka in an acoustic performance

Name: See How We Are: John Doe & Exene Cervenka in an acoustic performance
Start: 2026-08-07T20:00:00-05:00
Location: Atwood Music Hall

Schedule

Fri, 07 Aug, 2026 at 08:00 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

Atwood Music Hall | Madison, WI

Doors 7PM Show 8PM
Seated Show
Front Row Seating: $60ADV / $65DOS
General Admission Seating: $40ADV / $45DOS
John Doe & Exene Cervenka are the founding members of the legendary punk rock band X. They met at Beyond Baroque’s long running Wednesday night poetry workshop in 1976. X led the Hollywood punk movement, but there was much more to their sound than the average punk band, including country, rockabilly. John & Exene‘s poetic lyrics set them apart from the pack. A string of classic (yet criminally overlooked) releases followed — 1980’s Los Angeles, 1981’s Wild Gift, 1982’s Under the Big Black Sun, and 1983’s More Fun in the New World — during which time Cervenka and Doe were married.
In addition to their X duties, Doe & Cervenka appeared as part of the country alter-ego the Knitters (1985’s Poor Little Critter on the Road), and Exene issued (also in 1985) a poetry collaboration with Wanda Coleman entitled Twin Sisters. In 1989 both Doe & Cervenka released their first solo records; Old Wives Tales by Cervenka and Meet John Doe. Exene went on to release 6 solo albums. Additionally, Doe started a long string of acclaimed solo albums including Forever Hasn't Happened Yet (2017) and Fables in a Foreign Land (2022). John has also written and curated two books on L.A. punk rock
and appeared in over sixty film and television productions.
Cervenka has issued several books, including the titles -Virtual Unreality (through Henry Rollins’ 2.13.61 publishing company), -A Beer on Every Page, and -Just Another War, the latter of which was a collaboration with Pulitzer Prize-nominated photojournalist Kenneth Jarecke, in which Exene supplied commentary to Jarecke’s photos of the Gulf War. In addition she is an accomplished visual artist-- with works shown in museums and galleries including Santa Monica Museum of Art and DCKT Contemporary in New York.
X reunited their original lineup in 1999 and continue to perform and record -- including two recent albums Alphabetland (2020) and Smoke and Fiction (2024). When John & Exene perform as an acoustic duo, they revisiting X songs in stripped
down arrangements that highlight their lyrics and trademark vocal blend. Their acoustic shows also include many songs recorded by The Knitters' two records plus other old time country classics. Their blend of country music & humorous banter makes for a satisfying night that only two veteran entertainers like Cervenka & Doe can deliver.