Dim Stars, Bright Sky

RESTOCK. As one of the founding members of the Los Angeles punk band X, John Doe was one of the most influential figures in American alternative rock during the early '80s, but when he launched a solo career in the early '90s, he decided to pursue a rootsy, country-rock direction instead of continue with punk. Vanity Fair called John Doe's most recent record Dim Stars, Bright Sky "elegant and emotional." And while emotional is entirely explicable, given John's punk rock past - elegant is a little more complicated. Because with Dim Stars, Bright Sky, John has crafted a record that's equal parts beautiful and transcendent, and ultimately true to who he's become. The emotion that fueled X fuels John's solo work, but it's expressed in a way that befits a man who's evolved since the days in which he was referred to as the "Godfather of Punk." Guest vocalists on this highly anticipated album include: Aimee Mann, Jakob Dylan (The Wallflowers), Jane Wiedin (Go-Gos), Juliana Hatfield, and Rhett Miller (Old 97s).