"X is officially over." That's what X bassist/vocalist John Doe told Addicted To Noise last November.

Of course, that was just a few weeks before the original lineup of the seminal L.A. punk group -- including long-departed original guitarist Billy Zoom -- got together for a Dec. 13 in-store signing of its two-CD set, Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, at a Tower Records in L.A.

"A bunch of people showed up to the Tower thing and it just started to seem like a good idea," singer Exene Cervenka said Monday about the group's decision to reunite in February for shows at L.A.'s Palladium on Feb. 28 and San Francisco's Trocadero on Feb. 7, with possibly more shows to be announced soon.

Cervenka said the group, which also includes drummer D.J. Bonebrake, was overwhelmed by the 700-plus fans who swamped the Tower on Sunset in Los Angeles for their personal appearance, the first time the four original members had sat together for the public since Zoom's departure in 1985. "Everybody had to be coaxed, definitely," Cervenka said about the reunion. "It was like you were in a relationship and you realized you still loved the person and it was OK, whatever that means. Sometimes you just have this smoldering, weird stuff and you can't even remember why."

One fan who was surprised and excited yet doubtful about the reunion was 37-year-old Gene Caldwell, who runs the "X The Unheard Music" website. Caldwell said that, after reading negative remarks from Doe and Cervenka about Zoom and X, it was surprising to hear they were getting back together. "The human interest aspect of this is how or if they've reconciled with Zoom. Are they tolerating it for the money?" Caldwell wondered. "I suppose it's not any worse than acting [Doe has had several movie cameos, including one in "Boogie Nights"] or [Cervenka's side project with Bonebrake and Rancid bassist Matt Freeman] Auntie Christ. Maybe they discovered they need X. Who cares? The only important thing is that there's the potential again for some real kick-ass music with the original lineup."

The rapprochement between Cervenka and Zoom, Cervenka said, began a few months ago when Zoom came over to her L.A. boutique, You've Got Bad Taste, and the two worked on some music for an "X-Files" commercial that was never aired. "He brought his guitar and silver jacket, and it was really fun to be with him," Cervenka added.

The band -- who called it quits in 1996 after a decade of soldiering on first with ex-Blasters guitarist Dave Alvin and then with ex-Lone Justice guitarist Tony Gilkyson filling in for Zoom -- got along well, said Todd Meehan, manager of the Tower store in which the reunion took place. "The vibe was really great," said Meehan, who added, however, that there seemed to be some lingering "weird vibes" between Zoom and Doe. Meehan said the X set, which compiles previously unheard outtakes of some of the group's better-known songs such as "Los Angeles," "Hungry Wolf" and "Johny Hit and Run Paulene" with rare and unreleased mixes of two-dozen other songs, sold an impressive 300 copies during the week of the in-store appearance.

While Cervenka said the band originally stopped playing together because they "just didn't need to anymore," the thought of reuniting with Zoom was what got her hooked, she added. "Tony [Gilkyson] was a really good guitar player, but Billy Zoom is Billy Zoom," she said. "He's a genius, it's like playing with Isaac Stern. He invented that whole punk-rockabilly thing."

The band will only be doing songs from their first four records, which Zoom played on, Cervenka said. Asked whether the two shows might lead to a full-fledged reunion, she said, "Who knows? I didn't think the anthology would lead to these shows." [Thurs., Jan. 29, 1998, 9 a.m. PST]