Pat Kearns
Pat Kearns (born November 10, 1970) is an American record producer, recording engineer, songwriter, guitarist and vocalist. He is best known for his work as singer/songwriter for Portland, Oregon-based band Blue Skies for Black Hearts, as well as his production and engineering work for a wide variety of artists, including The Exploding Hearts, Lovvers, Pat MacDonald, Sons of Huns, Walter Salas-Humara and Jerry Joseph. His credits include Guitar Romantic, The Exploding Hearts' first album, which Pitchfork ranked no. 60 on its list of the top 200 albums of the 2000s. Producer/Engineer Kearns began working as a recording engineer in 1995 after a stint as a DJ at KCMU in Seattle. He opened his first studio, Studio 13, in 1997. In 2002, he produced and recorded The Exploding Hearts' Guitar Romantic, which heralded a revival of '70s-style pop-punk. Released in April 2003 by Dirtnap Records, the first wholesale pressing of 1,000 vinyl LPs sold out in two days. Critic Matt LeMay, writing in Pitchfork, praised the record as "simply an awesome power-pop record." Maximum Rock and Roll called Guitar Romantic "the best album of the past five years in the April 2003 issue 5; the record received 4.5 stars out of