Pat Kearns - Getting Lost

​Pat Kearns

Getting Lost
​self-released; 2022

4.1 out of 5 - TOP ALBUM

By Matt Jensen

Pat Kearns is a singer/songwriter, recording engineer and radio personality from Portland, Oregon. He relocated to Joshua Tree, California, in 2017, planning to open a destination recording studio. Goat Mountain Recording was born which is a solar powered world class recording studio.

Kearns released an eleven-song album entitled Getting Lost. Kearns mentions “The desert had a profound effect on me and the music I write and record. I went from being in a rock and roll band that people danced to, to writing pensive, slow, quiet songs that are more interested in sparking the listeners' imagination than getting toes tapping.”

The album opens with “Riding Down the Canyon.” I found the song to be very warm and mixes in elements of folk, rock and Americana. The song opens with acoustic guitar and vocals and other elements quickly come into the song like piano, drums and bass. I absolutely loved the vocals which felt so comforting and inviting. That sort of vibe is present within the remainder of the album.

“If Living Don't Kill Us” is one of the highlights. It's a wonderful song that blends warm melancholy with a sense of gratitude. The saloon style piano is on point as are the other instruments but again the vocals are the main attraction. Kearns sings “Emptying out another bottle / Pulling hard on the throttle / That’s life… or living hard.”

Each passing song seems to bring a little more joy. “Music on the Radio” is a very danceable song with consistent beat, tremolo infused guitar and even some harmonica. It’s easy to get lost into the groove of the song which never pushes too hard. 

“Where Did I Go Wrong” is a little more stripped back and intimate sounding. It’s a tearjerker of a song. Kearns sounds just as good with some longing to the vocals. There are also some nice vocal harmonies which are subtle but effective.

“Beautiful Loser” was a nice followup because it’s a full arrangement which is the most festive song yet. It's the type of song that made me want to go out on the town and celebrate life. Kearns continues with a number of highlights. The rolling “Let's All Meet Up” contains exceptional brush work with more catchy vocals while “Way Out on the Edge of Town” is an organ infused song with a great groove. The most rocking song on the batch is  “Last of the Golden Rays” which is also quite epic. Kearns closes with a cover song “I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry” and it’s another song where he knocks the vocals out of the park.

​This is a wonderfully produced album with songwriting that is just as good. There’s emotion coming from every pore of this release. Highly recommended.

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