Kevin Patrick Shields (born 21 May 1963) is an Irish-American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, who achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the alternative rock band My Bloody Valentine.

[2] Following My Bloody Valentine's dissolution in the late 1990s, Shields became a frequent guest musician, producer, engineer, and remixer with various bands and artists, including Experimental Audio Research, Yo La Tengo, Dinosaur Jr, and Mogwai.

[12] In 1973, Shields moved to Dublin, Ireland, with his parents and siblings due to financial conditions and in order to remain close to their extended family.

[15][16] Shields befriended drummer Colm Ó Cíosóig in south Dublin during the summer of 1978, and together they answered an advertisement placed by a 12-year-old musician to form punk rock band The Complex.

[11] The band recorded a demo tape, which features Shields' first experimentation with pitch bending, and performed at local venues to crowds of no more than a hundred people.

[11][21] A Life in the Day disbanded in 1981, and Shields and Ó Cíosóig went on to form My Bloody Valentine in early 1983 with lead vocalist David Conway.

[18] Due to a lack of opportunities and correct documentation, the band relocated to West Berlin, Germany, in late 1984 and recorded their debut mini album, This Is Your Bloody Valentine (1985).

[25] During a supporting tour in March 1987, David Conway announced his decision to leave the band due to his gastric illness, disillusionment with music and ambitions to become a writer.

[27] A series of successful releases followed including three-track single "Strawberry Wine" and the band's second mini album Ecstasy (1987), both featuring Shields on lead vocal duties.

Whilst touring in support of Ecstasy, My Bloody Valentine signed to Creation Records, who described the band as "the Irish equivalent to Hüsker Dü".

[31] Shields relocated to a total of 19 other studios and hired a number of engineers, including Alan Moulder, Anjali Dutt and Guy Fixsen.

[39] Unable to finalise a third album, Shields isolated himself, and in his own words "went crazy", drawing comparisons in the music press to the eccentric behaviour of musicians like Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys and Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd.

"[40] Following My Bloody Valentine's disbandment, Shields embarked on a number of collaborations with other artists, both as a guest musician and producing, engineering, mixing and remixing other acts.

Shields has lent his services as a guest musician to releases by Russell Mills & Undark, DJ Spooky, Curve, Manic Street Preachers, Le Volume Courbe, Gemma Hayes and Paul Weller.

"[47] Shields has remained close to the band following his departure in 2006, remastering Primal Scream's third studio album Screamadelica (1991) in 2010 and contributing guitar to "2013", the lead single from More Light (2013).

During summer 2002, Reitzell and Shields began impromptu jam sessions in London where the duo "adopted a late-night recording schedule," resulting in the single "City Girl.

"[50] Released in August 2003 on V2 Records, the Lost in Translation soundtrack included three other ambient pieces which Shields had composed for the film: "Goodbye," "Ikebana," and "Are You Awake?".

[3][4][52] In July 2008, Shields collaborated with the American musician Patti Smith to release the live album The Coral Sea on the PASK label (which the duo had also founded together).

The double album features two performances at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, recorded on 22 June 2005 and 12 September 2006, wherein Smith reads the book of the name same (which she wrote in tribute to her friend, the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe)[53] over Shields' instrumental accompaniment.

In August 2007, reports emerged that My Bloody Valentine would reunite for the 2008 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California, United States;[54] this was later confirmed by Shields, along with the announcement that the band's third studio album (which he had begun recording in 1996) was near completion.

[60][61] In October 2011, Shields launched the independent record label Pickpocket together with Le Volume Courbe frontwoman Charlotte Marionneau, and considered releasing a collaborative "ten minutes of noise" single on the imprint.

[62] In May 2012 remastered versions of Isn't Anything and Loveless[63] were released as well as the EP's 1988–1991 collection, which featured the band's Shields-remastered Creation Records extended plays, singles and unreleased tracks.

[69] In April 2018, Shields released The Weight Of History / Only Once Away My Son, a collaborative double A-side with Brian Eno, for Record Store Day.

[21] Upon moving to Ireland in 1973, he became a fan of "the energy, androgyny and otherworldy production style" of glam rock and has said Johnny Ramone inspired him to begin playing guitar.

[12] He has stated a dislike for the "wet and ... liquid" production values of 1980s music and shoegaze artists; he instead favours the "dry ... and upfront" sound used by Dinosaur Jr and Sonic Youth.

[79] Shields used a number of alternate and open tunings that together with his tremolo manipulation, according to Rolling Stone's Michael Azerrad, achieved "a strange warping effect that makes the music wander in and out of focus".

[83] During live performances with My Bloody Valentine – particularly during the closing number "You Made Me Realise" – Shields creates a blend of white noise, which often lasts for half an hour and can reach 130db.

In an interview with The Guardian, Shields said My Bloody Valentine were "banned by [the Mercury Prize]" due to not having a major digital distribution deal in the United Kingdom.

[93] His brother Jimi was a founding member and drummer of the indie rock band Rollerskate Skinny, who has since formed Wounded Knees and become co-director of TTT (thirtythreetrees), a Dublin landscape design practice.

[94] His sister Ann Marie has worked extensively in the music industry and has managed tours for both My Bloody Valentine and Rollerskate Skinny, as well as being credited for coordination on Loveless.