Juan IbarraDario Lorina is a 17-year-old guitarist from Boston, Massachusetts who started taking private lessons at the tender age of six. It was clear to Darios instructors that he had a talent well beyond his age, which led him to relocate to Las Vegas, Nevada to pursue his music career at the age of twelve.
Living in Las Vegas and taking advantage of the Los Angeles music scene has given Dario the opportunity to meet and perform his talent for notable rock icons in the music industry. Dario currently uses Lag Guitars, Coffin Case, Crafter Acoustic Guitars, Stone Tone, Sfarzo Strings, and Krank Amps.
In a day and age where true musical ability and raw talent is hard to come by, Dario’s guitar ability and innovative style are reminiscent of the guitar heroes of yesterday. It is no wonder why he is frequently compared to Randy Rhoads and Eddie Van Halen who are the epitome of guitar legends.
Dario Lorina was chosen over 100 applicants as ex-Warrant front man and multi platinum recording artist, Jani Lane's new axman, a past project, Cyrus Zain had their music video for Kara aired in three states on the FOX television show On Tour. China and Europe have shown interest in Dario by publishing interviews and CD reviews on the internet and in magazines. He is also a sought after guitar instructor in and around the Las Vegas area who has a beginning rock instructional video available for purchase. The instructional video is targeted towards a younger audience where Dario has a vast following.
There is no doubt that Dario Lorina will prove himself to be a major influence on the music scene and guitar world for many years to come.
While walking around NAMM, I happened upon Dario at the Coffin Case Booth, and requested an impromptu interview with him. After his jam session, Dario took time to talk to me about everything going on with him musically. Enjoy...
Hi Dario So here we are at NAMM ‘07. What have you done at NAMM so far today, anything interesting?
Well, I started over at COFFIN CASE in the morning and then I went down to KRANK and played at KRANK AMPS. Tomorrow, I’ll be playing with Jani Lane at the Crafter Guitar booth; we’re doing an acoustic show. Yesterday, I played at COFFIN CASE as well, so it’s been a busy couple of days.
Speaking of KRANK, why did you choose them over say, another amp company?
They have such a clean, tight distorted sound and there raw power is what drew me to them. They KRANK!!
Your career kind of took off, with help from the whole Myspace evolution, what do you think of artists that use that as an outlet to get more promotion?
You know, that thing has been incredible, MySpace has been awesome because you can get people from all over the world and promote yourself, post bulletins about what’s going on with you musically, be interactive with the fans, it’s great.
Who are your main influences, you’re pretty young, 17, and doing really well. How did you get started?
I got a guitar for Christmas when I was 7 and stuck with that, took private lessons, then started giving lessons about 3-4 years ago. I love teaching, it helps me learn, it brings some things back to me that I may have forgotten or I may have to learn new techniques or new styles of music because all my students are different so they want to learn different things. Paul Gilbert is a huge influence, I love how he incorporates blues and metal to get a really unique sound, George Lynch as well.
I just walked by him earlier...
I missed him He’s definitely a favorite, Paul Gilbert too...
I saw him here too...
He’s here? and of course, Eddie Van Halen and Randy Rhoads.
So, you’re teaching in Las Vegas?
Yes, in Vegas, I teach out of my studio there.
So what do you have planned coming up this year?
Well, this year I’ll be playing with Jani Lane, we’re starting in April with Puerto Rico and Florida. I’m also working on getting my own band together, a Motley Crue / Guns n Roses type attitude mixed with the style of today The 80’s with a modern twist.
Tell me about your appearance with Terry Ilous, from XYZ.
Yes I did an appearance with him for the “Monsters of Classic Rock” project. I had a blast playing with all those guys, Chris Slade, the drummer from AC/DC, Greg Douglass (Steve Miller Band), Carmine Rojas (David Bowie, Rod Stewart) and Terry Ilous.
Are you going to be doing any solo material?
I have some instrumental tracks that I play to when I do clinics and things. I’ve gotten great response from people about the songs, so who knows, maybe they’ll end up on an album some day! Haha.
Who are you endorsed by?
Well, I’m working with Coffin Case, who I absolutely LOVE, Krank Amps, lag Guitars, Crafter Acoustic Guitars, and Stone Tone music. Stone Tone is a company who tops guitars with granite, it’s rock on top of the guitar You can play rock music and dice tomatoes on it at the after party. They’re incredible; the tone is amazing. I’d like to thank everybody, Stone Tone, Lag, Krank, Coffin, and Crafter. They’ve all treated me so well and it’s been a great year.
Do you have any dates coming up in Southern California?
I very well may, nothing confirmed yet.
Anything else you’d like to add?
You can visit me at my website, www.dariolorina.com and also on my MySpace page, www.myspace.com/dariolorina. Thanks to everyone’s continued support, thanks to Jani, and most of all, my parents. See everyone on the road!
