Jared Dines reveals the first songs he learned to play, his favorite riffs and what he thinks is the future of guitar

Before social distancing became the norm, Jared Dines stopped by Guitar World’s studio, with his Ernie Ball Artist Series Signature StingRay model in hand, to chat with GW’s own Paul Riario about his first and favorite electric guitar riffs, the future of the instrument and a variety of other topics.

Regarding the first riff he ever learned to play, Dines reveals it was the fingerpicked lick from P.O.D.’s 2001 song The Messenjah.

“I remember getting the tab and sitting there in my kitchen trying to figure it all out,” he says, demonstrating the riff on his new 

“I was a huge P.O.D. fan, huge Van Halen fan,” he says. “I actually would try to learn as many easy Van Halen songs or Rush or Boston songs when I first started, just the easiest parts.

“Or I’d listen to a song and be like, “Okay, this 30 seconds I can play – I want to try and learn this one.”

As for his favorite riffs of all time? Lenny Kravitz’s Always On the Run and Audioslave’s Show Me How to Live.

“For some reason those two riffs, since I was a kid they never leave my head,” Dines says. 

“It doesn’t need to be technical. It doesn’t need to be something crazy. Sometimes the easiest riffs are the best riffs.”

When Riario asks Dines where he sees the future of guitar heading, he has a one word answer: “Polyphia.”

Dines then elaborates, “I would say fusion and collaboration is going to be the future because we’re going to get to a point where everything’s been heard. So it’s going to be, 'Who is doing something fresh or who is doing something with a slight edge or who is doing really cool music with other people?' ”

Finally, Dines wraps up the interview by showing off his pick retrieval skills. Hint: Riario is justifiably impressed.