TF: What do you do for a living?
REIN: I am a musician. I also keep busy raising my two year old son named Vaughn.
TF: What is your practice regime? How do you go about learning?
REIN: I practice 3-4 hours a day split into a few types of exercises. I start with finger exercises to warm-up. Then I go over my pentatonic scales for speed and dexterity. I also go over triads, modal scales, arpeggio scales. I make sure to be working on a song that really inspire me. And lastly, I put down some rhythm guitar on my looper and jam along with it to spark some improvisation.
TF: Why do you think music is important to someone’s life?
REIN: I feel that music is the purest way to get intouch with your soul. And I think that what everyone wants in life is to feel alive. As a guitar player, when I hit that one note, I feel it through my whole body and it makes me feel super human.
TF: If you could learn to play any one thing, what would it be? Song, solo, piece etc.
REIN: Little Wing (the SRV version). It’s on my to do list 🙂
TF: Who is your favorite guitarist and why?
REIN: Stevie Ray Vaughan hands down. When he played, he gave you his all and then some. Stevie came from a place of passion, emotion, feeling, sensitivity and willingness to open himself up and let it flow. When I hear someone playing with that much heart they could be playing just one note and I would be captivated. He had a fire in him that inspired me to my core and that’s my driving force every day.
TF: What musician would you like to have dinner with (living or dead)?
REIN: My ultimate dinner table would include Stevie Ray Vaughan, Philip Sayce and Tom Keifer of Cinderella. I first saw Tom Keifer on TV when he played the Moscow Peace Festival. I was 11 years old at the time. I was captivated by his guitar tone, the notes he chose to play and the palpable love he had for sharing his music. He started an intro into the song “Nobody’s Fool” and as soon as I heard that I knew that I was destined to play guitar. In 2013 I found out about Philip Sayce and I had the same guttural reaction when I watched him play. He gives you a part of his heart and soul with every note and takes you on an amazing ride.
TF: If you were stranded on a desert island, what one guitar would you like to have with you (yes, electricity is on the island).
REIN: My #1 guitar is my Fender Strat Vintage Hot Rod ‘62 reissue. It’s a sunburst finish and has a thick C neck, which is super comfortable for me.
TF: If you could be in any band (current or past) which band would you like to be in?
REIN: I would love to play with Philip Sayce. Blues-Rock all the way!
TF: Finish this sentence, ”If everyone on the planet played guitar….”
REIN: ……our hands would be busy and we would never have the opportunity or inclination to even think about war, guns, hurting others. We would understand that we are all a part of the same song.
TF: Describe your biggest ‘aha’ moment on guitar.
REIN: It’s not about how many notes you can play or how fast you play, it’s about the feeling behind what you are playing.