Drummer MIKE PORTNOY (ex-DREAM THEATER) recently spoke with VintageRock.com about his involvelent with THE WINERY DOGS, also featuring bassist BILLY SHEEHAN (MR. BIG), and guitarist / vocalist RICHIE KOTZEN (ex-POISON). An excerpt from the interview is available below:

VR: For a musician like you with so many things in the pipeline and all these Winery Dog live dates, you must really be committed to this project.

Portnoy: "Yes, as you say I do have a lot of different things in the pipeline, but The Winery Dogs is obviously something I think has a lot of potential. We’ll ride it as long as we can, as long as there’s people wanting to see the band, we’ll get out there and play. I’m committed to The Winery Dogs for sure."

VR: I really love the new album and, dare I say, it’s not only really well played but the songs have commercial appeal.

Portnoy: "I take no offense to the word 'commercial,' and I agree this might be the most accessible record or band that I’ve ever been a part of actually. It’s the truest straight-up rock band that I’ve ever been a part of, in a good way."

VR: You guys sound so tight and seamless.

Portnoy: "Richie is the full-on real deal. He’s a triple threat — guitar player, singer, songwriter — just amazing and it was all so perfect. So Billy and I reached out to Richie and we started from scratch, the three of us wrote everything together and that’s how The Winery Dogs began."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

The Winery Dogs' live itinerary for 2013 is as follows:

July

24 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Teatro Rival
26 - São Paulo, Brazil - Carioca Club
27 - Belo Horizonte, Brazil - Music Hall
28 - Porto Alegre, Brazil - Opinião
30 - Santiago, Chile - Teatro Nescafe Del Arte

August

1 - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Teatro Flores
3 - New York, NY - B.B. King Blues Club and Grill
4 - Lancaster, PA - Chameleon
7 - Newton, NJ - Newton Theater
8 - Chicago, IL - Reggie's

September

5 - London, England - Islington 02 Academy
6 - Zoetermeer, Holland - Boerderij
7 - Saarbruken, Germany - Garage
9 - Aschaffenburg, Germany - Colos-Saal
10 - Hamburg, Germany - Knust
11 - Berlin, Germany - Lido
13 - Munich, Germany - Theaterfabrik
14 - Cologne, Germany - Gloria
15 - Paris, France - La Maroquinerie
17 - Prattein, Switzerland - Z7
18 - Milan, Italy - Live Club
19 - Karlsrue, Germany - Substage
21 - Barcelona, Spain - Apolo
22 - Madrid, Spain - Joy Eslava
23 - Lisbon, Portugal - Paradise Garage

October

3 - Agoura Hills CA - The Canyon
4 - Las Vegas, NV - Vamp'd
5 - San Diego, CA - Ramona Mainstage
6 - San Juan Capistrano, CA - The Coach House

The Winery Dogs features the following 13 songs:

'Elevate'

'Desire'

'We Are One'

'I'm No Angel'

'The Other Side'

'You Saved Me'

'Not Hopeless'

'One More Time'

'Damaged'

'Six Feet Deeper'

'Criminal'

'The Dying'

'Regret'