The Winery Dogs Play the Fine Line in Return to Minnesota

Last updated on March 10th, 2023 at 06:27 am

Opening the night for the Winery Dogs was local rocker Johnny O’Neil. O’Neil played music from his first album Truth Or Dare along with songs from his former band Dare Force. Johnny finished the night playing the new single Brand New Day with the promise of a new album coming in the near future.

If you didn’t arrive early (I most definitely did not,) you probably didn’t have the best view given the crowd that showed up for supergroup The Winery Dogs. I managed to make it into the middle of the lower level for about 1 or 2 songs before retreating upstairs where it was less busy.

Richie Kotzen, Winery Dogs, Rock — Richie Kotzen Of The Winery Dogs

The Winery Dogs blistered through a 16-song, 90-minute performance. They opened their set with “Gaslight” and their latest single “Xanadu” before making the call for the Captain in “Captain Love.”

This group has the unique ability to mix different styles of rock and roll and just make it flow naturally, whether it’s prog rock or when they go back to a more ’70s sound with a bluesy rock sound.

For being an alleged supergroup, most people don’t seem to know who’s in the band. Billy Sheehan (bass) is known for playing in Mr. Big and with the one and only Diamond Dave (David Lee Roth).

Mike Portnoy, Winery Dogs, Rock — Mike Portnoy Of The Winery Dogs

Richie Kotzen (guitar) is known for his solo work with over 20 albums to date along with the ’80s Hair Metal Band Poison, and Mike Portnoy (drums) is known for playing in Dream Theater, Avenged Sevenfold, and Sons Of Apollo.

Supergroups come and go, and most of them fade from relying on their past success. It’s impressive to see groups like The Winery Dogs that manage to combine multiple styles of Rock and still make it sound natural.

Setlist: