1 	Oblivion 	4:11
2 	Captain Love 	5:06
3 	Hot Streak 	5:10
4 	How Long 	3:55
5 	Empire 	6:08
6 	Fire 	4:46
7 	Ghost Town 	4:26
8 	The Bridge 	4:49
9 	War Machine 	5:11
10 	Spiral 	5:50
11 	Devil You Know 	4:30
12 	Think It Over 	5:02
13 	The Lamb 	6:44

Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals – Billy Sheehan
Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals – Mike Portnoy
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards, Percussion - Richie Kotzen
Backing Vocals – Julia Lage (tracks: 1, 5) 

After a strong self-titled debut, The Winery Dogs are back with Hot Streak. On this sophomore release the power trio featuring Richie Kotzen, Billy Sheehan, and Mike Portnoy pick up right where they left off.

Hot Streak begins with the first single from the album, “Oblivion,” which features that vintage Richie Kotzen guitar sound and technique. “Captain Love” follows, which is probably the catchiest song on the album. The track has an AC/DC type riff and a chorus that sticks with you. “Fire” is a stand out ballad on the album and serves as a nice change of pace from any tracks the band has done to date. Kotzen shows off his acoustic virtuosity with a latin flare. “Spiral” is another highlight with its funky groove and powerful chorus.

All in all, Hot Streak shows The Winery Dogs are here to stay. It’s an album chock full with great instrumentation, riffs, and catchy tunes. Hot Streak is an excellent sophomore release that should continue to elevate the band to greater heights. ---Pete Francis, bluesrockreview.com

Ever since their inception, The Winery Dogs, comprising of ace musicians Richie Kotzen, Billy Sheehan and Mike Portnoy, have delivered superlative music laden with creativity as evident in their self-titled debut record released in 2013. This has carried on to their new album ‘Hot Streak’, which is absolutely infectious!

The opening track and the first single off of ‘Hot Streak’ is “Oblivion”. This song establishes great energy for the rest of the album with amazing guitar work and power-packed drumming. The next track “Captain Love” is quite a catchy one, with a remarkably awesome groove. The song has a good dash of funk essence and adds variety to itself with a nice “funk-shred” solo and well thought-out hooks.

The funky vibe continues in the title track, which also has a high-spirited, catchy groove and a brilliant guitar tone. The blend of the vocals and the guitar tone on this song adds to the wonderful impact set by it. “How Long” and “The Bridge” showcase the strong rhythm sections executed by Billy and Mike. The neat rhythmic foundation in both the songs is awe-inspiring. While the former has a really memorable chorus, the unique lyrical rhythm in the latter stands out beautifully.

‘Hot Streak’ features a good deal of variety and is capable of being enjoyed by all kinds of listeners. It features a ballad called “Fire”, which despite having quite laid-back rhythmic parts, is very impactful especially due to the amazing vocals and vocal harmonies. One of the best songs on the album is “Empire”, which has a unique vibe to itself set by rare elements like Kotzen’s slide solo. “Ghost Town” also features a slide solo by Kotzen and is a refreshing track as it raises the tempo after the ballad-y “Fire”. The vocals seem to be boosted with some effects on this one, but it works completely fine.

“Spiral” is the boldest song on this record and features galloping bass laced around unique drumming, while “War Machine” probably has the most interesting and thought-provoking lyrics on the album. The musical prowess of each member of the band is upheld wonderfully in “Devil You Know” while the R&B inspired instrumentation flourishes in the piano-laden “Think It Over”. “The Lamb” incorporates a bit of experimentation with sounds and provides a perfect finish to ‘Hot Streak’. The album also features brilliant mixing, which highlights or blends the elements at just the perfect places.

In a nutshell, listening to ‘Hot Streak’ is an enjoyable experience, since the record does not go over the top despite being musically adventurous. This is one album which features different kinds of songs – ones that are instantly likeable, and ones in which the creative details are noticeable after a couple of listens. ---Debarati Das, metalwani.com

Muzyka rockowa ma przeróżne odcienie. Są tacy, którzy najbardziej lubią rozbudowane, progresywne dźwięki. Inni preferują zaangażowane, melodyjne protest songi. Ale są też tacy, dla których rock to przede wszystkim dynamiczne solówki i solidne uderzenie dźwięku. Dla tych ostatnich jest najnowszy album The Winery Dogs – Hot Streak.

Od prawie miesiąca szukam na najnowszym wydawnictwie rockowego super trio elementów, do których z czystym sercem mógłbym się przyczepić, ale ich po prostu nie znajduję. Hot Streak to granie mainstreamowe, ale w najlepszym wydaniu (dobrze zagrane, świetnie wyprodukowane i momentami naprawdę porywające).

W krzesło wbija już opener „Oblivion”, w którym wjeżdża potężna perkusja, gitarowe pasaże i zachrypnięty wokal Kotzena, który śpiewa prawie tak dobrze jak Cornell w latach 90. Jest zadziornie, a jednocześnie melodyjnie i przebojowo. Kolejne kawałki utrzymują poziom wyznaczony przez „Oblivion” udowadniając, że współczesne majstrowanie wokół rocka i ubieranie go w elektronikę, czy jazz nie jest konieczne. Klasyczne gitarowe granie wciąż się broni. Nieźle brzmią zbluesowane „Think It Over” (z ciekawą partią na klawiszach), rock’n’rollowy „Devil You Know”, a także utrzymany w nieco przewrotnym klimacie, transowy „Spiral”. Do tego można dodać kilka chwil spokojniejszych (np. akustyczny „Fire” oraz trochę przekombinowany „The Lamb”) i mamy przepis na solidny, rockowy album.

Podczas przeróżnych projektów, w które do tej pory angażował się Mike Portnoy po opuszczeniu Dream Theater miałem wrażenie, że nie jest w stanie okiełznać swojej potrzeby perkusyjnego „szpanu” – musiało być głośno, atrakcyjnie rytmicznie i z rozmachem. Cóż, na Hot Streak jest podobnie. Portnoy nie myśli o tym, żeby odpuścić i w każdym numerze szaleje, ale tym razem pociągnął za sobą towarzyszących mu muzyków. Zamiast zejść do „normalnego” poziomu wymusił potężne brzmienie i szaleńcze rajdy rytmiczne pozostałych instrumentów. Z tego tez pewnie powodu większość kawałków na albumie trwa ponad 5 minut, co pozwala zmieścić wszystkie bridge, solówki, pasaże i smaczki.

Hot Streak to obecnie jeden z moich ulubionych albumów, które pojawiły się na rynku w tym roku. Jest to bardzo solidne wydawnictwo z kilkoma perełkami i jedynie 1-2 numerami, które odstają od reszty. Prezentuje też to, co w muzyce rockowej najbardziej lubię – zaangażowany wokal, gitarowe solówki, wyrazisty rytm i ogromna przebojowość. Kompozycje są z jednej strony przemyślane, a z drugiej znalazło się miejsce na indywidualne brzmienie instrumentów. Każdy fan szybkiego, rockowego grania znajdzie coś dla siebie. ---Konrad Siwiński, artrock.pl

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Disc 1:
1. Elevate 5:01
2. Desire 3:41
3. We Are One 4:32
4. I’m No Angel 4:03
5. The Other Side 5:41
6. You Saved Me 5:13
7. Not Hopeless 5:04
8. One More Time 3:36
9. Damaged 3:29
10. Six Feet Deeper 4:12
11. Time Machine 4:44
12. The Dying 6:06
13. Regret 4:49

Disc 2:
1. Elevate (Live) 5:08
2. Criminal (Live) 5:08
3. Time Machine (Live) 4:56
4. I’m No Angel (Live) 4:02
5. Not Hopeless (Live) 6:11
6. Stand (Live) 4:43
7. You Can’t Save Me (Live) 2:04
8. Shine (Live) 4:41
9. Fooled Around And Fell In Love (Live) 5:38
10. Desire (Live) 7:05

Richie Kotzen - lead vocals, guitars, keyboards
Billy Sheehan - bass guitar, vocals
Mike Portnoy - drums, percussion, vocals

Steeped in the bluesy and beefy swagger of classic rock icons like Led Zeppelin and Cream, the instrumental pyrotechnics of mid-'80s pop metal, and the groove-heavy riffage of bands like Soundgarden, Black Stone Cherry, and Velvet Revolver, the eponymous debut from American hard rock trip the Winery Dogs, which feature the technical prowess of industry veterans vocalist/guitarist Richie Kotzen (Poison, Mr. Big), bass player Billy Sheehan (David Lee Roth, Mr. Big, Steve Vai), and drummer Mike Portnoy (co-founder of Dream Theater), features 13 hard-hitting, fun, yet meticulously crafted slabs of 21st century rock that manage to celebrate the past while simultaneously kicking open new doors. --- James Christopher Monger, allmusic.com

A 'Dog' according to the BCG Matrix, is the unit with a low market share in a mature/slow glowing industry. Indeed, the newly-formed super-group from New York has all the right reasons to believe that they are still unknown to people, in an area of the music industry with so many bands around, that distinction in these days becomes a Herculean task.

The Winery Dogs are listed as another band/project that drum mastermind Mike Portnoy puts into his portfolio since leaving the 'theater of dreams' a couple of years ago. Along with the duo of Richie Kotzen (guitars/lead vocals) and Billy Sheehan (bass/backing vocals) -both previously collaborating on the band Mr. Big- they have formed a powerful trio dedicated to deliver classic rock tunes. If you have followed Portonoy's music paths after Dream Theater you will observe that not everything he has done was universally accepted by the audiences: Adrenaline Mob had a heavy metal approach, Translantic and Liquid Tension Experiment had a progressive style, while the more recent Flying Colors project was inclined towards a more radio-friendly alternative rock sound.

All who are familiar with Kotzen's guitar playing know what this guy is capable of. What it has emerged though through this record are his vocal abilities: a mixture of Glenn Hughes's nuance and Chris Cornell's depth, capable of making you wonder whether this guy was always a singer or not. The album is divided into three types of songs: the powerful rockers, the groovy ones and ballads. There are of course songs which combine a mixture of the two (or three) and that's a pleasant thing to hear. Diversity makes an album interesting, enjoyable and worth listening. Songs such as the energetic ''Elevate'', the emphatic ''Six Feet Deeper'', the enthusiastic ''Other Side'' and the formidable ''Desire'' show the adventurous side of the trio. This pre-released track (''Desire'') could also fit in another type as it's splendid basslines are mixed with a catchy chorus and some guitar squeals to make you wonder whether this is the album's top track or not.

On the other hand, songs like ''One More Time'' and ''We Are One" show a different image of the band: the former has a more funky attitude whereas the latter has a catchy tone and some positive lyrics, characteristics which are undermined to some extent by the lengthy solo towards the end. Fortunately this does not happen regularly throughout the album, but when it does it leaves you with no question as to the technical abilities of these guys. However, there are moments in this album such as the Audioslave-like ''Damaged'' in which the trio has tried to play as simple as it gets and the outcome is simply sensational. If you were not convinced then "You Saved Me" will surely do it. From the neat basslines of Sheehan and the tranquil hi-hat touches of Portnoy, Kotzen will take this song by the hand and make it one of the most captivating moments of this one-hour work. If nothing of the above excites you, there is still the chance through ''Criminal'' and "Not Hopeless" to give some positive comments about this record and consider giving it another spin.

Clearly, 'The Winery Dogs' do what they promised to do: that is to reignite the classic rock spirit. They might have gone a bit further and become hard rockers in some moments but they have not gone too progressive or too soft. They have kept songs at a duration of an average of four minutes, they have avoided circus-like complex patterns with their instruments and songs were spread out in a way to keep you constantly interested. Whether they have achieved to draw attention and distinguish 'The Winery Dog' from the typical 'Dog', record sales and concert halls will show. We will have to wait and see. --- Antonius, sputnikmusic.com

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