Drummer Mike Portnoy is one of the busiest, most diverse musicians around. He has chops to spare and most everyone who sees him in action is struck with elation and amazement from the experience. It happened when I saw him with Dream Theater in 2009, with Flying Colors in 2014, and twice with the Winery Dogs — in 2012 and again in 2015, the night after I did the following interview with him.
On stage at the House of Blues in Anaheim with bassist Billy Sheehan and guitarist Richie Kotzen, Portnoy worked behind his kit like a mad scientist, churning out straight beats over poly-rhythms like an engine, all whilst tossing sticks, swinging his vocal mic to and fro, teasing cymbals and cowbells, and basically being one of the most entertaining and vibrant drummers I’ve seen since Keith Moon.
Together, the Winery Dogs ran through an 18-song set featuring songs from their 2013 self-titled debut and their 2015 sophomore release, Hot Streak. After they settled in with fiery and flexible songs like “Oblivion,” “Empire” and “Think It Over,” each of the players took solo spots to stretch the parameters of their chosen instrument. Sheehan taps, slides and is basically like the Eddie Van Halen of bass. A few nights later, he would incite chaos in Beverly Hills during one of his mind-numbing solos. Kotzen is a zen master of style and finesse, whether he’s picking out fluid lines on his Telecaster, stroking the keys of his red Wurlitzer, or intoning his soulful vocals into the mix.
When it came to his solo, Portnoy left no surface within striking distance untouched. I never realized playing the floor or a mic stand could sound so intense. Once, he broke out a certain smaller drum set we discuss below, it was like there was no limit to where he would go next. Aside from getting the latest on the Winery Dogs, the drummer and I spoke about his role as the organizer of a tribute to Yes bassist Chris Squire aboard the Cruise To The Edge cruise that sails on November 15. We also touched on other bands he’s with including Flying Colors and Metal Allegiance. He explained how he handles such a busy schedule and why he’s more than happy to keep going without any end in sight. After you read the interview, don’t forget to check out Ron Lyon’s photos of the Winery Dogs from the House of Blues in Anaheim.
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The Winery Dogs are finishing up their 2015 U.S Tour. How have the shows been going?
It’s been great. We’ve been out for, I guess coming up on a month at this point. Started on the East coast and here we are, wrapping up on the West coast. It’s been great. The turnouts have been great. The fans have been awesome. We’re well-oiled and rocking. It’s a great start for what will be a long year ahead of us.
You’re out behind the second Winery Dogs album, Hot Streak. With everything else you’re involved with, so how did you manage to fit this one in?
The Winery Dogs is a priority for all three of us. Even though all three of us have lots of things that we do, the Winery Dogs is our home base. So the question is, how do we find time to do everything else? We penciled in our starting point to reconvene, which was in January. We wrote the music at that point, and then we went into the studio in May to actually record it, and here we are on the road with it. It’s a matter of literally picking a date and making it happen.
You’ve said that Hot Streak was more of a collaboration than the first Winery Dogs album. How does that work? Do the three of you sit in a room and work out songs? Do you jam out riffs and build from there? How would describe the process?
Yeah, it’s pretty much as you just said: The three of us get into a room and just start jamming. If something catches one of our ears, we’ll just work on it, expand on it, shape it and mold it. That’s how the music is written. Once the three of us have the music, then Richie (Kotzen) will go off and write the lyrics and deal with the vocals. It’s a collaborative process pretty much from the beginning.
Most people see you three, they automatically note the musicianship. But obviously with this record, there’s a strong indication that it’s more about writing and recording good songs. Is that what you’re going for?
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, not just with this record, but with the first record as well, that was always the goal with this band, you know when the three of us first got together. You know, we could have gone in many, many different directions, but I think the three of us all unanimously wanted to do something that was very song- and vocal-oriented. I think the three of us have all done our fair share of instrumental technical shred fests throughout our careers. We really wanted to do something that was really more of a very song-oriented band.
So I’m listening to “Empire” and it turns into this shredding jam at the end, and then the mood abruptly changes and you have this soulful smooth “Fire.” I love the dichotomy, and yet the record on the whole seems to bear a unified sound that’s funkier, more rhythmic and bluesier with an edgy eclecticism. Do you think the band has established a signature sound for itself?
Yeah, I think so. If you look at songs like “Empire” or “Oblivion” or “How Long.” Those are songs that are more the signature style of the Winery Dogs that we established with the first album, but I think this album has a couple of moments where we were able to try some new things. “Spiral” has a disco feel, “Hot Streak” is very funky, “Fire” is more of an adult contemporary pop-type song. Yeah, I think we have our signature sound and style, but as musicians and writers, we always want to try new things each time around as well.
You and Billy Sheehan obviously have that classic simpatico relationship that exists between a bass player and a drummer. How has that developed?
Billy and I have been playing in different things over the last 20 years or so, but this is the first time that we have actually come together to be in an all-original band together. He and I are very similar players to our respective instruments. When you see us live, the two of us are the type of players who like to fly off the seat of our pants. We don’t really preplan the fills and things like; we kind of both love to just jam and improvise, and spontaneously react with everything we play. We’re very, very locked as a rhythm section. We really feed off each other really well. I love playing with him.
I can tell (laughs). And then you throw in Ritchie Kotzen, and that adds to the chemistry — cast very much in the mold of other great power trios like Cream, Mountain, Grand Funk, ZZ Top and maybe a little bit The Police. Do you guys see yourself in that sort of power trio mold?
Definitely, we’re kind of tapping into that old-school power trio vibe. You mention Cream. I think that’s a good example. Obviously, we’re here 50 years later, and there’s a very, very different type of playing involved than there was 50 years ago. I think the idea’s the same. I think also that stylistically, I feel a little bit of a connection to the Who as well, even though the Who weren’t really a power trio, but essentially they were — essentially guitar, bass and drums with a separate singer. Sonically and musically, if you listen to Live At Leeds, I mean that’s like a power trio. I think we’re very similar in that respect.
A week after this tour ends, you’re going to be on the Cruise To The Edge in the Bahamas, paying tribute to Chris Squire. Can you tell me anything about what you have planned?
For me, it was an honor to be asked to put together this tribute for Chris, especially because I’m not a bass player. So for me, it’s an honor, and I guess it says something about my standing in the prog community that, even though I’m a drummer, I’m very much the ambassador for modern-day prog. To be asked to participate and put together this tribute is, for me, an honor.
Because Yes is on the ship and it’s their cruise, I have to be very careful about the setlist I put together. They had told me they didn’t want me playing anything that they currently play, or that is part of their playlist. So, basically, in putting this together, I have to go for the deep tracks and go for deep cuts, with stuff Yes doesn’t currently play, or, in some cases, have never ever played. So, I guess in that respect, it’s kind of cool actually because on the ship there will be hardcore Yes fans. I think it’s the right audience that will be able to appreciate the setlist I put together.
Who’s going to be playing with you?
For the most part, I’m keeping it a surprise. But I don’t think it’s a secret that my house band for the set will be the guys from the Neal Morse band. The Neal Morse band will primarily be the house band, but then I’ve got a long list of special guests made up of other people that are on board with their other respective bands that will be coming on to pay tribute and have some fun.
Neal Morse and Casey McPherson are also on this cruise. Any chance of hearing a little something from Transatlantic or Flying Colors?
Yeah, we’ve talked about doing a couple of songs together during Casey’s set. If you’re interested in hearing some Flying Colors, going to watch Casey’s set would be the time to do it.
Speaking of Flying Colors, I’ve been checking out the new live set Second Flight: Live At The Z7. I caught your show in Torrance last year and it was excellent. It’s so great to see you in a band with Steve Morse, one of my favorite guitar players.
Yeah, Steve’s one of my favorites of all time, so it’s an honor to be in a band with him.
Any plans to do more with them in the next year? A third album or more touring?
Not likely in the next year. My schedule is pretty full with the Winery Dogs, Twisted Sister and Metal Allegiance. That’s pretty much going to be my next 12 months. Surely, we’re hoping to get around to another Flying Colors album one of these days.
Getting back to Yes for just a moment, how much of an influence have they had on your career? I would imagine it goes pretty deep with you.
Yeah, absolutely, they were one of my first introductions to progressive music. I went through a huge Yes phase when I was a teenager. They’re surely one of my favorite bands of that era. Through the years, I’ve gotten to know those guys. Dream Theater and Yes toured together in 2004, which was a lot of fun. Through the years, I’ve played with Steve Howe, and myself and Alan White have done double drums together. On my prog cruise, I had my own cruise I put together last year called Progressive Nation at Sea, and at that, Transatlantic did a whole Yes set with Jon Anderson singing. So yeah, my history with Yes as both a fan and a musical collaborator runs pretty deep through the years.
Did you ever play with Chris Squire at all?
No, I never did. Obviously, I hung with him, we toured together and we spent time together. But I never actually played with him, no. He’s one of the Yes guys I hadn’t played with. But he was always one of my favorite bass players of all time. He was an absolute pioneer of the instrument. As far as I’m concerned, it was Chris, Geddy Lee, Billy Sheehan, Geezer Butler, and Steve Harris. Those are the bass pioneers of their time.
Normally, I would expect to see you at NAMM and playing the Bonzo Bash this coming January, but I noticed on your schedule you’ll be in Australia for three dates with Metal Allegiance. Can you tell me a little more about that project?
In a nutshell, Metal Allegiance was something that started a few years as a live covers thing with me, Charlie Benante and Frankie Bello from Anthrax, and Dave Ellefson from Megadeth. It started with the four of us, but it grew over the years to lineups that sometimes exceeded to 12 different people at one time. So it kept growing and growing. Finally, last year, we decided to get together to make an album of original material. That came out last month.
We just want to play wherever we can. It’s not like a traditional band where we can do traditional tours because everybody is in different bands. But whenever there’s opportunity like Sound Waves in Australia, we’re excited to be able to play whenever we can.
That sounds really cool. We’ll miss you at NAMM.
Yeah, it’s going to be my first time missing NAMM in about 10 years or so, so sorry about that. But I’ll be thinking about you guys while taking in the nice summer sun of Australia.
And then you’re back out with the Winery Dogs for a European tour after that. How long is that going to take you through?
The Winery Dogs, we pick back up at the end of January. We go over to Europe. We will be in Europe throughout January and February. We’re going to be in Japan in April. Basically, we got most of 2016 penciled in, going back through the States again, maybe go back to Europe over the summer for festivals, make our way down to South America. It’s going to be a busy year for the Winery Dogs in 2016.
In doing my research, I was watching some of your webcam videos on YouTube, and the sheer volume and diversity of music that you have recorded is mind-blowing. You’re jumping from one genre — you’re playing prog, then you jump over to metal, then you might go into something that’s a little more straightforward rock. Are there any challenges in going from genre to genre like that?
Honestly, no. It’s very natural for me because I’m a fan of all these different styles and I grew up listening to all these different styles. To me, the challenge isn’t the music or the drumming or retaining the information — I don’t know, that’s all very natural to me. For me, the biggest challenge is the scheduling. I jump from tour to tour to tour, and band to band to band, so that part is difficult. But honestly, the music is the easy part for me.
Does it ever get too hectic for you to be involved in so many different projects?
No, it comes natural to me. I’m just a music fan and a music lover. I’m grateful to be given the opportunity to have all these different outlets. It’s a dream career I’ve had. I couldn’t be any happier or prouder.
One video I saw was of you playing a Hello Kitty drum set. Any plans to take that set out on tour?
(Laughs) I actually have one on tour with me, so every once in a while, whenever I’m in the mood, it does make an appearance with the Winery Dogs. That video blew up way beyond my expectations. Thirty years, making dozens and dozens of albums, and playing thousands of concerts, yet I think my claim to fame now is I’m going to be that Hello Kitty guy.
