By Kyle Brown
Monterrey, Mexico’s sister trio rock band, The Warning, made their way to Detroit, Michigan on August 16th. The band was originally set to play at The Shelter, but shortly after ticket sales skyrocketed in sales, it was moved upstairs to St. Andrews Hall. The Shelter is what is called the “basement” of St. Andrews.
Upon arrival, there was a noticeably long line waiting for doors to open. So long, that members of the staff were saying they never seen a line so long prior to doors opening. The line stretched from where the doors to the venue were, around the Elephant Room, down Jacob Alley, and ended at the Bricktown Parking Garage.
The venue was packed full of fans wall-to-wall. From the front of the stage to the back where the sound booth I was located, there was not a space left. Even the seating area above was packed in. Children, teens, and adults of all ages could be seen eagerly awaiting the Villarreal sisters to take the stage. Most of everyone in attendance, already sporting the band’s merchandise in t-shirt form, hats, or hoodies.
The band entered onto the stage with the intro song, Intro 404, off their latest album, Error, (released in 2022). The Warning took the stage to loud applause. “Disciple” was played as their opener, with the crowd loudly singing along with “woah oh oh oh” and the “two, three go!” Immediately you could see the energy they bring each night, and that it was going to be a fun set.
Dany, lead singer and guitarist, addressed the Detroit crowd and began “Z” by asking asking the crowd to raise their hands and clap. Dany also was able to show off some of some of her guitar skills during this song with a center stage performance that featured the beautiful yellow Manson guitar gifted to her from Muse’s Matt Bellamy. The bands drummer, Pau, also had vocals on this song , ending with her voice echoing around the venue.
You see their sets online and imagine how it really is in person, but you don’t fully grasp the amazing talents they hold until you see it live. Seeing Ale up close and how her signature moves on stage match with the eye contact she makes with the crowd. Pau’s drumming ability goes unmatched with her ability to connect with the crowd, and Dany leading the charge, both vocally and energy wise. It was fun to see how all three sisters love playing together, at certain points walking to one another, doing a head bang, and walking back.
Between most songs, Dany was fan-friendly. Taking the time to thank the crowd, and seeing if they knew the next song by asking them to sing along. “Choke,” Dust To Dust” and “Dull Knives (Cut Better)” were played next. My personal favorite, “Kool Aid Kids” came after to which I immediately stopped taking notes and sang along from the back of the venue.
About halfway through the set came one of the best crowd and band commentary came with Dany asking, “Alright Detroit! We have one question for you.” To which the crowd responded “we want more!” Seemingly throwing Dany off guard and with a laugh, responding, “that’s not fair!” she then asked “Do you guys want, more!!” A thunderous cheer of approval came and thus began the band’s latest single, “More“. This was also one of the loudest crowd interactions when it came to singing along with the band as well. The song has been one of their biggest hits since it released. Pau asking to clap with the beat of the cow bell took it to the next level as the venue began to rock.
I loved how we could hear each of their voices throughout each song. In particular, Ale’s voice. She isn’t heard as much vocally, compared to Dany and Pau. It was a pleasant surprise to hear her voice live, and how good it sounds.
During “Money” the lights turned green and it was nice to hear the backing vocals yet again of Pau and Ale with “Cash, Money, Cash, Money!” Lights turned back to the normal magenta, blue, and red colors again for “Survive“, which has one of my favorite instrumental sections of a song of theirs, to end the song. The guitar riffs and drums of all three go perfectly in sync. Before the cover song that put them on the map, “Enter Sandman“, Dany took the time to introduce the band.
The title track to the album, “Error” was played next, followed by their Spanish songs “Narcisista” and “Martirio“. “Narcisista” is the first song the band wrote in Spanish, and is a fun song to play live for the crowd. Even if the crowd doesn’t know Spanish, the chorus is easy to follow with, “Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na”. The crowd also went nuts after that specific song, so much that the band took a short pause to take it in. Dany bowing in awe and thanking the crowd. “Martirio” is one that Dany said the band was very proud of. The band said goodnight after, but to a huge cheer for one more song, an encore was made.
The encore song was “Evolve“. I must say, this was the one song that caught me off guard, in a good way. The song itself is brilliant. Seeing it live raised the bar. The lights became a red and blue light show much like a police car, as it was intended. The back tracking to the song played loud enough, but not overbearing the band itself. The instrumental section, my absolute favorite of any song they put out, was phenomenal. Pau yelling at the entire crowd to get their hands up and clap, “Okay Detroit, I want everyone to put your hands up. Even the people in back, I can see you! Hands up!!” followed by her theatrical head whip back and an “AHHHHHHH!” That entire section of the song mixed with the sirens in the background was just so creative and done very, very well. It was a masterpiece way to end the concert.
Upon leaving, there was a feeling everyone had. We all wanted more. The one hour show gave us plenty of time to see the sisters rock out on the stage, but that hour also went by fast. One second they were on stage for the first song, the next we are walking out of the venue doors. But we all understood that their tour schedule is very taxing. Playing literally every night, in different cities, over the course of two weeks can put a lot of strain on the body. You could tell at certain points they might have held back on certain notes. But honestly, I don’t think it hurt the show one bit.
There was a number of fans that told me they seen me rocking out in the photo pit area, especially to “Animosity” where I was singing and dancing my way around taking pictures. Honestly, how could you not do that with their music? It was a feel good moment though, as everyone said it was nice to see someone who loved their music, take the pictures too. The Warning family, is a very warm and welcoming one.
I also took the time to ask a fan by the name of Rod, what he thought of the show. Rod answered, “Awesome! Pau is a beast on drums”. I had to laugh, but I mean, he is not wrong.
The Warning, who have been touring practically this entire year, have proved across the world why they are here to stay. They toured with Muse earlier this year, just finished up their own headlining tour, and have a tour with Guns N Roses later in the year. The fans they have gained in the rock community support them for a reason. They are hard hitting powerhouse that have earned their spot they have now, and will continue to climb the ranks into stardom.
In case you missed it: we caught up with the band for an interview in July as well, so click here to enjoy reading that interview! Be sure to check out the photos below of the concert in Detroit:
This was an amazing concert! These ladies know how to connect with their fans and rock!