by emma schoors
photo by danielle ernst
Monterrey sister trio The Warning return today with their knockout fourth studio album Keep Me Fed, which ensures their continued standing as one of the strongest, most undeterred rock outfits of the decade.
Daniela, Paulina, and Alejandra Villarreal Vélez broke onto the metal scene in 2013 with a rocking cover of Metallica’s “Enter Sandman,” which racked up over 20 million views on YouTube and earned the sisters praise not just from millions of new fans, but the band themselves, with guitarist Kirk Hammett hailing Paulina as a drummer who “kicks maximum ass.” It’s been over a decade since that video turned all eyes to The Warning, and they’ve all but squandered the opportunities it presented to them. The sisters — guitarist Daniela “Dany,” drummer Paulina “Pau,” and bassist Alejandra “Ale” — have since released two EPs, four albums, and recorded a whopping fifteen music videos to support their material.
On Keep Me Fed, they hope to reach fans on an even deeper level than previously imagined. “[This album] is the result of us letting ourselves go, and writing stuff we didn’t even know we had to express,” Dany says. “Our biggest wish is that the people who listen will also find themselves and what they need in our music.”
We had the chance to sit down with the band to discuss Keep Me Fed, their upcoming Canadian tour with Evanescence and Halestorm, what keeps them motivated, and their dream collaboration!
Thank you for joining us! Before we get into your brand new record Keep Me Fed, we’d love to know what sparked the inspiration for its lead single, “MORE.” Why did you choose this track as the first glimpse into the album?
Dany: “To be completely honest with you, it was the song that we wrote and recorded first! We felt it was time to let people know we were working on new music and we were preparing a new album for everybody as well. And ‘MORE’ was such a fun song to write… we also had a focus on making a cool song for our participation in a Pepsi campaign in Mexico, and we are proud to say that ‘MORE’ was the focus song of the whole campaign in 2023.”
Considering you were all so young when your “Enter Sandman” cover went mega viral, you must’ve grown up immersed in music. When did you first decide to pick up instruments and form the band, and what types of music did you find yourselves drawn to early on?
Ale: “You are correct! We grew up in a very musical household. We would see live concerts on DVD all the time and some type of music would always be playing around the house. We grew up listening to a lot of Queen, Muse, Elton John, Billy Joel, Pink Floyd, AC/DC and many others. Even though our parents are not musicians, they are very much music lovers. We started playing the piano and learning to play classical music, then the Rock Band changed everything. We played that video game non-stop and it was the inspiration for what we do today! Still at that point, each of us did our own thing for a while until the fateful day we decided to play a song together for fun… safe to say, we loved it.”
What significance does the new record’s title, Keep Me Fed, hold to you all?
Pau: “The title Keep Me Fed represents this constant need of being fed by something, anything really, whether it be from social media, music, comedy, reading. It represents how nowadays living a single second without consuming something is unthinkable, and the need for constant stimulation is equally expected of everyone.”
You described another of the album’s fantastic singles, “Burnout,” as about “being tired of being dragged down by someone who just stopped trying in life.” On the contrary, what keeps you motivated to try, especially in the band?
Dany: “Love this question! There’s lots of things that motivate us, but specifically I think it’s the people around us: our parents who support us and work so hard for our well being and happiness as well as our success, our whole team that have stuck with us through every rehearsal and show around the world and always inspire us to be better, every single person who listens to our music and shows up to rock out with us in our shows, and especially each other. As sisters, we know we have our backs in this crazy and incredible journey. We are very grateful for all of these things that give us motivation, because following your dreams is hard and it will make you work harder than you’ve ever done before, so we’re lucky.”
How does a typical The Warning songwriting session go? Do you start with lyrics and lay down instruments from there, or vice versa?
Ale: “It depends a lot on the song and where the inspiration to write it came from, but Pau who is the main song starter in the band, pulls a lot of inspiration from visual stuff. She will usually have a theme and a mood board to accompany it and then sit in the piano. Sometimes music comes out first, sometimes lyrics… sometimes both at the same time. We all are very involved in the songwriting process and the end result. Rockafying songs that are born as piano ballads is always fun.”
So many of rock’s greatest groups have included siblings — Van Halen, Allman Bros, Kings of Leon, AC/DC, the list goes on. Why do you think that is? Is there an element to performing with family that gives the music extra meaning?
Pau: “We can’t speak for all of those bands, but being siblings in a band together for us is the coolest thing ever. We’ve always been very close, and music is all about sharing feelings and ideas in a very special way. To have the opportunity to do that with the people who understand you and love you the most is definitely a blessing. Plus, you will have the most unfiltered honesty that siblings have [laughs].”
Later this year, you’ll join Evanescence and Halestorm for a string of live dates in Canada! What are some essential items you keep with you on tour?
Dany: “Yes, we can’t wait to be on that tour! Essentials for tour for us are… now don’t laugh, but tortillas [laughs]. We travel with tortillas everywhere. As good Mexicans, we need some quesadillas for breakfast, and it helps a lot to have something that reminds us of home, especially since we are away for very long periods of time.”
You’ve also performed alongside Foo Fighters, Muse, Royal Blood, Guns N’ Roses and more. What’s the best advice you’ve been given by an artist you’ve played with?
Pau: “We have, and every single one of these experiences have been amazing. On the Muse tour we received advice that said ‘always be kind,’ and yes, the most amazing thing these performances have shown us is the kindness of all the people that make a band shine, whether it’s the artist themselves or all of their crew. We hope we can be a band like all of them and show the same kindness to the new band of the next generation when the time comes.”
What are some of the main themes on Keep Me Fed? Maybe a message you’d like listeners to take away at the end of it?
Dany: “Keep Me Fed is the result of us letting ourselves go, and writing stuff we didn’t even know we had to express. It was an album of a lot of self-discovery, as well as letting ourselves have fun writing our songs. Our biggest wish is that the people who listen will also find themselves and what they need in our music. Let Keep Me Fed be a safe space to let yourself feel what you need to feel.”
Finally, who are some artists you’d love to collaborate or tour with in the future?
Pau: “Well, we haven’t collaborated much as a band, but we’ve had so much fun on the ones we’ve had! The Metallica Blacklist project with Alessia Cara was an absolute blast, and we’re participating on a song with Band-Maid on their new upcoming album. We love sharing the creative process with other artists and in the process enrich ours and open our minds to new ways of songwriting. If we were to shoot the rocket to the moon, we’d say we would love to collaborate with Muse. That would be a dream come true, let’s manifest it!”