By KENDALL LARADE //
The American electronic duo Machine Girl, often stylized machin3gir1, brazenly mashes death metal, digital hardcore, footwork, jungle, and breakcore in an explosion of sonic intensity. DJ Producer Matt Stephenson began the project as a solo endeavor in 2012, during his senior year of college in New York City. WLFGRL, their debut full-length album, gained major success online following its release in 2014. In 2017 drummer Sean Kelly joined Stephenson to create …Because I’m Young Arrogant and Hate Everything You Stand For. The album submerges the group further into the punk genre, in keeping with the group’s evolution into a kind of digital metal. Kelly’s unrestrained drum work adds another dimension to Matt Stephenson’s extraterrestrially apocalyptic auditory vision. Many journalists attempt to categorize the duo as industrial, although Stephenson prefers the phrase “fucked-up electronic punk”, insisting they don’t listen to industrial artists and aren’t trying to cater to that world.
The project’s inspiration is equal parts video games and excessively gory horror films. Their moniker is borrowed from the hyper-violent Japanese action flick titled The Machine Girl. Gender is something Stephenson has spoken openly about “feeling a little bit of fluidity with”. The Machine Girl pseudonym represents the “feminine energy” Stephenson wants his performance persona to embody. Machine Girl released their first video game soundtrack, Neon White, in 2022. The same year, they embarked on a tour with experimental rock group The Garden. Sunday, December 11th Machine Girl will be headlining their own show at the Black Cat. Purchase your tickets here.
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