“MG Ultra” Might Be An Understatement: Machine Girl at Soundwell

The room was dripping in sweat and Machine Girl hadn’t even stepped foot on stage.

On Dec. 4, Soundwell was sold out for Machine Girl’s “MG Ultra” tour, and what an experience it was. Crowd surfing, mosh pits and humid air all factored into a loud and colorful evening. 

“It’s a Mutual Love”

Presented by Live Nation Events, Machine Girl made their stop in Salt Lake City on the last leg of their tour. With support from Kill Alters and Lightning Bolt, both openers built up a maximum attitude, followed by the divas themselves. 

From start to finish, they did not hold back. The group, particularly Matt Stephenson, fed off the adrenaline from the room and only heightened audience reactions. Whatever was in the air, fueled the night’s artistic bliss. The band played through crowd favorites such as, “Nu Nu Meta Phenomena,” “Athoth a Go!! Go!!,” “Schizodipshit,” “Psychic Attack” and many others. The range and instrumentation were unworldly and incredibly progressive. A fan in the audience exclaimed that the experience shared with Stephenson and the rest of the band was “ethereal.”

Machine Girl’s sound can be described in many ways– and genrephobic isn’t one of them. It test the waters of many genres raging from rave, grindcore, punk, industrial and electronic. Since their entrance into the industry with their 2014 album, “Wlfgrl,” Machine Girl has come a long way, gathering a large fanbase in the underground, hardcore scene.

It’s Hot in Salt Lake City

Throughout the set there were breaks between when Stephenson whipped out his guitar and each time he did, you knew it was going to be good. I recall a moment when there was a large pause in vocals and he went down and shot up quickly as the beat dropped as if it were a resurrection. Guitar in hand.

Stephenson introduced “Dance in the Fire,” exclaiming, “This one’s about dancing in flames and that’s what it feels like right now.” This could not have been more true, but he persisted in jumping around and racing across the stage as if nothing could hurt him.

As the show continued, the heat just kept rising. Stephenson broke out into the crowd and surfed while singing through “Schizodipshit.” Given his heightened character, it felt as if he was preaching to the choir, which led him to proceed to climb the Soundwell structure. The man was feral. The energy climbed higher and higher – even higher than Stephenson – and as the song came to an end, Stephenson exclaimed, “Never miss upper body.”

“You Don’t Need a Religious Awakening. That’s Overrated.”

As the show neared the closing act, the crowd cheered for one more song. From this, the band entered the stage one by one, introducing each other. It was very dramatic and a fitting end to an eventful evening.

Check out Machine Girl on all their socials here. You can also listen to their latest album, “MG Ultra” now!