‘The most exciting, dynamic new band in a long time’: Meet Hot Machine, Australia’s next rock’n’roll stars
Meet Hot Machine, Melbourne’s all-woman rock’n’roll band being acclaimed as the next big thing in Australia’s rock scene.
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Cherry-red guitars are carefully preset on stage, treated with a tenderness that does not match the kind of music they will soon produce.
The Saturday night crowd at The Toff in Melbourne’s CBD is buzzing, its patrons nursing cold beers as they eagerly await the entertainment.
In the green room, the five band members of Hot Machine touch up lipstick, discuss last minute details of their setlist and pick over a bowl of calamari and chips.
Then an unexpected moment. As they ready themselves for a heavy rock set on stage, they break into their pre-show ritual, belting out Olivia Newton-John’s Hopelessly Devoted
To You.
Once the ballad is finished, the girls huddle around in a circle and unleash a wild, unified yell while shadow boxing – and they’re ready to go on stage.
Dressed in black leather, leopard print, crimson, fishnet tights and chunky high-heeled boots, they are the vision of rock and roll.
Sammy O’Keefe, 31, Jess Turner, 26, Sarsha Marsden, 24, Jess Maio, 26 and Brittany Britten, 36, all have normal day jobs, but at night they are Hot Machine: Melbourne’s hottest new rock band.
When the group starts playing, an electric thrill spreads throughout the room.
It’s the moment, perhaps, people realise they will one day tell their kids they got to see Hot Machine play at The Toff, back before they were selling out arenas.
With the exception of a crowd-pleasing cover of Shoot to Thrill by AC/DC, Hot Machine’s setlist is comprised of original songs. A portion of the crowd has never heard them before, but their catchy lyrics and melodies soon have the whole room belting out their anthemic choruses in unison.
It’s hard to believe Hot Machine only formed in 2023.
When Marsden moved to Melbourne, she met O’Keefe and they started jamming on bass and drums for a bit of fun. In a casual rehearsal, both girls were shocked to discover that O’Keefe could actually sing – really well, in fact.
They decided she would make the move to the mic and Marsden would move to rhythm guitar. Things were starting to take shape.
Bassist Britten serendipitously entered the scene shortly after, then the girls slid into the Instagram DMs of drummer Maio to see if she was up for the challenge. It was a no-brainer for her. Once Maio had joined the team, she brought Turner into the fold – an old school friend who she thought would make the perfect lead guitarist.
Just like that, Hot Machine was born.
In only three months, they had a setlist ready to perform.
“I’ve been in several bands before and I’ve never seen a band grow so quickly – it felt really surreal to start with,” Maio says.
“Our trajectory has developed so quickly and naturally. We just clicked, there’s no other way to describe it.”
It’s that nebulous quality of “clicking” that gives Hot Machine their zing, the invisible connection between musicians that elevates a good band to an amazing one.
They twigged they might be on to something special while rehearsing for their very first concert.
“We were playing for two friends in a little dress rehearsal. It was literally just an audience of two, but I really feel that was when we turned to each other and went: ‘Wait, we actually have something here’,” Turner says.
“It was like we all stopped and realised we actually sounded pretty good.”
The momentum picked up quickly. Not many bands can say they played their third ever gig at the Corner Hotel, but Hot Machine were turning heads from the very beginning.
By connecting with bands like The Southern River Band, the Psychedelic Porn Crumpets and Kingswood, Hot Machine have been afforded precious performance opportunities – and they’ve made it their mission to accept each one they’re offered.
“We’ve met so many amazing bands and musicians along the way who have respected us, and been kind enough to put our name forward,” Turner says.
“As an all-female rock’n’roll band, we’ve been supported by some really beautiful and really respectful men who have helped us to grow.”
One of the most significant names throwing support behind Hot Machine is James Young, owner and manager of Cherry Bar in Melbourne.
As a man who has rubbed shoulders with Rage Against the Machine, Brian May of Queen, Iggy Pop, Oasis, Lady Gaga and the Red Hot Chili Peppers – to name a few – he’s a hard man to shock.
Yet, Young was in “total awe” the first time he saw Hot Machine play, even inviting himself backstage to meet them “like a screaming groupie”.
“Hot Machine made my jaw drop that night. I just had to meet them,” Young says. “I never go backstage, that’s very rare for me, but I knew I had to book them the moment I saw them.
“They’re one of the most exciting, dynamic new bands I’ve seen for a very long time.
“I get this feeling about once every eight to 10 years, and Hot Machine are the real thing. Mark my words, the people want rock’n’roll and they are it.”
He was so impressed, he offered them his highest compliment: a headlining position at Cherry Bar’s annual – and very popular – Cherry Fest.
Part of what makes Hot Machine special, Young says, is their unfailing authenticity.
“I don’t know how else to put it, they are rock’n’roll. They live the lifestyle, they’re going to gigs even when they’re not performing, they’re among the Melbourne music scene, and they also have the look.
“Let’s be real, everyone wants to be a rock star but it’s just not possible. What separates the true rockers from the fakers is the commitment, and there is nothing about Hot Machine that is fake or manufactured.
“People are ready for true rock’n’roll to make a comeback, and I think it’s a reaction to all the AI these days.
“Everyone is sick of the fake stuff, and there’s nothing you can fake with rock. It’s live and authentic with real instruments.”
Apart from their performance quality, Young says what could make them go far is their “incredible work ethic”. “Every time I’ve invited them to play at Cherry Bar they’ve said yes, which shows their drive.
“It doesn’t matter to them whether they’re making money, they’re doing it because they love it – and that’s rock’n’roll.”
Rock’n’roll, as Young explains, is not a genre or something to be bought – it’s a way of life, a state of mind. It’s not a costume.
“Get out and see them,” he says. “I promise you, you will not regret it.”
The girls describe their sound as “classic rock’n’roll” with one simple rule: “It has to be fun.” They draw inspiration from The Runaways, Joan Jett, Girlschool and Black Sabbath.
“We’re always striving to make it so that people just headbang and have fun,” Marsden says.
“We’re definitely a bit cheeky, a bit fiery. The Runaways were a huge inspiration for us, for sure – they really influenced us to have fun on stage.
“It was always my dream in high school to start a band like The Runaways, and year after year I was waiting for a new band like them to come out. Got tired of waiting, I guess,” she laughs.
As Britten says: “The premise of rock’n’roll is to have a fun and silly time.
“Rock’n’roll teaches you to not take life so seriously,” she says. The others nod in agreement.
“Half the time, we’re actually laughing on stage because we’re just having the best time.
“And when we’re up there having the time of our lives, it gives the audience permission to also have a silly, fun time – so everyone is feeding off each other in that way,” says O’Keefe.
Hot Machine began as an after-work hobby, but when the girls got invited to go on tour in Japan with bands The D4 and Guitar Wolf, things started getting real very quickly.
All of a sudden, pursuing the dream became reliant on very un-rock’n’roll-like concepts, such as taking annual leave.
“It does get quite stressful, but I think a lot of us have pretty supportive workplaces, so we’re very lucky,” Britten says.
“I think they mostly understand that this is a big part of our life, so we’ve all been able to make it work.
“But don’t get me wrong, it’s a lot to balance.” Britten emphasises her statement with raised eyebrows, a laugh and a slow nod.
While the girls are intent on taking the opportunities as they come, the fiery rockers are not aiming low and they’re not without direction.
As Bon Scott sang in 1976: “I wanna be a star, I can see my name in lights.” In 2020, Brian Johnson sang: “A shot in the dark beats a walk in the park.”
In other words, the girls know where they want to be, they’re prepared to do the work, and they’re ready to give it their best shot.
In the short term, Hot Machine wants to “travel and keep writing music”, but ultimately, they want to be playing the stages of festivals like Glastonbury, Coachella and Lollapalooza.
Some might put it down to good fortune and good timing, but Hot Machine’s swift rise has been no coincidence. It’s extraordinary how hard lucky people work.
“We’ve been blessed with opportunity, but make no mistake – we work really, really hard,” Turner says.
“We work so hard. We practise, we’re at rehearsal, we’re songwriting, we’re co-ordinating photo shoots, we’re always doing this, that and the other.
“So, yes, we’ve had extraordinary opportunities, but we deserve it.”
As Young identifies, there’s a hunger among music fans for something fresh, a yearning for authentic rock’n’roll that goes deeper than surface level desire.
The same way that the world was ready for the pioneer rockers of the 20th century, people are itching for exactly what Hot Machine is selling – whether they know it or not.
They are five formidable, talented women dishing up filthy, headbanging, face-melting rock with a look and sound that is simultaneously nostalgic and never before seen.
They work hard. They love what they do.
The world is ready for a band like Hot Machine.
Oh, and if AC/DC need a support act, the girls are ready to clear their schedules.
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