All-female Aussie rock band stuns, while Victorian gravedigger reveals wild career change

A Melbourne-based all-female band are bringing back leather jackets and spandex as they put Aussie hard rock back on the radar.

A Melbourne-based all-female band are bringing back leather jackets and spandex as they put Aussie hard rock back on the radar.

Citing influencers like The Runaways, Motorhead and even Black Sabbath, Hot Machine are taking their explosive brand of rock to a global audience, having toured Japan late last year.

Comprised of Sammy O’Keefe (vocals), Sarsha Marsden (guitar), Jess Turner “JT” (guitar), Brittany Britten (bass), and Jess Maio (drums), the band formed in 2023 and has created a buzz in Melbourne due to their high-octane live shows.

news.com.au caught a glimpse of them at a special event for Fender guitars, Mod Shop: Modified in Melbourne, a one-night-only VIP showcase event at the SA1NT facility in Fitzroy, a warehouse which is normally a motorcycle repair shop, as well as a clothing retailer and even a gym.

Hot Machine are on the rise.

It’s the perfect spot for a leather-clad rock band to play and Hot Machine didn’t disappoint.

Speaking to news.com.au before the show they spoke of their highlights as a band so far, including the release of their 2024 EP titled Leather and Steel and their tour in Japan.

“In Japan, they love Aussie rock and they love females,” said Turner. “They go nuts over there.”

“They really support girls over there too,” said Marsden.

They said that, as an all-girl outfit, things can be tough.

“It’s been tough, and good. It goes both ways I guess,” said Maio. “It’s a male-dominated scene normally but we’ve also felt really supported.

They played at a Fender event in Melbourne

“Not a lot of female acts are doing this type of sound in Melbourne so people are getting behind which is cool. But, it is hard. It’s a bit of a boys’ club out there.”

Not to be deterred they are determined to bring their “good time party rock’n’ roll” vibes to the masses.

Aussie gravedigger’s incredible career change

Hot Machine weren’t the only cool thing happening at the event in Melbourne last week.

The evening featured a Modified Live exhibit featuring on-site guitar works with famed industry techs Michael Harron (Harron Custom Guitars) and Warwicke Newman (Tone Revival Engineering).

news.com.au caught up with Mr Harron who, ostensibly, has a very cool job setting up and customising guitars for major bands so they are perfect to play.

He said it all started when he was 16 and took his guitar to a workshop to be modified.

“They overcharged me for a bunch of stuff I didn’t ask for. Classic,” he said. “And from then on, I vowed never to let anyone touch my guitar.

“I was a gravedigger at the time, so I was burying people during the day and then coming home to work on guitars at night.

“It came to the point where I could keep going with the grave digging and making money, but it was making me miserable, or I could pursue my passion. So I quit and never looked back.”

Michael Harron has a bloody cool job.

Fifteen years later he is still living that passion and has made a name for himself by taking on crazy structural modifications and paint jobs for guitars that people used to turn their noses up at. He also has a masterclass in guitar mods that he takes on the road around Australia.

A career-defining moment for him was the moment his favourite band Parkway Drive sent him 16 guitars to repair before recording a new album.

“I blacked out the next two weeks and managed to get everything done,” he said. “I don’t often look back on things that I’ve done. I try to keep my head forward, but that was a big one for me.”

You can find out more about his business Harron Custom Guitars here.

Fender’s event was held to celebrate its new range of Player II Modified guitars, which you can learn more about here.