“Why fight when we just need some space sometimes?”
“Cloud nine!” says a perky, feminine voice as I started up a level of Angel Matrix’s Neon White in 2022. Just like the lightning-fast gameplay, the OST for the game, I realized, was penned by breakcore, drum-and-bass, electronic duo Machine Girl. I quickly became a fan of the eclectic duo’s music, as I spun the aforementioned soundtrack all summer of 2022, and also checked out Machine Girl’s vast discography a bit. I was only elated when it was announced that they had a new studio album coming, titled MG Ultra, via Wasserman Music.
What I like so much about Machine Girl is displayed across all of MG Ultra. They are breakcore, but also so much more. They venture into hardcore or punk but still deliver those sounds in an electronic, breakcore package. It’s more vibrant than you’d expect that combination to be, too. Take opener “Until I Die”, for example. It starts with an off-kilter, almost accordion-like sample, which then develops the classic synth sound that was the backbone of the Neon White OST. There’s too many moving parts to nail down everything, but the vocals are as advertised, as is, tinged with a hardcore delivery while also being lo-fi. The drums, as is typical with this sound, are high energy and quick. There are also multi-layered synths all over the backline. With this song, and basically the rest of the track listing, it never feels like too much, or overdone. Every little piece comes together for break core heaven. Machine Girl have basically perfected their sound, evidently. The bridge on this track is also fantastic, and it gets way more ethereal than I’ve personally heard from the duo.
I’m less into the album when the DnB sound is more chaotic, jumping scales erratically. In the same vein, the vocals can have less focus or direction as well. It’s by no means unlistenable, but it’s just a side of the album that I feel less engaged by. “Nu Nu Meta Phenomena” is an example of this, as well as “Sick!!!”. Though in the latter, the sci-fi, dreamy, vibey outro is absolute a high light, and I’ll take the hardstyle at the end, too. There are also a couple of efforts that feel a bit underbaked, even if they have good musical moments within them. That would include “Cicadas” and “Schizodipshit” which feel like sound vomit, lacking rhythm compared to the rest of the track listing. And although I wouldn’t’ say “Grindhouse” is underbaked, I would say it is more boring than I find a lot of the other tracks on MG Ultra.
Then comes “Just Because You Can” which is noticeably slower for many parts. There’s a piano sample that paces the beat as both the drums, and an electronic, effect fill out the sound. The ending is very Metroid Prime in a way that I think is mostly cool and caps the song with an eerie note. “Hot Lizard” is a pleasant piece of summery, DnB nu-metal. There’s even gang vocals to enhance that vibe. And during the chorus, the topline is very pop-punk. To top off what I think is a super strong track, it ends with a bass driven, funky and spacey outro. If there’s one for the playlist, it’s “Hot Lizard”.
“Motherfather” is an interesting track. It very much pulls from your kind of emo-hardcore mix that bands like Touche Amore can do, albeit with a unique production on it. The other part of the song is this whimsical, playful, and quaint beat for the verse work. The two pieces don’t go together, in my option, but the track still has legs as a strong cut despite the whiplash. Perhaps the most fun track does the whimsical and fun sound with expertise, and that is “Ass2Mars”. The production is still top notch and experimental, and there’s a very unique type of distortion over the vocals. The track also has a couple sections where it goes very much lo-fi hip-hop, which I regularly love and listen to, so that made me fall for the track as well.
Machine Girl is a group that I cannot champion enough. They are such a unique mix of all the genres I’ve mentioned, while putting out music that is greater then the sum of those parts. That’s just a testament to the duo’s creativity, vision, and musical ear. If I want to listen to DnB music with a heavier spin, Machine Girl is absolutely my choice. You even have other projects if you want maybe a softer style. And though MG Ultra, as well as their discography overall, has tracks I’d rather skip, their music is still amazing, and MG Ultra is no exception.
8/10
MG Ultra drops today through Future Classic and you can order the album here.