Roland TR-808: the drum machine that changed music forever
Where would rock and roll be without the invention of the electric guitar? Once in a blue moon, an invention or new technology comes along which changes the cultural and creative landscape for evermore.
During the 1980s, it was the advent of the Roland TR-808 drum machine which blew open the doors to an entirely new world of creative expression in electronic music.
From electronic experimentation to acid house revolution, and even mainstream pop, the 808 has had a seemingly unavoidable presence within our record collections and listening habits for 45 years.
Following its introduction back in 1980, musicians of all styles, genres, and generations took naturally to its unique sound and application, even if it took a little while longer to hit the mainstream. Many drum machines attempted to follow in its wake, but there is still a kind of iconic, unparalleled charm surrounding the ‘808’ moniker, and rightly so.
Drum machines have a much more extensive history than you might assume. Although they came to prominence during the 1980s, what with the rise of hip-hop, electronic music, and dance culture, the origins of the technology dates back all the way to the 1930s.
Léon Theremin’s Rhythmicon allowed musicians to use complex rhythms and patterns that would be typically very complicated to achieve with traditional instruments. In the decades that followed this proto-drum machine, many more companies and individuals attempted to create their own take on the drum machine.
Where the introduction of the 808 differed from all of that competition was that it allowed users to create their own rhythms and beats, rather than relying solely on preset options. The 808 was one of the earliest programmable drum machines to hit the market, and its focus on accessibility and relative affordability set it apart from the rest of the niche, specialist, drum machine market at that time. Essentially, it put power directly into the hands of artists.
Initially, the 808 was a commercial failure, with the earliest adopters largely confined to the realms of experimental and electronic music, such as Yellow Magic Orchestra, who boast the first recorded use of the machine. However, two years after its introduction, Motown hero Marvin Gaye employed the services of an 808 for his sensual hit ‘Sexual Healing’, which helped to open artists’ eyes to its incredible adaptability.
“The TR-808 Rhythm Composer wasn’t just a drum machine, it was a spark that ignited a creative revolution,” Takeo Shirato, current head of Roland’s Electronic Instrument Business Division, shared. As the 1980s progressed, that creative revolution only intensified. The 808 was vital in the sound and development of old-school hip-hop, used by the likes of Run-DMC and Public Enemy among various others, but it was within dance music that its power really shone.
“Without the 808, the rhythms that shaped modern dance music and so many other genres might never have existed.”
Takeo Shirato,
Inevitably, the ability to create unique, futuristic, and repetitive rhythms made the 808 a key influence in the establishment of house and techno music. Its impact was so great that, without it, dance music and rave culture would be virtually unrecognisable. “From my earliest experiences exploring club music, its sound has been a constant thread,” Shirato affirmed.
Particularly in the UK, the 808 took root in the blossoming world of acid house thanks to outfits like 808 State, whose band name should give you an insight into just how essential the drum machine was to their sound. Rave anthems like ‘Pacific State’ cemented the 808 as a core element of that scene, and led countless artists, composers, and creatives to follow in its wake, armed with a TR-808.
Ultimately, the impact of the 808 cannot be contained to one genre or another; over the years, the sound of a Roland drum machine has popped up everywhere from the world of Motown to subversive experimental work. Its importance, not just as a tool but as a source of creative inspiration, cannot be overstated.
Today, 45 years on from the introduction of the Roland 808 drum machine, its legacy is still ongoing all over the world. Spanning across a multitude of genres and generations, the 808 is still the first port-of-call for an entire global community of creatives when it comes to creating distinctive, innovative, and entrancing electronic rhythms.
