Electronic music emerged along with technology evolution, experimenting with synthesisers, samplers, drum machines and much more. It could be argued that the roots of Electronic Dance Music lie within the sonic experimentations of the world-renowned BBC Radiophonic Workshop.
Certainly, the earliest thing that resembles electronic music as we know it might well have emanated from within those hallowed walls. Delia Derbyshire, famed for her Doctor Who theme, was herself pushing boundaries with synthesisers, creating an otherworldly sound few could match.
Either old or new electronic music, they all have something in common which is the Roland TR-808 sounds that can still be heard in dozens of records today.
Roland's 1980s series of drum machines and rhythm composers are regarded as some of the most iconic instruments ever created – their use across a range of genres is legendary, in particular, the many forms of dance and electronic music in which they appear.
The TR-606 Drumatix and the TB-303 Bass Line were originally intended as accompaniment for traditional instruments and performers, but they were soon being used in their own right for their unique sound.
The TR-808 and 909 provide hallmark sounds on thousands of records, and the simple, step-time programming techniques these machines used has translated into modern software where pattern based instruments are featured in Reason, Logic, Fruity Loops and many more music creation programs.
Leight ( 2016 ) argues that “it's almost impossible to imagine the modern musical landscape without the distinctive sounds of the Roland TR-808 drum machine.
The great thing about the 808 is that it allowed anyone to be able to create a beat within seconds without special musical training and it allowed people to get into the craft of music production. It was all programmable and easy to use with a very distinctive sound and that’s what they loved about it.
“The Roland TR-808 drum machine was intended to give studio musicians a simple tool for making backbeats. Instead, it kickstarted a revolution.” ( 808, 2016 )
However, lots of people were sceptical and reticent about it because it didn’t sound like real drums, some of them maybe even considered it a toy, but it was definitely intriguing for most. It wasn’t only about the sounds, it was about the rhythm and groove it was giving to the tracks and it was all at the fingertips of the creator.
“This machine has a very distinctive sound that has spawned countless imitations and emulations. From a GUI point of view, though, it added an intuitive feel to rhythm programming/creation by graphically showing the progress of the beat. One drawback, though, is that the machine was not performable in the sense that others like the Linn Drum were (on the Linn DM-1 you could play the pads in time to a metronome and layer the instruments). On the TR-808 you could deselect the rhythmic position of a hit but not actually play it. (Rincon, 2012, p87-88)
Some notable tracks that used Roland TR-808 are Afrika Bambaataa – Planet Rock,
Marvin Gaye – Sexual Healing, Shannon – Let the music play, Planet Patrol – Play at your Own Risk, which were the pioneers in making tracks on the 808 and the way it was used creatively amazed the music scene. “Planet Rock started a new movement in the music, a movement headed by the 808 and one that would mark the beginning of electronic music as we know it today” (808, 2016)
RnB, Pop, Techno, House, Dance and many other genres started to be written on 808 drums. It was a small piece of machine that could be used anywhere, either in the studio or at home. Because of it, the DIY approach has grown and the need of a studio wasn’t primarily in order to make music. People could make more affordable home studios without the need of a recording room with expensive microphones and a drummer. It was all there on the knobs and buttons of the 808.
The low end of the kick drum and its relationship with the snare and hi-hats made its own unique sonic space within these music genres. However, as the sounds were very easy to tweak, they could be reshaped in various unique forms.
“Initially, producers focused on the 808 as a source of percussion. But by tuning the drum sound to full decay, Rick Rubin discovered that the 808 could be used to create bass lines. This technique was taken to new levels by the rap group Original Concept, and then by Miami Bass producers.” ( Leight, 2016 )
There was a point where all the records had to have the 808 sound in them in order to be successful because it was so recognisable and made people dance in the clubs. Also, it helped in the development of new genres, because it was the era of sampling as well and producers were sampling other tracks and put them over the 808 drums in a twisted way.
Sadly, the 808 was a commercial failure and it was in production for only 3 years but it made enough buzz in the music scene to get into history.
Its tumultuous journey made it unique and demanded on a large scale and its definitive sound can’t be confused or replaced with anything in our days, but the truth is that its original form is constantly changing along with the development of technology and with the multitude of creative producers that want to make it a unique sound for themselves.