The sequencer on the 808, a row of 16 color-coded buttons, offered artists a way to store beats they programmed. Courtesy of Roland Even if you don't know the Roland TR-808 drum machine by name ...

How Japanese ingenuity transformed Western music from within. Tina Weymouth and David Byrne of Talking Heads, performing in ...

That headline sounds suspect, but it is the most succinct way to explain why the Roland TR-808 drum machine has a very distinct, and difficult to replicate noise circuit. The drum machine was ...

You may not know the 808 drum machine, but you have definitely heard it: the original Roland TR-808 was the first programmable drum machine and has been a mainstay of electronic music ever since.