1984: The TR-808 Drum Machine

The Roland TR-808 drum machine enters the mainstream in Jonathan Demme’s 1984 Talking Heads movie Stop Making Sense. At 1:35 David Byrne greets the crowd and says “I got a tape I want to play”, and the actual machine at the mixing board sets the groove for "Psycho Killer".

The first drum machine was actually the hugely expensive Linn Drum Machine released in 1980. This was a pivotal moment in the history of music production, where electronics were being used more pervasively in a pop music that was taking on more of a DIY vibe.