"You Don't Need Good Rhythm to Sound Real Mean"

"The first commercially produced drum machine, the Wurlitzer Side Man, was made in America, and it has had a democratizing effect on music. If you can 'hold the whole band in your hand,' as one of the advertising campaigns in the book suggests, music production becomes more accessible, no longer limited only to those with big contracts and fancy studios. (Especially if machines are affordable: the Roland-808, 'found few early admirers,' so 'Roland ceased production,' prices 'dropped considerably,' the 808 found 'its way into the hands of young hip-hop producers,' and then it went on to be 'embraced by ... just about every genre.') Art has always valued the contributions of the novice or the innocent, who can create without any preconceived ideas about what he or she 'should' be creating. The drum machine allows for that wide-eyed, unknowing experimentation."

Elias Leight at The Atlantic looks at Joe Mansfield 's new book, Beat Box: A Drum Machine Obsession.