Affordable Roland drum machines and the TB-303 bass synthesizer were the defining production tools of Chicago house

Chicago house music was made possible by a generation of affordable Japanese electronic instruments, especially those from Roland Corporation. The TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines, TR-707 and TR-727, and TB-303 bass synthesiser were the core toolkit. Jesse Saunders’ pioneering ‘On and On’ (1984) used a Roland TR-808, a Korg Poly-61 synthesiser, and a Roland TB-303 bass synthesiser. The TB-303 was later used by Phuture to create acid house with its squelching, resonant sweep. These machines were accessible because they were marketed as affordable home recording aids but had been commercially unsuccessful, making them available secondhand cheaply. This democratisation of production tools is foundational to understanding how bedroom producers in Chicago could self-release original music.

Examples

TR-808: Jesse Saunders ‘On and On’, Marshall Jefferson ‘Move Your Body’. TR-909: most Trax/DJ International productions. TB-303 as acid: Phuture ‘Acid Tracks’. TR-707: Phuture ‘Acid Tracks’ drum track. Roland Juno synths: chords and pads.

Assessment

Name four Roland machines that defined the Chicago house sound and give a canonical track associated with each. Explain why these machines were affordable to bedroom producers in the early 1980s.