New book Beat Gems traces the history of the drum machine
The Bjooks release features 100+ machines plus dives into the artists & engineers who used them
Bjooks has released Beat Gems: Drum Machines in Modern Music; a 336-page hardcover on the machines that arguably built electronic music and hip hop.
Written by London-based author Oli Freke, it features 100+ drum machines (covering 65+ in detail) across six decades, from clunky rhythm boxes to the studio tools producers still reach for today.
Brands that are mentioned include Roland, Akai, Korg, Yamaha, Wurlitzer, Ace Tone, Elka, Soma Laboratory, Erica Synths, and more.
"Musicians took these machines somewhere their makers never expected, and in doing so, changed music," reads the book's synopsis.
The book traces drum machines from early rhythm accompaniment tools like the Wurlitzer Side Man and Ace Tone Rhythm Ace FR-1 through programmable studio instruments including the LM-1, LinnDrum, and Akai MPC60.
It gives significant space to Roland's TR series, including the TR-808 and TR-909, machines closely tied to house, techno, hip hop, and electro. Coverage extends to lesser-known instruments too, including Italian auto-accompaniment units, rhythm-equipped mixers and radios, and 1990s grooveboxes.
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Beat Gems also profiles the people behind these machines, including inventors Roger Linn, Ikutaro Kakehashi, and Tadao Kikumoto, alongside artists such as Kraftwerk, Grandmaster Flash, Jeff Mills, and Jean-Michel Jarre.
Sections connect specific machines to recordings and studio techniques across disco, post-punk, and sampling-based genres, extending into current manufacturers.
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Each entry pairs studio photography with technical detail and artist context, so the machines read as tools with real fingerprints on them, not just specs.
Beat Gems joins Bjooks' catalogue of music tech titles, following Synth Gems 1 and The Minimoog Book.
Funded via Kickstarter after launching at Superbooth 2026, Beat Gems reached its funding goal within five hours; learn more about it here.
Amira Waworuntu is Mixmag Asia’s Managing Editor, follow her on Instagram.
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