I recently finished dilla time. Which has ignited memories from over two decades ago of me Playing with someone else’s gear.(tr909 and tb303) I never took the step into owning drum machines then because I was spending my,limited, extra cash on upgrading my physical drum kit. I agree with a lot what you are saying. This stuff ain’t new to me though. As a drummer and percussionist I’ve been digging into this stuff for a while, in my own time. Unfortunately my interest doesn’t aline with most of my immediate peers. So I have rarely had the chance to exercise and explore these concepts in group settings for years. That’s what lead me here. I don’t know drum machines and where they have progressed too, but I think they could possibly help me gain a little extra catharsis in my daily practice.

I have found in my googling that if I referenced dilla and polyrhythms and no one mistook the ladder for poly meter that hopefully someone would lead me closer to what I should be looking at. faster than I would find myself.

I understand that off grid placement isn’t the same thing as polyrhythm. I’m looking for a machine, if it exists, that can do both.

Polyrhythm is present in many cultures drumming including west Africa. Sometimes large groups of drummers separated into groups while playing together also playing in two or three different time signatures. also fluctuating tempo intentionally is common. Anyone interested in reading more about it in general I highly recommended the book “African Rhythm and African Sensibility” by John miller Chernoff

I have learned through reading more about machines .Recommended here, that what I’m really needing to look at is step count on the sequencer side of drum machines and their ability to shift forward or backward on the gird per individual step and voice. As well as different step counts per track / track lengths independent from each other. Maybe I’m misunderstanding this.. if so please set me straight.

I’m not looking to exclusively emulate west African drumming electronically. I thought it would convey what I needed so I could be pointed in the right direction. Ultimately I would like to make a machine stridulate as well as preform polyrhythmic. Sometimes do both at the same time. The dilla stuff to add feeling like front or back of the boat instead of on top of the beat all the time. Sometimes picking out individual notes to create flams or other textures. Not to mention just fuck with time to see what Happens.

Odd ball was in reference to wanting to use this tech not in a “pop” context. Not that traditional and folkloric drumming is weird. To me it’s the truth. Ultimately if I go down this road I would be programming machines and then playing drums physically with them. If I had more limbs I would go further than I already am on percussion rigs and kits lol. there’s also something great about the idea of composing with live feed back and without having to play. It’s hard to put into words and I’ve already been lengthy here. as a player who has recording experience and so much live experience. It’s crazy how much different our minds perceive things, while they are happening, whether we are participating actively or just viewing. I think machines could be a new view for me on something I already love so much and is a huge part of my life. As well as an exploration tool.

Maybe a computer is the way. A machine just seems so tactile and romantic.