Synth historian Oli Freke will spend big on a good bicycle
He’s covered the tech industry for over 18 years and knows a thing or two about synths.Oli Freke is a musician and journalist whose works have appeared in Sound on Sound, The Quietus, and Mixmag. This has included using math to explore the melodic potential of the Western 12-tone scale and deep dives on effects plug-ins. He’s even written a book tracing the evolution of the synthesizer from 1963 through 1995, charting the change from analog to digital and back.His new project is Beat Gems, a coffee-table visual history of drum machines from publisher Bjooks.
- ▪He’s covered the tech industry for over 18 years and knows a thing or two about synths.Oli Freke is a musician and journalist whose works have appeared in Sound on Sound, The Quietus, and Mixmag.
- ▪This has included using math to explore the melodic potential of the Western 12-tone scale and deep dives on effects plug-ins.
- ▪He’s even written a book tracing the evolution of the synthesizer from 1963 through 1995, charting the change from analog to digital and back.His new project is Beat Gems, a coffee-table visual history of drum machines from publisher Bjooks
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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
EntertainmentCloseEntertainmentPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All EntertainmentReportCloseReportPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All ReportBooksCloseBooksPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All BooksSynth historian Oli Freke will spend big on a good bicycleHe’s hard at work on the upcoming Beat Gems, a gorgeous coffee-table book about the history of drum machines.by Terrence O'BrienCloseTerrence O'BrienWeekend EditorPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Terrence O'BrienJul 25, 2026, 3:15 PM…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Verge.