Is hell about to freeze over? We thought the chances of Roland ever revisiting its TR-808 drum machine were about as slim as they could get, but in the video above, the company is teasing something called Aira, which it's billing as "the evolution of the TR-808 rhythm machine".
There are no official photos or specs - just a couple of Roland engineers discussing the concept behind the original TR-808, which was released in 1980, and confirming that they were surprised by the ways that musicians started using it.
The engineers close by saying: "But by now, musicians want new and exciting things. So the time has come to take the next step."
What that next step will be remains to be seen. But we know that it's coming, and it's coming soon.
UPDATE: An image of what appears to be the Roland Aira TR-08 drum machine has leaked online:
“Training a model based on the 13-year-old Brenda Lee, using original masters, was both a challenge and a creative breakthrough”: BT on the new Spanish version of Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree that was made possible by his SoundLabs AI MicDrop plugin
"Manipulate any audio source into a hauntingly immersive soundscape": SSL releases Halloween-themed free plugin X-Orcism II: Voices from the Crypt
