POLYMATHS
Profiles, conversations, and the long arc of the founder-artist cohort.
Published 2026-04-18 · 6 pieces
Founders & Frequencies
2026-04-18
Issue 02 widens the frame. The lead conversation, a long-form profile of Imogen Heap, sits next to historical pieces on Wendy Carlos and Brian Eno, a portrait of Rivers Cuomo's engineered career, and a survey of founder-owned record labels.
The cohort we set out to cover is bigger than the launch issue could acknowledge. This issue is our attempt to be honest about its size.
We will be back in three months with Issue 03.
Contents
6 pieces
The Imogen Heap Equation — Where Music Tech Becomes Music
Two decades into her career, Imogen Heap is the cleanest single example of the founder-artist model. The Mi.Mu gloves, the Endel collaboration, and *Sparks* are the same project asked from three different angles.
By Vera Sokolov
Brian Eno's Quiet Decades of Founding Companies
The producer most listeners associate with Roxy Music and the ambient catalog has spent forty years on the company-building side of the practice as well. The companies are quieter than the records, on purpose.
By Linus Embry
The Quiet Boom in Founder-Owned Record Labels
A new generation of working operators is funding boutique labels alongside their day businesses. The model is older than it looks. Five working examples and what each is doing differently.
By Editorial Team
Wendy Carlos and the First Synthesizer Album That Sold a Company
*Switched-On Bach* sold a million copies in 1968 and turned the Moog synthesizer from a research curiosity into a working musician's instrument. It is the canonical example of an album as commercial vehicle for a piece of hardware.
By Vera Sokolov
Rivers Cuomo's Spreadsheets — Engineering a Career as a Band
The Weezer frontman has been quietly running his songwriting practice as a database for almost thirty years. The system is invisible on the records, which is the point.
By Linus Embry
Andrew Rollins, Also Known as ROGA: A Conversation
A working AI operator based in Chiang Mai released a debut album this year under the name ROGA. We sat down with him to ask why someone shipping technical work would also choose to make a record.
By Linus Embry