Infinitely Losing My Edge
Yeah, I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
The kids are coming up from behind.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids from Malawi and from Milan.
But I was there.
I was there in 1975.
I was there at the first Throbbing Gristle show in London.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids whose footsteps I hear when they get on the decks.
I'm losing my edge to the internet seekers who can tell me every member of every good group from 1963 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and Salvador.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Paris kids in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered nineties.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
I can hear the footsteps every night on the decks.
But I was there.
I was there in 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine started up his first band.
I told him, "Don't do it that way. You'll never make a dime."
I was there.
I was the first guy playing UT to the grunge kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
Everybody thought I was crazy.
We all know.
I was there.
I was there.
I've never been wrong.
But I'm losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent.
And they're actually really, really nice.
I'm losing my edge.
I heard you have a compilation of every good song ever done by anybody.
Every great song by Sun Ra. All the underground hits.
All Erasure tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Barracudas record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a güiro and a harpsichord and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Swans record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a 808.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought a rhodes.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Spandau Ballet,
Sonic Youth,
Soul II Soul,
Girls At Our Best!,
The Move,
Lou Reed,
The Trojans,
Bill Wells,
Kevin Saunderson,
the Association,
Spoonie Gee,
Skaos,
Public Image Ltd.,
Warren Ellis,
Television Personalities,
PIL,
Cameo,
Crispy Ambulance,
Wings,
Dual Sessions,
Eurythmics,
Magazine,
The Pop Group,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Bill Near,
The Doors,
The Selecter,
the Normal,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Masters at Work,
Siglo XX,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
Boz Scaggs,
Cymande,
The Flesh Eaters,
Oblivians,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Jacques Brel,
Silicon Teens,
The Raincoats,
Bootsy Collins,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Public Enemy,
X-Ray Spex,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Ultra Naté,
Swans,
Marc Almond,
Hot Snakes,
Half Japanese,
Sixth Finger,
Terrestrial Tones,
Sparks,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Henry Cow,
The Grass Roots,
Soul Sonic Force,
Royal Trux,
Max Romeo,
Ralphi Rosario,
The Cosmic Jokers,
New Order, New Order, New Order, New Order.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.