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 Georgia and from Jakarta.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Feelies show in Haledon.
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 1961 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Shanghai and London.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manila 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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 Radiohead to the rap kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 London Community Gospel Choir. All the underground hits.
All Ash Ra Tempel tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Offenders record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and an oboe and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Crispian St. Peters record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a güiro.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Faust,
Don Cherry,
Nik Kershaw,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Faraquet,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Pantaleimon,
The Dead C,
Frankie Knuckles,
Barrington Levy,
Eyeless In Gaza,
Liaisons Dangereuses,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
Howard Jones,
The Slackers,
Subhumans,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Inner City,
Thee Headcoats,
Zero Boys,
The Offenders,
Derrick Morgan,
Scratch Acid,
T. Rex,
Boogie Down Productions,
The Misunderstood,
Jerry Gold Smith,
Aloha Tigers,
Tres Demented,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Aural Exciters,
the Bar-Kays,
The Detroit Cobras,
The Martian,
Flash Fearless,
T.S.O.L.,
Supertramp,
Tomorrow,
Jesper Dahlbäck,
The Flesh Eaters,
Spoonie Gee,
New Order,
Reagan Youth,
Jeff Mills,
The Barracudas,
Flamin' Groovies,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Erasure,
Cluster,
Cabaret Voltaire,
La Düsseldorf,
Pet Shop Boys,
The Fuzztones,
Animal Collective,
Al Stewart,
Harpers Bizarre,
Patti Smith,
Talk Talk,
Flipper, Flipper, Flipper, Flipper.
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.