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 Slovakia and from London.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970.
I was there at the first Onyeabor show in Enugu.
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 1969 to 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mumbai and Lyon.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lagos 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 1973 at the first Television practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the oboe 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 E-Dancer to the funk kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 Pussy Galore. All the underground hits.
All The Dirtbombs tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Major Organ And The Adding Machine record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a chamberlin and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a David Bowie record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
K-Klass,
Mr. Review,
Shuggie Otis,
James Chance & The Contortions,
The Raincoats,
Moby Grape,
Black Pus,
The Barracudas,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Radiohead,
Television Personalities,
Gang of Four,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
The Busters,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
The Golliwogs,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
Public Image Ltd.,
Stetsasonic,
Harmonia,
Inner City,
Subhumans,
Jesper Dahlbäck,
Accadde A,
Amon Düül II,
The Moody Blues,
The J.B.'s,
The Offenders,
Lakeside,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
The Monochrome Set,
Max Romeo,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Jimmy McGriff,
Mandrill,
Agent Orange,
Public Enemy,
Little Man,
A Flock of Seagulls,
Jacques Brel,
Lungfish,
Joe Finger,
Skaos,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
Cybotron,
Drive Like Jehu,
New Age Steppers,
Neil Young,
Johnny Osbourne,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Niagra,
Das Ding,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Wally Richardson,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
New Order,
Sonic Youth,
Scan 7,
Wire,
Stockholm Monsters,
Slick Rick, Slick Rick, Slick Rick, Slick Rick.
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.