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 Rwanda and from Manchester.
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 1961 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Woodstock and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lyon 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 1971 at the first Neu! practice in a loft in Düsseldorf.
I was working on the snare sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 The Fall to the crunk 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 Nirvana. All the underground hits.
All Heaven 17 tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Sight & Sound record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock 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 guitar and a rhodes and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Zeros record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Funkadelic,
Sister Nancy,
Jawbox,
Dual Sessions,
Scientists,
Royal Trux,
10cc,
June of 44,
The United States of America,
Brass Construction,
The Black Dice,
Bob Dylan,
Wolf Eyes,
Grandmaster Flash,
Glambeats Corp.,
John Holt,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Be Bop Deluxe,
The Five Americans,
Niagra,
Chris Corsano,
Basic Channel,
X-101,
Bootsy Collins,
Terrestrial Tones,
The Human League,
Mo-Dettes,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Judy Mowatt,
Josef K,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Q and Not U,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
The Last Poets,
The Raincoats,
La Düsseldorf,
The Detroit Cobras,
Monolake,
Glenn Branca,
Amon Düül,
Marvin Gaye,
Jeff Mills,
The Selecter,
ABBA,
Cal Tjader,
Soul II Soul,
Michelle Simonal,
Danielle Patucci,
the Fania All-Stars,
Section 25,
The Seeds,
Youth Brigade,
Mary Jane Girls,
The Invisible,
Donald Byrd,
The Leaves,
Rod Modell,
Johnny Osbourne,
48th St. Collective,
JFA,
Depeche Mode, Depeche Mode, Depeche Mode, Depeche Mode.
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.