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 Mongolia and from Mexico City.
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 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Salvador and Accra.
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 1978 at the first Visage practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the 808 sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 New York Dolls to the dance 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 Teenage Jesus and the Jerks. All the underground hits.
All The Men They Couldn't Hang tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Nick Fraelich record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Harpers Bizarre record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Babytalk,
the Bar-Kays,
The Toasters,
Hoover,
Sex Pistols,
the Fania All-Stars,
Talk Talk,
Franke,
Archie Shepp,
The Victims,
Das Ding,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Fatback Band,
Black Moon,
The Men They Couldn't Hang,
Curtis Mayfield,
Hashim,
The Human League,
LL Cool J,
Pet Shop Boys,
Khruangbin,
U.S. Maple,
The Flesh Eaters,
Wire,
Mandrill,
Matthew Bourne,
Gil Scott Heron,
Zero Boys,
Depeche Mode,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
Grandmaster Flash,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Magma,
Eric Copeland,
Sun City Girls,
June of 44,
Deakin,
Adolescents,
Darondo,
Fat Boys,
New Age Steppers,
Jeff Mills,
Kool Moe Dee,
The Barracudas,
Funky Four + One,
Faust,
Suicide,
Negative Approach,
Goldenarms,
John Foxx,
Pierre Henry,
Sixth Finger,
Morten Harket,
Young Marble Giants,
Marcia Griffiths,
Kurtis Blow,
Moby Grape,
Tropical Tobacco,
The Royal Family And The Poor, The Royal Family And The Poor, The Royal Family And The Poor, The Royal Family And The Poor.
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.