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 Grenada and from Houston.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Bronski Beat show in Brixton.
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 1968 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Tokyo and Philadelphia.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Tokyo 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 1983 at the first Art of Noise practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the guitar 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 Fad Gadget to the grunge kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 James Chance & The Contortions. All the underground hits.
All Oneida 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 crunk 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 marimba and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a James Chance & The Contortions record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a 808.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The United States of America,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Jawbox,
Bill Near,
The Young Rascals,
Gil Scott Heron,
The Count Five,
Albert Ayler,
Fela Kuti,
Section 25,
the Germs,
Pharoah Sanders,
The Gories,
Lungfish,
10cc,
Groovy Waters,
Peter & Gordon,
The Saints,
Minutemen,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Motorama,
Saccharine Trust,
Joe Finger,
48th St. Collective,
Patti Smith,
Mr. Review,
Scan 7,
Scrapy,
Index,
Television,
The Human League,
The Cosmic Jokers,
The Blues Magoos,
Scion,
T.S.O.L.,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Cameo,
Joe Smooth,
Lou Reed,
Eden Ahbez,
Harry Pussy,
Country Teasers,
Circle Jerks,
Banda Bassotti,
The Invisible,
Scratch Acid,
Jesper Dahlback,
Bobby Byrd,
Rites of Spring,
The Black Dice,
Japan,
DeepChord presents Echospace,
Arcadia,
Blake Baxter,
Morten Harket,
Faust,
Sparks,
Slave,
Joey Negro,
Roger Hodgson,
Unwound,
Darondo,
The Shadows of Knight, The Shadows of Knight, The Shadows of Knight, The Shadows of Knight.
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.