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 Bahrain and from Philadelphia.
But I was there.
I was there in 1965.
I was there at the first Beefheart show in Lancaster.
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 1964 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lille and Paris.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Johannesburg 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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 Agitation Free to the techno 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 The Selecter. All the underground hits.
All The Doobie Brothers tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Section 25 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and a rhodes and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Gang Gang Dance record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a linndrum.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Alice Coltrane,
Byron Stingily,
The Angels of Light,
Hot Snakes,
Lee Hazlewood,
Fear,
Joensuu 1685,
Jawbox,
The Fuzztones,
Minutemen,
Hardrive,
Infiniti,
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
Todd Terry,
Duran Duran,
Grauzone,
ABC,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
Simply Red,
Gang of Four,
Aural Exciters,
The Blackbyrds,
Au Pairs,
Black Moon,
The Seeds,
Mad Mike,
Kas Product,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Thompson Twins,
Panda Bear,
A Certain Ratio,
Eric B and Rakim,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Jeff Mills,
The Doors,
Barry Ungar,
Camouflage,
Liaisons Dangereuses,
Grandmaster Flash,
Excepter,
Arab on Radar,
Kool Moe Dee,
Freddie Wadling,
Surgeon,
Faust,
June of 44,
Janne Schatter,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Banda Bassotti,
Metal Thangz,
Circle Jerks,
Cal Tjader,
Robert Görl,
Monks,
The Smiths,
Albert Ayler,
Goldenarms,
Yazoo,
Khruangbin,
The Alarm Clocks,
Mantronix, Mantronix, Mantronix, Mantronix.
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.