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 Spokane.
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 1960 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Johannesburg and Manila.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Accra 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 snare 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 Country Joe & The Fish to the grunge kids.
I played it at the Roxy.
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 Glenn Branca. All the underground hits.
All Siouxsie and the Banshees tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Absolute Body Control record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal disco 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 theremin and a spring reverb and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Siouxsie and the Banshees record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Sound Behaviour,
Urselle,
Laurel Aitken,
Matthew Bourne,
The Smiths,
Terry Callier,
Faust,
Infiniti,
Glambeats Corp.,
Eyeless In Gaza,
the Sonics,
Magma,
Eli Mardock,
E-Dancer,
Little Man,
Ludus,
Pierre Henry,
Newcleus,
The Associates,
Ponytail,
The Slackers,
Lebanon Hanover,
The Dave Clark Five,
Desert Stars,
The Seeds,
The Neon Judgement,
Average White Band,
Mad Mike,
Ohio Players,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Malaria!,
Hardrive,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Bill Wells,
Cameo,
Grey Daturas,
The Birthday Party,
Von Mondo,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
The Gun Club,
Jawbox,
The Moody Blues,
AZ,
A Flock of Seagulls,
Archie Shepp,
Symarip,
B.T. Express,
Theoretical Girls,
Eden Ahbez,
Matthew Halsall,
Scan 7,
Oneida,
Yusef Lateef,
Mr. Review,
Yaz,
The Index,
Gregory Isaacs,
Brand Nubian,
Juan Atkins,
Pantaleimon,
Crash Course in Science, Crash Course in Science, Crash Course in Science, Crash Course in Science.
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.