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 Tanzania and from Philadelphia.
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 1962 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Spokane and Spokane.
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 1976 at the first Chic practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the 808 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 Peanut Butter Conspiracy to the crunk kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
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 Lyres. All the underground hits.
All Rekid tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Rapeman 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a synthesizer and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a H. Thieme record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a chamberlin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a rhodes.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Searchers,
Ituana,
Fugazi,
Joe Smooth,
Rites of Spring,
Suburban Knight,
Chris & Cosey,
The Misunderstood,
Silicon Teens,
The Wake,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
Trumans Water,
R.M.O.,
Wings,
Wally Richardson,
The Real Kids,
The Cure,
Ultra Naté,
Shoche,
Joensuu 1685,
The Star Department,
Hardrive,
Pet Shop Boys,
Eric Copeland,
The Associates,
Depeche Mode,
Youth Brigade,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
Cameo,
Deakin,
Technova,
The Mojo Men,
Eden Ahbez,
Idris Muhammad,
Soft Machine,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Tears for Fears,
Max Romeo,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Angry Samoans,
Jacob Miller,
UT,
Kas Product,
Letta Mbulu,
Electric Prunes,
Country Teasers,
Mantronix,
Mission of Burma,
Bobby Womack,
Grauzone,
Alton Ellis,
Moss Icon,
Bluetip,
The Flesh Eaters,
Colin Newman,
Jandek,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Make Up,
MC5,
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Erykah Badu,
The Gories, The Gories, The Gories, The Gories.
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.