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 Saudi Arabia and from Hong Kong.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Art of Noise show in London.
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 1969 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Woodstock and Halifax.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Cairo 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 Tom Verlaine 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 Faust to the jazz 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 Brass Construction. All the underground hits.
All Notorious Big And Bone Thugs tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Motorama record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime 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 a spring reverb and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Qualms record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a chamberlin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Fugazi,
Lucky Dragons,
Scion,
Kerri Chandler,
Throbbing Gristle,
Ohio Players,
Terror Squad Feat. Camron,
Max Romeo,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Letta Mbulu,
Matthew Bourne,
Derrick May,
Barclay James Harvest,
Vladislav Delay,
Juan Atkins,
Kaleidoscope,
Zapp,
Absolute Body Control,
FM Einheit,
Davy DMX,
Don Cherry,
Jimmy McGriff,
Maleditus Sound,
New Order,
The Angels of Light,
Sandy B,
Ornette Coleman,
Dennis Brown,
The Star Department,
Terry Callier,
The Litter,
Trumans Water,
Lower 48,
Johnny Osbourne,
Ultravox,
The Toasters,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Peter & Gordon,
The Dead C,
Altered Images,
Malaria!,
The Vogues,
Amon Düül II,
Ludus,
Kurtis Blow,
Girls At Our Best!,
Marvin Gaye,
Section 25,
Y Pants,
Alton Ellis,
Jandek,
Neu!,
The J.B.'s,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Warren Ellis,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
The Names,
The Five Americans,
Suburban Knight,
the Slits,
La Düsseldorf,
Livin' Joy,
Eric Copeland, Eric Copeland, Eric Copeland, Eric Copeland.
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.