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 Ivory Coast and from Jakarta.
But I was there.
I was there in 1980.
I was there at the first Cybotron show in Detroit.
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 1966 to 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Hong Kong and Delhi.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Beijing 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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the spring reverb 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 Con Funk Shun to the punk kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 Moebius. All the underground hits.
All The Leaves tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Radiopuhelimet record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Soft Cell record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
James White and The Blacks,
Thee Headcoats,
Traffic Nightmare,
FM Einheit,
Boredoms,
Maurizio,
Panda Bear,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Slick Rick,
Black Flag,
The Trojans,
Erasure,
Siglo XX,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Scientists,
Supertramp,
James Chance & The Contortions,
The Count Five,
Pussy Galore,
Audionom,
Funky Four + One,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Gang Gang Dance,
Cheater Slicks,
Kerri Chandler,
Warren Ellis,
Rakim,
Thompson Twins,
Hoover,
Byron Stingily,
Amon Düül,
Infiniti,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
Depeche Mode,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Stetsasonic,
Bill Wells,
Bad Manners,
Slave,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Youth Brigade,
Todd Rundgren,
The Barracudas,
Malaria!,
The Doors,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Don Cherry,
The Young Rascals,
8 Eyed Spy,
Nico,
Sonny Sharrock,
Qualms,
John Holt,
Deadbeat,
Section 25,
The Associates,
Grauzone,
Joey Negro,
Chrome,
Spoonie Gee,
Buzzcocks, Buzzcocks, Buzzcocks, Buzzcocks.
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.