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 Chile and from Beijing.
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 1963 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mumbai and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Spokane 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 1977 at the first Human League practice in a loft in Sheffield.
I was working on the spring reverb 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 MC5 to the techno kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Gregory Isaacs. All the underground hits.
All Eve St. Jones tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Blossom Toes record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge 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 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The New Christs record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
New Order,
Amazonics,
Todd Rundgren,
Grandmaster Flash,
James White and The Blacks,
Talk Talk,
Yellowson,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Circle Jerks,
Jeru the Damaja,
Terry Callier,
Audionom,
The Slackers,
the Association,
the Human League,
Nico,
Livin' Joy,
The Mighty Diamonds,
The Litter,
Lower 48,
Unrelated Segments,
Youth Brigade,
Lalann,
Sparks,
Excepter,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
The Searchers,
The Alarm Clocks,
Eyeless In Gaza,
The New Christs,
Agitation Free,
CMW,
Sonny Sharrock,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
L. Decosne,
48th St. Collective,
Lou Reed,
Bobby Byrd,
a-ha,
Curtis Mayfield,
The Electric Prunes,
Scion,
The Pop Group,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Pantytec,
Sex Pistols,
Chrome,
Sister Nancy,
Darondo,
In Retrospect,
Niagra,
Aaron Thompson,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Jesper Dahlback,
The Tremeloes,
Michelle Simonal,
The Music Machine,
Alton Ellis,
Albert Ayler,
Faraquet,
Stockholm Monsters, Stockholm Monsters, Stockholm Monsters, Stockholm Monsters.
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.