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 South Sudan and from Lille.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Neu! show in Düsseldorf.
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 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Madrid.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Toronto 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 at the first Suicide practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the theremin sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Steve Hackett to the grime 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 Yaz. All the underground hits.
All Second Layer tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Invisible record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Alarm Clocks record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Radio Birdman,
Boogie Down Productions,
Depeche Mode,
The Zeros,
Hoover,
Model 500,
Davy DMX,
Michelle Simonal,
Letta Mbulu,
Idris Muhammad,
Fatback Band,
Rufus Thomas,
OOIOO,
Sonic Youth,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
The Human League,
Second Layer,
Wasted Youth,
The Fire Engines,
Deakin,
The Fugs,
the Association,
Moss Icon,
Eddi Front,
Harpers Bizarre,
Visage,
Can,
Lou Reed,
Infiniti,
the Normal,
Theoretical Girls,
Crispian St. Peters,
Fluxion,
Scientists,
The Sound,
Mo-Dettes,
Byron Stingily,
Bluetip,
Wire,
Harry Pussy,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
Soft Cell,
Morten Harket,
Jerry's Kids,
Jawbox,
Mars,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Derrick May,
Reuben Wilson,
Terrestrial Tones,
Easy Going,
Peter and Kerry,
Iggy Pop,
The Move,
Flipper,
Leonard Cohen,
Outsiders,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Marshall Jefferson,
the Fania All-Stars,
New Order, New Order, New Order, New Order.
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.