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 Malawi and from Portland.
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 1961 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Seoul and Salvador.
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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the mellotron sounds with much patience.
I was there when Donald Fagen 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 Royal Family And The Poor to the disco kids.
I played it at the Troubador.
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 Ronan. All the underground hits.
All Kurtis Blow tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme 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 '80s.
I hear you're buying a güiro and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Grey Daturas record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a mellotron.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
X-102,
Laurel Aitken,
Terry Callier,
Black Flag,
The Wake,
Hasil Adkins,
Grauzone,
Sun Ra,
8 Eyed Spy,
Eden Ahbez,
Kaleidoscope,
Iggy Pop,
the Association,
Tomorrow,
Eric Copeland,
Skarface,
Jesper Dahlbäck,
The Real Kids,
The Associates,
Joe Finger,
Ronnie Foster,
Amon Düül II,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
The Invisible,
Gil Scott Heron,
Johnny Osbourne,
The Gap Band,
James White and The Blacks,
Althea and Donna,
Jawbox,
The Zeros,
Todd Terry,
The Monks,
Brick,
The Fire Engines,
Lou Christie,
Pagans,
Radiohead,
Stiv Bators,
Kurtis Blow,
The Neon Judgement,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Nico,
The Flesh Eaters,
Rosa Yemen,
The Pretty Things,
FM Einheit,
The Martian,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
The Gories,
Babytalk,
Scion,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
Bad Manners,
This Heat,
Mandrill,
Technova,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
MC5,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Lalo Schifrin,
Camouflage,
Young Marble Giants, Young Marble Giants, Young Marble Giants, Young Marble Giants.
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.