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 Uzbekistan and from Bremen.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
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 1967 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Accra and Lille.
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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the 808 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 JFA to the dance kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 The Trojans. All the underground hits.
All Jacob Miller tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Jawbox 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a chamberlin and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Gang Gang Dance record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a spring reverb.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Marine Girls,
Moebius,
Sällskapet,
Scan 7,
Pulsallama,
Jerry's Kids,
Oneida,
Altered Images,
Popol Vuh,
The Vogues,
DNA,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Bluetip,
Rites of Spring,
Camouflage,
Alton Ellis,
Gabor Szabo,
The American Breed,
John Holt,
The Cramps,
Mark Hollis,
Eli Mardock,
Trumans Water,
Circle Jerks,
Bush Tetras,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Quadrant,
The Motions,
John Coltrane,
Gil Scott Heron,
Kerrie Biddell,
Al Stewart,
Soft Machine,
Silicon Teens,
Royal Trux,
Mandrill,
Godley & Creme,
Fela Kuti,
Simply Red,
Eve St. Jones,
Tommy Roe,
Minutemen,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Connie Case,
Deepchord,
The Invisible,
The Names,
Peter and Kerry,
Suicide,
the Fania All-Stars,
Bang On A Can,
Siglo XX,
June Days,
Todd Rundgren,
Radio Birdman,
Janne Schatter,
Byron Stingily,
The Neon Judgement,
Rufus Thomas,
June of 44,
Glenn Branca,
Stereo Dub,
X-102,
the Sonics, the Sonics, the Sonics, the Sonics.
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.