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 Honduras and from Taipei.
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 1962 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Philadelphia and Bremen.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Salvador 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 Mistral practice in a loft in Amsterdam.
I was working on the clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 New Order to the funk kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
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 Ituana. All the underground hits.
All Gian Franco Pienzio tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Mojo Men record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock 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 harpsichord and a 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Count Five,
Bill Wells,
Basic Channel,
The Names,
Khruangbin,
Brand Nubian,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Arab on Radar,
Severed Heads,
Fugazi,
Eli Mardock,
Leonard Cohen,
X-101,
Masters at Work,
Scott Walker + Sunn O))),
The Invisible,
Minor Threat,
The Sisters of Mercy,
Schoolly D,
Wolf Eyes,
One Last Wish,
the Sonics,
Piero Umiliani,
The Vogues,
Rapeman,
OOIOO,
Ronan,
June of 44,
Essential Logic,
Smog,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
The Flesh Eaters,
The United States of America,
Robert Hood,
Jerry Gold Smith,
Royal Trux,
Magma,
Avey Tare,
Eurythmics,
Kerrie Biddell,
The Moleskins,
Joey Negro,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Alice Coltrane,
La Düsseldorf,
Dennis Brown,
The Detroit Cobras,
Trumans Water,
MC5,
Jawbox,
Ultravox,
Faraquet,
Fad Gadget,
the Bar-Kays,
Niagra,
The Gories,
Animal Collective,
Gang of Four,
Wally Richardson,
Con Funk Shun,
Mark Hollis, Mark Hollis, Mark Hollis, Mark Hollis.
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.