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 Jamaica and from Woodstock.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Bronski Beat show in Brixton.
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 1966 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lagos and Lille.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Beijing 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 clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Sun Ra Arkestra to the grime 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 Aural Exciters. All the underground hits.
All Joey Negro tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Gong 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bang On A Can record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Babytalk,
Pussy Galore,
Aloha Tigers,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Y Pants,
The Litter,
Ultra Naté,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Warren Ellis,
Hashim,
Make Up,
MC5,
Gang Gang Dance,
The Leaves,
Freddie Wadling,
Maleditus Sound,
Thee Headcoats,
Underground Resistance,
Gabor Szabo,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Circle Jerks,
Isaac Hayes,
World's Most,
The American Breed,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
Vladislav Delay,
Unwound,
Jandek,
The Vogues,
Eden Ahbez,
H. Thieme,
The Remains,
Radiohead,
Pole,
Siouxsie and the Banshees,
Mark Hollis,
The Slackers,
X-Ray Spex,
Davy DMX,
Anakelly,
Marcia Griffiths,
The Kinks,
Radio Birdman,
The Dirtbombs,
Sam Rivers,
The Move,
It's A Beautiful Day,
The Martian,
DJ Sneak,
Con Funk Shun,
Neu!,
Terror Squad Feat. Camron,
Gian Franco Pienzio,
Angry Samoans,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Juan Atkins,
Suburban Knight,
Aaron Thompson,
B.T. Express,
La Düsseldorf,
Röyhkä ja Rättö ja Lehtisalo,
Skaos, Skaos, Skaos, Skaos.
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.