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 Congo and from Johannesburg.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Art of Noise show in London.
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 1972.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Columbus and Manila.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lagos 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 Michael McDonald 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 Swans to the electroclash 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 Louis and Bebe Barron. All the underground hits.
All Tropical Tobacco 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 '70s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a spring reverb and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Nick Fraelich record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
the Slits,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Bush Tetras,
The Fortunes,
Patti Smith,
Neil Young,
Sight & Sound,
X-Ray Spex,
Lightning Bolt,
Bizarre Inc.,
The Royal Family And The Poor,
AZ,
Ituana,
Sam Rivers,
Fatback Band,
Graham Central Station,
Blossom Toes,
Don Cherry,
Gong,
X-101,
Scratch Acid,
Soft Machine,
Sällskapet,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Public Image Ltd.,
Al Stewart,
Pole,
the Association,
LL Cool J,
The Motions,
F. McDonald,
Moby Grape,
Basic Channel,
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
The Velvet Underground,
Nils Olav,
Los Fastidios,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Jacob Miller,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Crime,
Interpol,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Tommy Roe,
Arthur Verocai,
Ornette Coleman,
Grey Daturas,
Maleditus Sound,
The Gories,
Goldenarms,
Camron Feat. Memphis Bleek And Beenie Seigel,
Gang of Four,
Scott Walker,
Can,
Jacques Brel,
Cameo,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
Vladislav Delay,
Lebanon Hanover,
Faust,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Von Mondo,
The Tremeloes,
The Associates,
Cymande, Cymande, Cymande, Cymande.
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.